EdinburghNLP/nunavut-hansard-plusplus huggingface dataset:
When that $5 million was announced for replacing generators in Nunavut to put more fuel efficient generators in, how did the corporation come up with which communities they were going to replace those units in?
It is my understanding that in that process, our engineering team, through the evaluations that were done on the existing equipment that is out there in the communities, determined that those were the priorities.
They brought those forward to the board of directors and they would have been approved by the board of directors.
Again, Mr. Speaker, I can say that I think the issue of some of these plants in different communities requiring upgrade and maintenance is something that may not have been looked as closely in the past as it is now.
The corporation is looking at focusing on what its core business is and that is keeping the lights on in the communities.
So given that mentality, they reviewed the entire infrastructure that it has in the communities, prioritized them, and brought the list to the board of directors, and that is how it would have been chosen.
My next question would be I think there were eight communities that are receiving new generator units.
Are those eight communities the ones that have the oldest generator units in the system?
I don’t know if it’s the oldest. In some cases, it’s a capacity issue and in some cases, there could be some serious problems or some potential serious problems in the community.
As far as the actual age categorizing of all of the plants, I don’t have that information, but if the member likes, I could get that to him if he wishes.
Tabled Document 147 – 3(2): NNI Contracting Appeals Board Annual Report 2008-2009 (Taptuna)
I would like to table the following document: NNI Contracting Appeals Board Annual Report 2008-2009.
Tabled Document 148 – 3(2): Presentation by the Department of National Defence on the Nanisivik Naval Facility Project (Elliott)
I wish to table a copy of a presentation that was given last month by officials from the Department of National Defence concerning the proposed Nanisivik Naval Facility Project.
This presentation was prepared for special meetings held with the Hamlet Council of Arctic Bay, Government of Nunavut officials, and Inuit organizations.
Included with it is the Inuit Participation and Engagement Plan from Worley Parsons Westmar, the architectural and engineering consulting firm hired to engineer the facility.
I encourage all members to review the material with care.
Tabled Document 149 – 3(2): Child and Youth Advocate Chapter from the Canadian Paediatric Society’s “Are We Doing Enough?” Status Report (Elliott)
I wish to table a chapter of the Canadian Paediatric Society’s status report on Canadian public policy and child and youth health.
The chapter addresses child and youth advocate initiatives across Canadian jurisdictions.
Mr. Speaker, I would note that in answer to the underlying question “Are we doing enough?” it is quite clear that Nunavut, the Northwest Territories, and PEI have all demonstrated a poor record to date in addressing the need to establish an independent child and youth advocate.
Tabled Document 150 – 3(2): Community Justice Committee & Family Abuse Intervention Act – Year-End Report 2008-09 (Peterson)
I would like to table the following document: Community Justice Committee and Family Abuse Intervention Act – Year-End Report 2008-09.
Tabled Document 151 – 3(2): GN’s Response to the Standing Committee on Oversight of Government Operations and Public Accounts’ Report on the Review of the Annual Report of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Nunavut (Aariak)
I would like to table the following document: Report on the Review of the Annual Report of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Nunavut.
I have a document to table also.
Tabled Document 152 – 3(2): Speaker’s List of Outstanding Statutory Tabling Requirements (Speaker)
I wish to table today a list of outstanding statutory tabling requirements.
This list is current as of the end of the March 19, 2010 sitting of the Legislative Assembly.
Motion 019 – 3(2): Referral of Tabled Documents 13 – 3(2), 66 – 3(2), 99 – 3(2), and 100 – 3(2) to Committee of the Whole – Notice (Elliott)
I give notice that on Tuesday, June 1, 2010, I will move the following motion:
NOW THEREFORE I MOVE, seconded by the Hon. Member for South Baffin, that Tabled Document 13 – 3(2): Return to Written Question 2 – 3(1); Tabled Document 66 – 3(2): 2008-2009 Lease Activity Report; Tabled Document 99 – 3(2): Contract Activity Report 2008-09; and Tabled Document 100 – 3(2): Procurement Activity Report 2008-09 be referred to the Committee of the Whole for concurrent consideration.
Motion 020 – 3(2): Extended Adjournment – Notice (Elliott)
I give notice that on Wednesday, March 24, 2010, I will move the following motion:
I MOVE, seconded by the Hon. Member for Amittuq, that notwithstanding Rule 4, that when the House concludes its present sitting in Iqaluit, it shall be adjourned until June 1, 2010.
Motion 021 – 3(2): Amendment of the Terms of Reference of the Standing Committee of the Third Legislative Assembly of Nunavut – Notice (Aupaluktuq)
NOW THEREFORE I MOVE, seconded by the Hon. Member of Tununiq, that the Terms of Reference of the Standing Committees of the Third Legislative Assembly of Nunavut be amended to provide the Standing Committee on Social Wellness with oversight responsibility for Nunavut Arctic College.
Motion 017 – 3(2): Comprehensive Performance Audit of the Qulliq Energy Corporation (Okalik)
(interpretation ends) WHEREAS Members of the Legislative Assembly have raised serious concerns regarding the financial, billing, contracting, procurement, leasing, and human resources management practices of the Qulliq Energy Corporation;
AND WHEREAS the Qulliq Energy Corporation has not yet made available its annual business plans for the 2008-09, 2009-2010, or 2010-11 fiscal years;
AND WHEREAS chapter 6 of the Auditor General of Canada’s 2004 report to the Legislative Assembly of Nunavut contained a number of observations and recommendations regarding the operations of the Qulliq Energy Corporation;
AND WHEREAS the extent to which the corporation has addressed these observations and recommendations is not clear;
AND FURTHER I MOVE that the audit also examine the extent to which the Qulliq Energy Corporation has or has not addressed the recommendations contained in the 2004 Report of the Auditor General of Canada to the Legislative Assembly of Nunavut.
Mr. Okalik (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Speaker. (interpretation ends) I am very pleased to have the opportunity to speak to my motion today and I would like to thank my colleague from Tununiq for having seconded it.
Mr. Speaker, I will use my time today to clearly outline for the House the reasons why this motion deserves unanimous support.
I believe that all members will ultimately conclude that opposing the motion would not serve the public interest.
Mr. Speaker, as you are aware, Members of this House have raised serious concerns and questions regarding the operations of the Qulliq Energy Corporation.
I will take a moment to cite these examples.  As a number of my colleagues have noted during our current sitting, annual reports on the contracting, procurement and leasing activities of our major Crown corporations, including the QEC, have not been tabled in this House in a timely manner.
We have no idea how much they have been spending or what they have been spending it on.
Mr. Speaker, as of yesterday afternoon, the most recent business plan available for the corporation on their website was for 2007-08. As MLAs, we have not yet been provided with the corporation’s business plans from 2008 to today.
We have no idea what they are planning to do.
Earlier in the session, I raised serious questions concerning the corporation’s human resources management practices.
A number of these concerns have been brought to my attention by courageous Inuit employees of the corporation who were not afraid to speak out.
We have no idea of how the corporation will address these issues beyond issuing nice, congratulatory statements in our Assembly.
We know that the corporation wants to build a new corporate office building here in Iqaluit, despite the fact that its headquarters are in Baker Lake.
We know that residential and business customers have raised concerns with their MLAs about the corporation’s pattern of billing.
Mr. Speaker, as the QEC gets ready to bring forward its General Rate Application, now is the proper time to examine its actual operations.
Mr. Speaker, an important report was presented during this Assembly to our committee on oversight.
My colleagues on the committee noted that the importance of periodically following up on audits should be conducted on the past so that we can rest assured that their operations are “sound and prudent,” in my colleague’s words.
As some of my colleagues will recall, chapter 6 of the Auditor General of Canada’s report to our Assembly exposed a number of serious issues for the corporation.
As it has been over half a decade since this report was considered, I am confident that we can and should look at their operations further.
Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased, pursuant to Rule 59, to give all my members the opportunity to demonstrate their commitment to accountability and sound, prudent financial management by calling on all members to support this motion. (interpretation) Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I also want to thank the mover and the seconder for the motion.
When I ran for office in my community, I expressed quality of service to enhance quality of life to my community as well as Nunavut.
My mandate and directive is for my constituents. Many have come forward and have asked me to ask of real issues and matters that pertain to the issues of Qamani’tuarmiut and it is my job to ensure that this also applies to all of Nunavut.
In my December Member’s Statement before Christmas break, I welcomed all skills to Nunavut to enhance service delivery in all areas of Nunavut’s professions.
I expressed that it is a privilege to work and live in Nunavut and that I asked that all remember that there are protocols, etiquette, procedures, Code of Ethics, Code of Conduct, vision and mission statements in place to ensure service to clients directly and indirectly is of quality.
I would stress that all departments, corporations, organizations, and businesses that the general public is aware of history, actions, and communication at community, regional, and territorial levels.
As public officials, it is our job to scrutinize, enquire, and also to contribute to resolving issues that may affect all Nunavummiut in all areas. This applies to all areas of administration practices, procurement of bills, employee travel and claims, hiring practices, retaining employees, staff housing, authorization and approval procedures.
These are just some examples that I hope that we can resolve to best service the people of Nunavut and all of the clients directly and indirectly as well.
I do acknowledge the sincere hard work that all staff and management do in the departments, but collectively, we all must exercise transparency and accountability to ensure that we have best practices as a whole and collectively to practice accountability and to all constituents, communities, and Nunavummiut. I guess what we are being held accountable for by the general public is to ensure that we are, in turn, accountable and transparent as a government.
I do support all of the staff and members of the Qulliq Energy Corporation, but I also want to stress as well that this motion will best service Nunavummiut.
With that in mind, it is up to us as public officials to enhance service of delivery and that also means becoming aware and educated in terms of what the issues are and where we can fix things.
Mr. Speaker, as a result, I fully support the intent and I’m in favour of the motion.
It’s like a déjà vu day today. Mr. Speaker, I remember, I believe it was February 22, 2005, when I moved almost an identical motion over there calling on the Auditor General to do a comprehensive audit on the Qulliq Energy Corporation.
Mr. Speaker, at that time, the government of the day made comments like, “It’s already being done right now through the normal course of the audit that get done annually by the Auditor General of Canada.” The government of the day then said, “That’s what’s occurring.
We don’t need the motion. It’s moot.” The government of the day then also indicated that they believed, in their opinion, that the motion was more like window dressing.
Mr. Speaker, I think that when that motion was made on February 22, 2005, I want to make it clear that at that time, it was defeated by the government of the day. The regular members at the time supported the motion, but it was the government of the day that defeated that motion for an audit to happen.
Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased that the member has made that motion. I myself and I’m sure my colleagues will be supporting the motion.
Mr. Speaker, I know that since this government has been in place, the corporation has gone under a lot of changes. We’ve got a new president and CEO, as well as many other senior managers. Mr. Speaker, I look forward to the audit identifying some of the things that the corporation has done and I’ll list a few of them.
Mr. Speaker, as a result of the last audit that the member talks about in 2004, something that’s happened is there has been a comprehensive employee survey completed to get a clear understanding of the internal status of the corporation. The senior management was actually asking its staff to tell them what they thought of how things were going and welcomed that feedback from its employees.
There has been an implementation of a budgeting system that instils accountability and consistency; a complete analysis of old financial processes resulting in the redesigning of the processes used, all of the previously dormant diamond financial system, to produce meaningful and accurate financial reporting; the recruitment and selection of a high-level chief financial officer talent to lead the change and improvements within finance and to create a sustainable finance department; the realignment of the board of directors to include the expertise in financial management; and revenue accounting and billing are being completely restructured.
Mr. Speaker, also, there have been management and the HR department that designed and implemented a corporate performance management program that provides all employees at all levels their positional expectations and goals and holds each person accountable for achieving their expected results.
Mr. Speaker, it’s my understanding that this system is being looked at to be used by other entities within the GN.
Mr. Speaker, as I said, a lot of this hard work has not been easy for the corporation staff, but I have talked to them and I’m sure they welcome this audit to be able to identify the successes that they have made and the strides that they have made to act on the way things were in the past and move forward.
I look at it and they look at it as if it will be a positive reinforcement for them, for the hard work that they have done and what they have been trying to do to improve things so that the corporations runs much more effectively and efficiently.
Mr. Speaker, it will also provide them with an opportunity, as any audit does, if there is anything else that they can do to try and improve things, they would look forward to that feedback coming back in the audit so that they can further improve the way that the corporation is going.
So, Mr. Speaker, with that, I would like to thank the mover and seconder for that, and hopefully everybody supports that motion this time.
To the motion. (interpretation) I have no more names on my list. Does the mover of the motion have any last reply?
Mr. Okalik (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Speaker. (interpretation ends) I am very pleased that the minister is quite open to supporting this motion.
If we recall, there had just been an audit in 2004. So a year later, another audit did not make a whole lot of sense at the time.
I am very pleased that my colleague is more than willing to support this motion.
Further, I had never seen an entity so far that hasn’t tabled plans for the last three years now, so that’s something that I think raises some question marks for everyone and red flags everyone that look, perhaps there has to be something taken to make sure that things are going okay when plans aren’t being tabled in a timely matter.
So with that, I appreciate the support of all of my colleagues in this Assembly, and I look forward to getting the job done so that we can move on and find ways to improve all of our entities as a territory. (interpretation) Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Please note that the motion was carried unanimously.
Motion 019 – 3(2): Referral of Tabled Documents 13 – 3(2), 66 – 3(2), 99 – 3(2), and 100 – 3(2) to Committee of the Whole (Elliott)
WHEREAS the Government of Nunavut’s most recent annual reports on its procurement, contracting and leasing activities have been tabled in the Legislative Assembly;
AND WHEREAS similar information concerning the Nunavut Housing Corporation’s activities has also been tabled in the Legislative Assembly;
AND WHEREAS Members of the Legislative Assembly have raised a number of concerns and questions with respect to these activities;
The motion is in order. Question has been called. All those in favour, raise your hand.
The member is seeking unanimous consent to deal with this motion day.
There are none. Please proceed, Mr. Aupaluktuq.
Motion 021 – 3(2): Amendment of the Terms of Reference of the Standing Committee of the Third Legislative Assembly of Nunavut (Aupaluktuq)
WHEREAS the Terms of Reference of the Standing Committees of the Third Legislative Assembly were adopted by the House on January 26, 2009;
AND WHEREAS the Standing Committee on Social Wellness presently has oversight responsibility for the Department of Education and the Standing Committee on Oversight of Government Operations and Public Accounts presently has oversight responsibility for Nunavut Arctic College;
AND WHEREAS it is desirable for both entities to fall under the oversight responsibilities of the same standing committee;
NOW THEREFORE I MOVE, seconded by the Hon. Member for Tununiq, that the Terms of Reference of the Standing Committees of the Third Legislative Assembly of Nunavut be amended to provide the Standing Committee on Social Wellness with oversight responsibility for Nunavut Arctic College.
(interpretation) Thank you. (interpretation ends) To the motion.
I am very pleased to have the opportunity to speak briefly to my motion today and I would like to thank my colleague from Tununiq for having seconded it.
Mr. Speaker, as I noted in my motion, the terms of reference for the standing committees of the Third Legislative Assembly were adopted by the House on January 26, 2009.
Our committees have been in operation for just under 14 months and it is appropriate that we be prepared to make periodic adjustments to their structure and responsibilities.
As I noted in my motion, the Standing Committee on Social Wellness, which I have the honour of serving as Chair, presently has oversight responsibility for the Department of Education.
However, a different committee has had oversight responsibility for Nunavut Arctic College.
In discussions with my colleagues, we have concluded that it would be desirable for the same committee to have responsibility for both the Department of Education and Nunavut Arctic College.
As members are aware, Nunavut Arctic College’s main estimates, capital estimates, and business plan are now considered separately from those of the Department of Education.
Although different ministers are responsible for the college and the department and although the college’s capital estimates are formally appropriated through those of the Department of Finance, the responsibilities of the Department of Education and Nunavut Arctic College are closely related.
Accordingly, the passage of this housekeeping motion will make the appropriate change to our committees’ terms of reference.
I am confident that both the department and the college will welcome this change given that it will help our members to strengthen their scrutiny of both the department and the college.
There are no nays. Please proceed, Mr. Elliott.
Motion 020 – 3(2): Extended Adjournment (Elliott)
I move, seconded by the Hon. Member for Amittuq, that notwithstanding Rule 4, that when the House concludes its present sitting in Iqaluit, it shall be adjourned until June 1, 2010.
Further, that at any time prior to June 1, 2010, if the Speaker is satisfied, after consultation with the Executive Council and Members of the Legislative Assembly, that the public interest requires that the House should meet at an earlier time during adjournment, the Speaker may give notice and thereupon the House shall meet at the time stated in such notice and shall transact its business as if it had been duly adjourned to that time.
Bills 14, 21, 22, 23, and 25, Tabled Documents 13 – 3(2), 66 – 3(2), 99 – 3(2), and 100 – 3(2) with Mr. Schell in the Chair.
In accordance to the authority provided to me by Motion 6 – 3(2), the Committee of the Whole will stay in session until it reports itself out.
>>House recessed at 15:31 and Committee resumed at 16:01
Chairman (Mr. Schell): I would like to call the committee meeting to order. In Committee of the Whole, we have the following items to deal with: Bill 14, Bill 21, Bill 22, Bill 23, and Bill 25, and Tabled Documents 13 – 3(2), 66 – 3(2), 99 – 3(2), and 100 – 3(2).
What is the wish of the committee? Mr. Aupaluktuq.
We will continue with the review of the Department of Culture, Language, Elders and Youth, followed by the Department of Human Resources and the Department of Environment.
If time permits, we will commence with the review of the Department of Executive and Intergovernmental Affairs.
Chairman: Are we in agreement that we continue with the main estimates for Culture, Language, Elders and Youth?
Chairman: Minister Tapardjuk, do you have witnesses that you would like to bring to the table?
Hon. Louis Tapardjuk (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. To my left is the Acting Deputy Minister, Naullaq Arnaquq, and to my right is Doug Stenton, Acting Assistant Deputy Minister of CLEY, Mr. Chairman.
Chairman: We’re on F-6 right now. Are there any questions? Culture, Language, Elders and Youth.
Branch Summary. Taiguusiliuqtiit. Total Operations and Maintenance, to be Voted. $2,040,000.
Chairman: We will go to the next page. Branch Summary.
Culture, Language, Elders and Youth. Culture and Heritage. Are there any questions?
An Hon. Member: Under F-7?
Chairman: Yes, F-7.
During my general opening comments, I alluded to Inuit societal values and our cultural identity as items that can only be protected by Inuit. In my opinion, only Inuit can present these values and identity. Since these issues were originally voiced by Inuit approximately 40 years ago, it is finally becoming a reality.
However, the reality still is that the majority of these items are largely undocumented and unwritten.
Firstly, I wish to ask this: do you work on these issues as part of the development of curriculum within the Nunavut Arctic College literature development system?
I would like to cite this example. Quite a number of individuals have had their profiles written up, perhaps five of us.
These profiles were written up by Mr. Dent, including his father who assisted him. He informed me that these profiles are just sitting on a shelf at Arctic College and have never been distributed at all since there is no money to publish and disseminate these profiles.
Therefore, I would like to ask a question with regard to the community libraries. Has there been any attempt to train Inuit librarians in the communities?
I would like to see them taught about Inuit history and historical books containing references to Inuit, Inuit culture and traditions written by non-Inuit authors. In particular, I would want them to search for books that speak about Inuit culture, language, or traditions.