EdinburghNLP/nunavut-hansard-plusplus huggingface dataset:
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to talk about the Government’s commitment to education and before I continue I would like to commend the Minister for her statement and I look forward to seeing some progress in that area and other areas that they are going to be mentioning here as well, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, as a Member of this Legislative Assembly, I was very pleased that one of the four stated priorities of this Government, as expressed in the Bathurst Mandate, was continued learning.
One of the specific objectives in that area was to improve student/teacher ratios Nunavut-wide.
This is a worthy goal, one which I whole heartedly supported.
As the end of the school year draws near, here in some places preparations get underway for the 2003-2004 school year, we have been hearing concerns from the District Education Authorities from the Nunavut’s most western community, Kugluktuk, to one of its most eastern communities in Iqaluit, that the number of teaching positions might be reduced in the upcoming year.
Yesterday, the Minister of Education made a no-layoff commitment and I applaud her for that.
However, long-term challenges remain acute.
Mr. Speaker, information provided by the Minister of Education in response to my written question on March 19th, indicates that the number of students enrolled in Nunavut schools has increased by 588 students over the past four years.
This is an increase of 6% of the number of students since 1999-2000 and yet, at the same time period, there has only been 3% increase in the number of funded teaching positions, only 19 teaching positions since 1999-2000, despite the fact that almost 600 more students are in our schools.
Mr. Speaker, over a year ago, the Minister of Education tabled a discussion paper on funding options for Nunavut schools.
It was the recommended to modify the student funding formula with specific reference to lowering... Mr. Speaker, I wish to seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.
Speaker: The Member is seeking unanimous consent to conclude his statement, are there any nays?
Mr. Tootoo: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It was recommended modifying student funding formula with specific reference to lowering the student/teacher ratio, that objective is so nobly stated in the Bathurst Mandate.
The report went on to recommend that a minimum of 25 new teaching positions be added for the 2003-2004 school year, while the second option recommended that 60 new positions be added.
Mr. Speaker, there is no indication that the number of students in our classrooms will decrease during the coming school year.
I am sure, in fact, that there will be even more.
There is no indication that the recommendation for modifying the school funding formula had been taken into consideration.
It is clear to me, Mr. Speaker; the reality is a poor substitute for what Nunavut schools really need.
Mr. Speaker, at the appropriate time, I will be asking the Minister responsible questions on this.
Member’s Statement 543 – 1(6): Encourage Nunavummiut to Take Control
Mr. Speaker, I would like to speak to the people of Nunavut and to my honourable colleagues here in the House.
I need to talk about the things that are concerns for the people of Nunavut, especially for the people that have lived long in Nunavut are not in control of what their needs are.
Whenever there are people who are non-resident to Nunavut, when they come to up here they start controlling what we are supposed to do.
I would like to say this to the people of Nunavut, to the adults and the Elders and the young people.
We now have our own government here in Nunavut and we should be in control of what we want to do.
As for the people who are non-resident to Nunavut, I would not like them to control us because we can take care of our own affairs.
We can do whatever we want to do and we know what is happening in our own communities.
Whenever some non-residents to Nunavut come into town, they assume the positions of higher jobs.
When we come in control and residents of Nunavut start to become leaders in our own land, we would like to be able to continue on with our traditional ways, together with modern ways, in controlling our own affairs in our own land.
We now have had our own government for 4 years.
We do not want to bring up high technology right away into our communities; we want to control what we will use.
We have a lot of years ahead of us to make rules for our own use here in Nunavut and I encourage the young people to gain the skills to start controlling the government of Nunavut and their own communities.
I would like to encourage them and I know you can do it because you have the technology and we can make our own laws without importing it from the southern regions.
We can do it as the people Nunavut.
If we were not residents here as Inuit, there would not be a Nunavut Government.
Mr. Iqaqrialu (interpretation): I would like unanimous consent to conclude my statement.
Mr. Speaker, the people of Nunavut should not just be submissive, but they should be in control of their own destiny.
We should not be treated as people that cannot do our own.
So, for this reason, that is why I speak about things that are of concern to me and the people of Nunavut because I became a Member of the Legislature to help and to support the people of Nunavut.
I would like to say thank you very much to the people of Clyde River and Broughton Island that I am able to represent you here in this House and to voice your concerns in the House.
Member’s Statement 544 – 1(6): Standardized Testing in Nunavut
Maybe it is formal today, I do not know.
I am standing up before you and I am very happy about what the Minister of Education said earlier and our students have to be prioritized because we are part of Canada.
Mr. Speaker, our students are very special to us and although they know a lot more English than we do, the education is very necessary and is needed very badly and I am very happy about the testing being done now.
There are many students who have dropped out.
If they did not drop out, they would have benefited the people of Nunavut.
Although they are going to school, they are not learning very much sometimes.
Maybe what I am saying is not true, but I know it is true in certain communities they each have a different way of teaching.
I think the curriculum should be with the rest of Canada because we are using a different curriculum for testing in our community, the Alberta curriculum right now.
Alberta testing is the minimum and it is not too strong, it is not too weak and I am going to stress for our students to stay in school.
Member’s Statement 545 – 1(6): In Support of Collection of Stories from Elders
Mr. Speaker, what Hon. Peter Kilabuk has said earlier from Department of Culture, Language, Elders and Youth, who has become a Department of Culture, Language, Elders and Youth Minister now and what is expected by the people of Nunavut is, I am sure that he is going to do his best to work on what Department of Culture, Language, Elders and Youth wants.
Mr. Speaker, to clarify this more, because a lot of times it is said, the Elders are diminishing in number and they have not been taped and they have not been video taped.
It is, although we are going to continue to have Elders because we are going to be Elders one day, my father has become 82 years of age and I am very, very happy about him and he knows about traditional knowledge that I am not aware of.
Regarding what Peter Kilabuk said earlier, I am very happy that the elders of Whale Cove are going to be interviewed, the Atuat’s siblings, Aliaqtugaaq’s, although they are not living in Whale Cove, I would like to be able to have them remembered and there are other families that will have to be remembered although they are not living in that community anymore, I am very happy about that and I expect that Sivviaq and her husband will interviewed in Whale Cove.
This is a very good beginning and I am very happy that Whale Cove will be included.
I want Peter Kilabuk’s staff to feel welcome when they get to Whale Cove and do their best to interview and I just wanted to say thank you to Mr. Speaker.
Member’s Statement 546 – 1(6): Economic Development Strategy
Mr. Speaker, my statement is a bit shorter today, thank you.
Mr. Speaker, it is a great day, again.
Mr. Speaker, it is a great day, again, in Baker Lake, the sun always seems to shine and it is also a good day to talk about one of my favourite issues, economic development.
Mr. Speaker, as the weather grows warmer and the days grow longer, our thoughts turn to the land, the source of our wealth and well being.
Mr. Speaker, I spoke yesterday about our needs in the area of economic development.
I spoke about the need for the Government to bring forward a strong mining strategy and a workable tourism strategy and I am glad that the Minister was going to table the tourism strategy today and I want to see a comprehensive economic development strategy formed.
Mr. Speaker, two years ago, the Legislative Assembly Standing Committee on Community Empowerment and Sustainable Development, which I Chair, undertook community consultations on the future of tourism in Nunavut.
Mr. Speaker, we visited the communities from Kugluktuk to Gjoa Haven to Baker Lake to Pond Inlet to Hall Beach to Iqaluit.
Mr. Speaker, we held our hearings in Baker Lake in August 23rd, 2001.
We heard from community residents here that tourism and mining are the backbone of local economy.
We heard the concern expressed that Nunavut tourism is perceived represent the regional centres, not the smaller communities.
Mr. Speaker, I know that the Government is working on this economic development strategy.
I want to hit the point home, but our small business people and tourism operators need real support.
I want to hit the point home that where we are at risk at missing the boat when it comes to preparing our constituents for job opportunities in the mining sector, which I believe has the potential to put us on the track towards being a have territory and letting us and allowing us to stand on our own two feet.
Mr. Speaker, our potential is boundless.
As the Standing Committee pointed out in our report two years ago that we need to do is move from potential to payoff.
Member’s Statement 547 – 1(6): Medivac and Medical Travel Contracts
I just need some clarification today in my statement that when Mr. McLean and Mr. Anawak asked a question about medical travel contracts, both of the medivac and scheduled services that the Minister answered in some way that does not seem to have any effect on other operations of the Government.
What I am saying is that the Minister stated last year that approximately $20 million dollars is used on medical travel.
On the size of our airlines and the regional carriers like Kivalliq, Skyward, Calm Air, First Air and Baffin and Kenn Borek, who have services to the communities in Kivalliq and Baffin, especially, they get a lot of their income from medical travel.
If the medical travel is not shared with those airlines, then that big portion of that revenue is lost.
The airline has to pull out.
We already experienced this when we only had Calm Air in Coral Harbour, the prices, the fares were very high, and most of us could not afford it.
When First Air was flying to Igloolik and Pond Inlet only, before Kenn Borek started flying there, they could not afford it either.
Every decision that the Department of Health and Social Services dictates through their awarding of the contracts affects other air fares too, effectively.
So, I would urge this Government that before awarding contracts on medical travel, that they review what other effects it will have on the Nunavut economy, the airfares for the regular ordinary citizens of Nunavut, who will pay from their own pockets to visit their relatives, especially when someone dies or gets very sick, they have to go see them.
I would urge the government, look; other things are affected when you make you make that kind of contract award.
Member’s Statement 548 – 1(6): Education System in Nunavut
I am very happy to be here in Baker Lake.
Today, I stand before you, and I’m not trying to repeat what was already said, but I don’t know the education system today and I don’t know how our students are learning.
I’m sure there is a lot of room for improvement.
I’m happy that my colleagues have mentioned this because we should urge our students to stay in school so that they can get into a proper job when they graduate.
I know the school DEA in my area is fairly strong.
With Kitikmeot, when the Kitikmeot Inuit Association stressed education in our communities, it was very beneficial for us.
Recently, however, with changes at KIA, things have begun to change.
Although the local DEAs often know exactly what they’re doing, they don’t seem to be stressing enough the importance of education now.
When I’m talking about education, education is needed for our young people now a days and I’m going to be asking the same questions about this at the appropriate time.
Member’s Statement 549 – 1(6): Family Services Needed in Communities
Very briefly, about having social services in our community, the question is that Health and Social Services is needed in some communities because we do need counsellors in our communities.
If there should be a counsellor for family counselling and meet with the families, this would be very beneficial because a lot of women do go to Iqaluit to the safe shelter.
There are five social workers there who are non-Inuit and there are only two Inuit who are in Iqaluit.
They went on a vacation because they were stressed out due to the work load.
There should be community counsellors in each community with Inuktitut knowledge, and I don’t know, maybe some day it will happen.
If there could be counsellors within Nunavut, not all in the communities, it would be very helpful, because with the safe shelter being located in Iqaluit, it is a hardship for other communities.
When it comes time for me to ask questions, I will be bringing this up again.
Question 545 – 1(6): Housing Scale Recommendations
With the new rates, it seems like there are a lot of problems within the community and we as a committee, what we have said is very different from what the Housing Corporation has implemented.
I don’t know whether they were using Housing Corporation or the Housing Association.
Who has brought this up?
We worked on this to solve these problems with the rent scales. $32 dollars was paid by the social recipients, the income support recipients, regardless of how many people there were in the household.
We had made a recommendation that they go up to $60 dollars a month and this $60 dollars would be paid for.
Not more, not less.
This $60 dollars would be it.
And for the people who are employed, their rent scales would go down a bit.
This would have helped a lot.
However, Housing Corporation did not do what we have suggested for.
I’m sorry, Mr. Speaker, I think my question is why is what we have recommended not being utilized.
Mr. Speaker, fact, a lot of the recommendations that the task force made and also that local Housing Associations and Authorities made was taken into consideration as we developed the new rent scale that is in place now.
I’m not the only one who wants clarification on this.
The rest of the people of Nunavut want to hear this.
Not just me.
Why is it our recommendations are not being implemented?
Why have you set these rent scales up on your own, because it’s going to cause hardships for the people who are living in public housing.
Can you look at this again?
Can you look at the rent scales again before it gets too far?
And we’d like you to look at the rent scales again.
Mr. Speaker, I think I’ve tried to make it clear and I’ll try again, that Nunavut Housing Corporation and this government didn’t put in this new rent scale out of the blue.
It was done in consultation with stake holders, local Housing Authorities.
The managers I believe met three different times and as well, the ones with the housing board of directors from each community as we worked towards the finalization of the new rent scales that we’re dealing with.
Having said that, we recognize, right now, where the bulk of the problem is in respect of actual incomes.
There is more income being reported as a result of using the Canada Customs Revenue Agency actual numbers that people are using for their income tax returns than what they used to do in respect of this reporting on their rental assessment forms what they deemed to be their income.
Things that were not included that are taken into consideration are things like overtime, northern allowances, standby pay, income support payment if an individual or family had not been working.
So, those kinds of things have been captured now as a result of using CCRA disclosures and having said that, Mr. Speaker, we have said that we want to put in a fair rent scale.
If there are problems as a result of these things, we will take a look at it.
But right now, we have just implemented it, the new rent scale, we have to give it a time to recognize and find out where the problems are and then if they are not significant enough, then we will make amendments accordingly.
Oral Question Supplementary.
Yes, I am very pleased with your response.
I would like to ask him again, for the people of Nunavut, because I have gone through income support program before and I have paid $32 dollars a month, no more, no less.
But today, with the people who are in income support and for those people who are with no income, although they are trying to feed their families, there is no money; it is going to public housing instead now.
If a person gets a thousand dollars, then he will have to pay three hundred dollars.
Is this true or not?
Hon. Kelvin. Ng: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, it is not true.
The Member is incorrect in the respect of income support clients.
Yes, their base rent went from $32 dollars to $60 dollars, again, based on recommendations from Local Housing Associations that that a more reflective cost of administrating income support clients’ rents.
But having said that, the increase has been offset by income support payments that come from the Department of Education.
So, there is no net affect on income support clients in respect of having less money available as a result of this new rent scale.
That is not true either, I am sorry.
Can you actually go see, in person, to my community, what the actual expenses that these income recipients get?
Speaker: Mr. Iqaqrialu, I think all Members are aware of the rules of the House and if you are not, you should be and it is not, according to our rules, to accuse anybody of making a false statement or a statement that is not true.
Hon. Kelvin Ng: Thank you, for the advance, fully, Mr. Speaker, I was going to raise the point that a privilege, Mr. Speaker, that the Member is inferring that I am not telling the truth and I ask him to withdraw those comments if that were the case.
Speaker: I believe it was Minister Ng that raised the point of privilege first so we’ll deal with that point of privilege and he has asked the member to withdraw the comment, referring that the comments that Mr. Ng made were not true.
So, I’ll ask the member to withdraw that word from his statement.
I would not have said that either if he did not say that to me through the interpreter either.
From what I heard through the interpretation, that’s what he implied that I was also wrong.
So, I don’t think I should be withdrawing my comments because I’m telling you the facts.
Given the comments from both sides, I will review the Hansard and over the next few days, get back to the members on the issue and until that time, I will not be entertaining any further points of order or points of privilege on this particular issue.
Going back to Oral Questions.
Question 546 – 1(6): Baker Lake Child/Youth Outreach Worker Position
I’ll try to keep this one clear.
Mr. Speaker, there was an advertisement in the news paper about a position being advertised for a Youth Addictions Outreach Worker for Baker Lake.
It’s been over six months now and I know these positions are hard to staff and it’s hard to find qualified people to do them but can the Minister tell me and the community of Baker Lake if this position will be filled and when.
Mr. Speaker, these are one of the several positions we’ve identified across Nunavut, a child and youth outreach worker who will work with our youth on addictions areas, tobacco, alcohol and drugs as well as being a peer counselling service for youth in the communities.
Mr. Speaker, this has been one of the better initiatives of this government I believe in the past year.
The position that the member is speaking about has either been filled at the present time or it’s just in the middle of completing the competition process.
My understanding is that the process of the competition has been completed and they’re in the process of doing either the reference checks or an offer has been made.
That’s my understanding of the situation for that particular position right now.
Mr. Speaker, you were out of my view there, so I’ll forgive you.
So that’s good news for the community of Baker Lake because it’s no secret that this is probably the third largest community in Nunavut with a large population of young people.
I would be the first one to say that drugs are widely used in this community and alcohol is also used.
Could the Minister confirm to me that this position will be filled by a bilingual person?
Mr. Speaker, that certainly is the intent of the position itself.
The youth and outreach worker would be able to communicate with the citizens that that person would be working with.
So, that would be indeed the optimum situation in this regard or in this case.
I do not know if the Minister is being nice to me today because we are going into Committee of the Whole over the power rate increase, but he is sure giving me the answers that I want to hear today.
On a more serious note, Mr. Speaker, when I am asked by a bilingual person and I am assured that this person would be Inuit and working in Baker Lake, but on that, Mr. Speaker, my next question is, far too often when we hire people to come into the community or rehired new positions to deal with youth and addictions outreach and issues like that that are starting to grow in this community.
And can the Minister confirm to me and my Constituents in this House that this will not be a position in a Government Office where this individual works out of all day and is sitting there waiting for people to come to them.
Mr. Speaker, I can confirm that that person would be working to the very best of their ability, to follow the job qualifications that have been outlined, that they have been hired for.
And I would suggest, as the Member has said, that a person who is familiar with the community, who is in the world of a youth advocate, would be out there working with the children, working with the young people where young people meet.
I also would suggest that position would probably want an office where he could actually council people and talk to them in privacy and looking at confidential issues.
You cannot do that at an arcade or you cannot do that in a community home.
So, I think the person that would be hired not only in Baker Lake, but other communities would looking at all of the roles and responsibilities as well as the opportunity, Mr. Speaker, the opportunity of having a formal office if that was called for in the course of the duties.
I am glad the Minister brought up about the youth in the community and working with them because that is exactly what I wanted to hear him say today, the youth in this community.
Can the Minister guarantee that this individual who is going to be hired will spend at least half their time working with the youth in this community in the schools and not in an office?
Mr. Speaker, I can guarantee that this person would be working full-time with youth and young people in Baker Lake and I think that is what we want to see upon this position.