EdinburghNLP/nunavut-hansard-plusplus huggingface dataset:
What I am trying to say here is that the Department of Executive and Intergovernmental Affairs is the lead department.
I want them to be aware that not only to use up their budgets on studies, for instance, on Program Review trying to find out ways to cost save within Government.
I think that it is more important that these studies which are undertaken not to undermine the importance of resolving the problem.
Yes we are always looking at our operations and this Division of Evaluation and Statistics includes all communities.
They do population counts, household surveys, but whether they have adequate housing, this information is what we use to determine what we need and what financial needs there are.
There information we use in our planning and there has been a Program Review in our department.
Thank you. 2-7.
Branch Summary for the Executive and Intergovernmental Affairs.
Total Operations and Maintenance. $885 thousand.
Carried. 2-8.
Executive and Intergovernmental Affairs Branch Summary.
Total Operations and Maintenance, $1million, 186 thousand.
In the Intergovernmental Affairs has quite a responsibility in looking at the Summary.
This travel and transportation is quite a lot.
Is it just for travelling to the communities?
Yes, the largest amount, my Deputy Minister to my left has staff who are responsible for travel and transportation.
Chairperson (interpretation): Anything else. Mr. Arvaluk.
On the same page, I was very proud of the premier in Clyde River.
There was a Clyde River challenge that has to do with NNI and sometimes various organizations that are unhappy with health services and I think that the Department of Sustainable Development can probably deal with this.
But, on the issue of economic development for non-decentralized communities, we have noticed that Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated, we don’t know how fast Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated is getting with their mandate but the protocol that was set for the government for these three organizations on the agreement, so how can we find out to make sure that we are spending the services that we set out at the Bathurst Mandate whether they’re being used for the programs set out before.
The Clyde River Protocol that was signed at the time is going to be finished within four years.
We do look at that protocol to see where we stand and we make recommendations to see where improvements need to be made in the protocol set out in Clyde River.
Mr. Arvaluk: Would you consider expanding your possibility of reviewing the protocol, not necessarily on the NNI policy only, but on economic development, health issues that are a concern to all Nunavummiut, including organizations like Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated and other parties that have an interest in the well being of Nunavummiut.
The protocol is a document for both parties and I’ll take that as advice and present it to Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated to see if they are willing and we could put it on.
We have reviewed other things other than NNI.
We have placed Federal Government programs on that as well.
That list changes each time, depending on the circumstances on a given period.
Sometimes, we complete a project and we want to move onto other subjects.
Anything else. 2-8, Executive and Intergovernmental Affairs Branch Summary, total Operations and Maintenance, 1 million 186 thousand dollars.
Page 2-9, Executive and Intergovernmental Affairs, Branch Summary, Aboriginal and Circumpolar Affairs.
Total Operations and Maintenance, $762 thousand dollars.
My question is on the summary.
It talks about circumpolar region governments with government policies and positions towards aboriginal peoples.
I apologize that I haven’t talked to the premier about this but I had talked to someone who had worked for him in the past and there was a group that came from our community going on to Cape Dorset, in the 1940s, there was people who had been abducted and taken to Russia during the World War.
They were suspected they had been abducted by Russians.
I’m wondering if this department can do something about these Arctic Council related issues.
Is there any funding relating to issues such as this.
I know I can probably ask the appropriate department but my question is, does your department deal with these issues?
In our community there are families of those people who had been abducted and who should not have been taken to Russia.
They’re really eager to see where they are and they want to go see them and find out where they are.
So, I’m wondering if your department can be responsible for getting funding for that.
Chairperson (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Irqittuq. 2-9 and 2-10 are the same department so you’re question is right there on the Inuit Circumpolar Conferencing.
Premier Okalik, if you want to respond.
Yes, I can get our staff to look into this.
We have staff who work with the Arctic Council and different governments in other circumpolar countries and regions and we have been working with circumpolar indigenous groups, so I can direct our staff work with them.
But I can’t say for sure, we can locate those people that you’re talking about, but we can get our staff to do something about it.
I was just wondering if that could be covered in this department or division.
About the compensation and benefits. $543 thousand dollars had a decrease by about over $3 thousand so, these compensation and benefits are for aboriginal and circumpolar affairs.
So, on these divisions, are they separate and do they have aboriginal employees.
We have five employees and they are here.
They are in your department, so they work for the aboriginal and circumpolar affairs division?
Their job descriptions vary.
Some deal with Arctic Council related issues and circumpolar governmental issues.
They also relate to the implementation of the Nunavut Land Claim Agreement.
On my right, because you stated that the left and right were in the same division, I’d like clarification on the wording of this Inuit Circumpolar Conference.
What is this Inuit Circumpolar Conference? He’s reading out the Inuktitut terminology.
This is an organization that has a meeting every five years and there are Inuit from the circumpolar region and they have offices, with a secretary here in Iqaluit. Sheila Watt-Cloutier, is the president of Inuit Circumpolar Conference.
Last year they had a conference in Kuujjuaq.
They are an organization that represent Inuit from the circumpolar regions.
I’d like clarification on another question.
These are actual Inuit who sit on this Inuit Circumpolar Conference or do they have Qallunaat on this Inuit Circumpolar Conference as well.
Yes, if you’re going to be a member of this Inuit Circumpolar Conference, you have to be a member of Inuit organizations.
Although these organizations have different staff of Qallunaat and others, they are Inuit representatives from Alaska, Greenland, Russia and Canada.
I’m on the same page.
I asked earlier in this session, during question period, if the premier could create an independent commission to investigate the extent of damage caused by the Federal Government through the RCMP in eradicating Canadian Inuit dogs.
These were hunting dogs in the past.
And he was going to find out as to where the Qikiqtani Inuit Association is on this.
Can he give me an update as to the status of the Qikiqtani Inuit Association work.
What we’re doing is we’re looking into this and what we are doing too is we are talking with the Department of Justice to see how we can support their wishes.
We will be writing a letter to Qikiqtani Inuit Association to see how we can work together on this but we have not done anything thus far.
We are, however, doing some planning on it.
This effect is also in Kivalliq, Coral Harbour, Igloolik, and other places, Chesterfield Inlet.
Would he consider contacting other organizations like KIA also to see if there was also similar eradication of dogs there during that same period.
Chairperson (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Arvaluk. Mr. Okalik.
Yes, I can make that commitment and contact them and see what they are doing.
Total Operations and Maintenance, under 2-9. $761 thousand.
Decentralization Secretariat Branch Summary.
Total Operations and Maintenance. $567 thousand.
Under the Decentralization Secretariat, the Government is decentralizing to some communities, and they already agreed which communities were going to be decentralized.
They had to bring in staff where they keep on decentralizing positions?
Or as soon as they reach the limit, would that be it?
We want to be able to complete it this year.
We would also like to fill all the positions, and that would be the end of it and we would concentrate on other things.
There must be staff at the Decentralization Division.
How many positions do you have that work strictly for decentralization?
At this time there is five positions.
Chairperson (interpretation): Decentralization Secretariat.
Chairperson (interpretation): Branch Summary Nunavut Cabinet, 2-12.
Total Operations and Maintenance. $3 million, 694 thousand.
I have just got a couple of questions on the Nunavut Cabinet.
It is just for my information only.
The Premier’s Office includes salaries and operational expenses for the Premier, the Principal Secretary; office includes salaries and operational expenses for the seven Ministers and the support staff.
That is quite a large amount of money, $3 million, 694 thousand dollars a year.
Currently, what type of benefits do Cabinet Ministers get while living in Iqaluit in regards to housing?
There in one time assistance for relocation that I am aware of.
That is to offset the costs that they incur when relocating themselves from their home constituency.
So if an MLA from Baker Lake becomes a Cabinet Minister, and move to Iqaluit with his family.
How much of a benefit would that MLA get for housing? Would he get anything?
To rent a house because housing rents here are around $3 or 4 thousand a month.
So how much would an MLA get when he became a cabinet minister if he moved here?
Hon. Paul Okalik: Thank you Mr. Chair.
Yes, the cost would be covered for a minister relocating to Iqaluit.
So it would cover the cost of a house but you would also cover your own costs in your own community for your own house.
Chairperson (interpretation): Anything else Mr. McLean?
If you already live in Iqaluit like Mr. Picco and yourself do you get any kinds of benefits?
Hon. Paul Okalik: No.
I am getting the answers from the people that I shouldn’t be getting them from.
I am sure that Ed gets everything that he deserves.
My next question is how much does a Minister get for travel a year?
What is the ministers travel budget for each minister in a year?
Does it vary or is there a set rate?
Hon. Paul Okalik: It is a set rate but each minister has different responsibilities and has more travel than some so sometimes the ministerial budgets are shuffled to compensate for more travel for some ministers and less for others.
I like all those none answers that I am getting it’s really given me the wealth of information that I am asking for here this afternoon.
And maybe I will have to fill an access to information to find out how much a Minister gets to travel each year, what a Minister gets for housing benefits for a year, and relocation.
We all know what MLAs get because it’s published in the paper every year. And people make great delight telling us what we make.
But on the cabinet side it seems to be a secret and I am sure you have reasons why.
I am not asking for anything out of the ordinary here.
There’s $3.6 almost $3.7 million dollars here.
I am just trying to ask a question.
I am not trying to offend any of the Ministers over there.
I hope I am not offending any of them but I would just like to know.
That’s about all I got on this issue Mr. Chairman.
Mike each Minister is set at $45 thousand a year for travel.
But like I said, some ministers have to travel more than others.
So we adjust the budget between the ministerial budgets on occasion.
This is the question that I would like to ask the Premier and he can give it to me later if he doesn’t have it now.
Mr. Picco seems to travel the most of any minister because he tells me that he goes to a lot of conferences around Canada.
When he has time could he let me know what the health ministers travel budget was for last year because I would really like to know?
Because he is doing such a great job in Health and I really support the minister of Health.
Because if I think of the last 4 year he has done an excellent job and I hope he continues to stay there until the end of this term.
But I would really like to know what is the travel budget is for a year.
Hon. Paul Okalik: There are other Ministers that travel.
Minister Akesuk probably has the most extensive travel because of the many ministerial conferences that he has to attend.
So each minister varies and that is how we allocate our budget.
Total Operations and Maintenance 2-12, $3 million, 694 thousand dollars.
Commissioner of 2-13.
Total Operations and Maintenance. $185 thousand dollars.
Carried. 2-14 is information.
Going back to 2-4.
Department of Executive and Intergovernmental Affairs Department Summary.
Detail of Expenditures. 2-4.
I just have one more question for the minister responsible.
I heard that deputy ministers and assistant deputy ministers get performance bonuses on a yearly basis and I’m sure that they’re paid through there departmental budgets but I’m think I’m correct in saying that here, his department sets what each deputy minister, assistant deputy minister makes in bonuses a year.
Can you give me a rough idea what we paid out in bonuses to deputy minister and assistant deputy minister last year.
A lump sum like I don’t need each deputy minister and ADM but generally how much we paid out in bonuses last year to various deputy ministers and assistant deputy ministers.
If I could get back to the member with the figures.
I don’t have them with me right now.
Yes, I reviewed them with my secretary along with an evaluation of each deputy and assistance deputy minister.
So, I’ll get back to the member with the figures.
On that issue, you do evaluations I think on a yearly basis on deputy ministers.
I know it’s a tough subject but when you do an evaluation and you find that a deputy minister or assistant deputy minister hasn’t lived up to or hasn’t performed in the way that whoever evaluates them, figures out, what happens to them?
Do they get a pay decrease or what happens to them?
Are they given another chance or are they given warnings or stuff like that?
Depending on each situation.
Usually they don’t get much a bonus if they’re not living up to my expectations.
And we provide them with goals to accomplish for each year and we evaluate those accomplishments at year end and we make the decisions and work with the minister involved on how they feel that they’re deputies have performed since last year.
Just before we agree to the, maybe this has nothing to do with what we’re discussing right now but I just don’t know which minister I would ask this to.
It has to do with the minister’s salaries.
Is there a policy or a guideline in place for the salaries of the ministers?
What we do is we have a rule or policy in place for the salary payment to each minister.
We’ll get back to page 2-4.
Total Operations and Maintenance. $10 million, 495 thousand dollars.
Carried. Does the committee agree that we have completed the Department of Executive and Intergovernmental Affairs.
I would like to thank the Minister and his officials for appearing before the committee.
Can we take about a twenty minute break and when we get back we will deal with the Department of Health and Social Services opening remarks.
I would like to thank the Minister.
Does he have any last comments?
Hon. Paul Okalik (interpretation): I would like to say thank you to the Members for their comments and the questions.
Please keep me in line.
>>Committee recessed at 18:01 p.m. and resumed at 18:25 p.m.
Chairperson (interpretation): We have a quorum.
I would like to proceed with the Department of Health and Social Services.
Minister you have opening remarks?
Yes, Mr. Chairman, I do have some opening remarks and I would like to begin with my opening remarks if that’s okay with the committee. Thank you.
Chairperson (interpretation): Does the committee agree that he starts with his opening remarks. Agreed?
Mr. Chairman, I would like to thank you for the opportunity to present the 2003/2004 main estimates for the Department of Health and Social Services to the committee.
Before I begin, I would like to introduce Members of my staff who are with to today.
In the gallery you see Dr. Keith Best, Acting Deputy Minister of the Department of Health and Social Services as well as Don Maychruk who is the Director of Corporate services and throughout the next couple of day various staff members will join us.
The Department of Health and Social Services has the largest budget of all departments of the Government of Nunavut and that’s including capital. My department manages these funds to provide a wide range services and programs to promote, protect and enhance the health and social well-being of all Nunavummiut.
As well, we are making progress in our efforts to incorporate Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit (IQ) at all levels of service delivery and design.
The total departmental budget for 2003/2004 is $207.4 million.
Mr. Chairman, this includes $151.6 million for operations and maintenance.
It also includes $46.3 million for capital funding for three new health facilities and yes Mr. Chairman, $9.5 million for other capital projects.
The department continues to face, tank you, Mr. Chairman., the department continues to face major funding issues.
In February 2003, Mr. Chairman, the Financial Management Board, the FMB approved a $10 million supplementary appropriation for this current 2002/03 fiscal year.
Mr. Chairman, we maintain this increase is related to a historical shortfall in the main estimates allocation for the department and Mr. Chairman, it is important to note that this does not represent any funding for new programs.
Furthermore, Mr. Chairman, I have identified some of the following as key causes for the departmental fiscal shortfall:
The continued need to hire agency nurses to ensure safe staffing levels in communities which will reach a projected cost of $4.5 million dollars for 2002/03;
The on-going challenges of recruiting and retaining long-term physicians for the territory;
An increase in the number of children placed in care in Nunavut;
An increase in the number of children and adults placed in specialized care in southern facilities;
An increase of admissions to shelters and Elders’ facilities, which translate into increased funding requests from these agencies to accommodate the additional operating costs
An increase in the number of patient visits to health centres over the pat year;
An increase in the number of patients requiring treatment of outside of their home community, which has resulted in the increased expenditures for both scheduled medical travel and medivacs;
Also, Mr. Chairman, an increase in the number of patients travelling out of their communities for hospital and need more costly procedures;
A further implication to the longer lengths of stay at hospitals is that over the past year we have seen a significant, Mr. Chairman, a significant increase in the cost of an in-patient bed day in all Canadian hospitals.
Within the reciprocal billing arrangement, Nunavut is obligated to pay the newly revised rates.
What that means Mr. Chairman, for children a child to stay at the paediatric hospital, over night for example, in eastern Ontario which would be Ottawa, it cost us from $1,675.00 per day and it’s now increased to $1,760 per day.
When we have patients in Ottawa or the patient costs here in Edmonton or Winnipeg or where ever those hospitals of course charge those costs back to us.
It’s not done for free.
It’s about $1,675.00 right now.
I am providing each of you a copy of a table which shows increases in both medivac and scheduled medical travel over the past four years.
However, the department has undertaken strategies which the committee and the Members here have asked for to offset some of these uncontrollable cost drivers in our system.
For example, the recent negotiations with medivac providers and the new contracts for scheduled medical travel, which should be completed shortly, should help to compensate for the increased frequency of all the medical travel.
For this coming fiscal year, the Financial Management Board has approved an additional 1 million dollars to carry out new initiatives and enhance program delivery for 2003/2004.
Mr. Chairman, with these resources, our department will target the development of a maternity care worker program, additional funding for these workers, and in 2003/2004, the development of these three additional birthing centres in Nunavut.
Part of the 1 million dollars will also be earmarked for our nursing retention strategy and the development of an outreach detoxification service with minimal residential component, and the creation of a decentralized medical travel office.
The department will continue the implementation of the mental health and addictions strategy by expanding the services of outreach programs with an increase emphasis on suicide prevention.
Mr. Chairman, the Department of Health and Social Services is committed to the needs of individuals and our communities.
We will continue to provide funding for our committees of council and we will increase our efforts to seek the wisdom and advice of elders to ensure that our services and programs are culturally relevant.
As mentioned, the department continues to face many challenges with nursing recruitment and retention.
In addition to our continue financial support to Nunavut Arctic College for the nursing program, we will continue to examine incentive options for nurses who come to Nunavut and stay for extended periods of time.
We continue to implement Health Canada’s First Nations and Inuit Home and Community Care Program in all communities across Nunavut.
This upcoming fiscal year, Nunavut will receive federal funding in the amount of 4.9 million dollars to provide basic home and community care services that are comprehensive, culturally sensitive, accessible and effective to Nunavummiut.
Mr. Chairman, we’ve already talked a little bit about or capital, I won’t go into that.
I’ll continue on with my own readings.
As Members are aware, the efforts of our premier and his fellow premiers from the Northwest Territories and the Yukon when I was with them at the meetings in Ottawa, has resulted in the Federal Government recognising the unique problems the cost of providing health and social services in our three territories.
As Minister of Health and Social Services, I am optimistic that the Federal Government in it’s negotiations and discussions with the territories will demonstrate it’s understanding of our needs.
This will mean we will move close to being able to provide comparable programs and services to all Nunavummiut that southern Canadians take for granted.
Mr. Chairman, I appreciate having this opportunity in addressing the Committee of the Whole and I now look forward to your questions and comments as we review the department’s estimates.
Very interesting opening remarks.
Do you have your witnesses with you?
Does the committee agree that he invite his witnesses?
Sergeant-at-Arms, would you escort the minister and his witnesses to the table.
Minister if you can introduce your witnesses and if you can introduce them to us because we need to know who they are.
Mr. Chairman, with me today, on my left is the Director of Corporate Services, Financial Direction and all around financial controller Mr. Don Maychruk.
On my immediate right is Mr. Keith Best who is the acting deputy minister for the Department of Health and Social Services and also in the gallery is the policy analyst for the Department of Health and Social Services Laura Idlout.
Any opening comments from the standing committee.
The Standing Committee on Health and Education has reviewed the budget estimates and business plan of the Department of Health and Social Services for the 2003/2004 fiscal year and I am pleased to provide you with the committee’s comments.