EdinburghNLP/nunavut-hansard-plusplus huggingface dataset:
The child can also be released the next day to the parents before the end of the 72 hours, but if the case is complex, then that does not apply.
The question should be specific to the process the member wishes to ask about, so I am trying to answer both scenarios, with a simpler process and a more onerous process.
Question 439 – 4(3): Baffin Island Caribou Hunting Quotas (Keyootak)
Mr. Speaker, most of us know that the Baffin region has a caribou quota limitation standing at 250 tags for the region. Further, we are all aware that when the season was ending this summer, some particular communities faced travel issues when ice started forming.
I would like to ask what the status of the caribou tag quota is today. How many of the 250 tags are filled?
That will be my first question to the Minister of Environment.
Hon. Joe Savikataaq (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I also thank the member for his question.
At this time in the Baffin region as of October 14, Baffin residents have harvested 107 caribou.
Compared to last year to date, they harvested 50 more caribou than the previous year.
With respect to the figures the minister elaborated on, one of the requirements is that hunters harvest male caribou only.
Are all the caribou harvested to date males?
No, not all harvested caribou are males, as some were cows that were harvested. The hunters who harvested the non-males are currently being investigated by the conservation officer.
He referenced the number of caribou harvested.
When can we expect the numbers to rollover or will the numbers remain the same until it is all harvested?
Will another quota be set for the upcoming year or will the hunters have to first harvest all the caribou up the 250 figure? Is there no way to add to the quota prior to the total filling of the current 250 tag quota?
The Baffin region has an overall quota totalling 250 caribou a year, which lasts throughout the winter season.
However, with regard to the 250 tags, the figure is set on July 1 and runs to June 30 of the following year.
To date 107 caribou have been harvested from July 1 and the quota will remain in effect until June 30, unless the tags are completely used up prior to the date and that is when the caribou season would end.
The Baffin region has 250 tags.
If the hunters harvest 250 caribou, then the season would end in the Baffin region, with the new quota set to renew on July 1 of the next summer.
Question 440 – 4(3): Management of Medical Clients (Mapsalak)
Mr. Speaker, many people go on medical travel for treatment or appointments. In our region, this is travel to Winnipeg.
Mr. Speaker, when patients have travelled to Winnipeg, after their medical treatment as they start to heal, they are usually sent home. In some cases the patient has to travel home in a single day.
In that situation, no matter which resident of the Kivalliq region who lives outside of Rankin Inlet, they still have to wait for their connection out of Rankin Inlet.
This is particularly true for patients going home to Coral Harbour and Naujaat, as they have to wait quite a while for a connecting flight. Many passengers are especially tired when they arrive.
Mr. Speaker, I wonder if the minister can task his officials to look into a waiting area for patients, in particular our elders or patients with disabilities, so they can rest while waiting for their connecting flight to their home when the stopover is longer than a day.
There are different opinions on some of the feedback I’ve gotten.
Some people do want to get home as soon as possible to their family.
That being said, I do understand the issue the member is bringing forward, especially if there are flight delays or something of that nature. I believe I had a question about that earlier last week where, if a flight is delayed by two hours or more, we can look at getting temporary hotel accommodations for patients that are travelling so that they’ve got somewhere to rest.
Currently there is not a boarding home in Rankin Inlet to be able to meet outlying communities from that region.
That being said, as recently as a couple of weeks ago, I was at the KIA meeting in Rankin Inlet and this topic came up with the Kivalliq Inuit Association.
I believe that there is some desire on their part to look at partnerships for maybe a boarding home in Rankin Inlet.
The department has done an analysis and there is a need, depending upon flight schedules, where it may warrant people overnighting before they go back home.
Again, it depends on the flight scheduling and again, also a lot of people do want to go home the same day.
I understand it’s tiring, but they want to get home to their families as soon as they possibly can in a lot of circumstances.
I’ll leave it at that for now, Mr. Speaker.
I know for a fact that you can get homesick, especially when travelling from a hospital.
This is particularly true with our elders and patients with low stamina. Some patients want to rest up, not all patients, but the majority wish to go home.
I am trying to ask about patients who tire easily or patients who wish to rest up.
When patients wish to sleepover in Rankin Inlet prior to travelling home, does the department accommodate those requests?
Anytime anybody is travelling under medical travel, they can make requests or appeal decisions to the medical travel coordinators or through the patient relations office.
If there’s a legitimate reason and an identified need, it may be something that we can explore, but again, our priority is to get people back home as fast and efficiently as possible.
The member may want to speak to some of his constituents or if there’s an identified need, maybe it’s something we could look into it.
Medical travel is almost a quarter of the Department of Health’s budget, which is the largest budget in the Government of Nunavut. We’re looking at ways to streamline the process to make medical travel as comfortable as possible for people.
At the end of day I’m also accountable to the Members of the Legislative Assembly and to all Nunavummiut on the budget allocations that the Department of Health expends.
People have approached me with experience in that situation and they wanted me to look into this issue.
As per my earlier statement, some patients prefer to rest up if they are exhausted, as some patients reach that stage by the time they arrive home.
With that being the case, can the minister concur with me on the need for a review of this request so that patients can book it from Winnipeg if they choose to do so?
It would allow them more leeway in reaching their home community.
I believe every patient has to be returned home after their appointments, but I wonder if he can commit to reviewing this issue to allow patients to sleepover if needed in cases of patient exhaustion or the need to rest up prior to going home.
I thank the member for his concern and I understand his concern for his constituents, especially elders who are travelling.
It’s something I’ll have the department look into the feasibility and respond to the member in writing.
Motion 033 – 4(3): Extension of Question Period (Okalik)
I move, pursuant to Rule 39(7), seconded by Member for Baker Lake, that question period be extended.
The motion is carried and 30 minutes have been added.
Question 441 – 4(3): Update on RV Nuliajuk Research Data (Rumbolt)
Mr. Rumbolt: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I would like to ask questions to the Minister of Environment.
Last week the minister, in his statement, outlined some of the work being done by Nunavut’s research vessel this year.
He talked about the vessel conducting “bottom mapping activities and water sample collection. In both Wager Bay and Chesterfield Inlet the biological life of the seafloor was sampled through collection and videotaping,” and also sediment cores were collected in both areas.
Mr. Speaker, the research vessel has been in operation for quite a few years now and it’s finally nice to see it moving away from the Qikiqtaaluk region into other regions of Nunavut.
Can the minister explain what happens with all the data once it’s collected by the research vessel?
Speaker (interpretation): Thank you. Minister of Environment, Mr. Joe Savikataaq.
That research vessel, the Nuliajuk, is used by many different researchers and scientists and it is their data, whoever is doing the research.
Some of it is done by DFO, some by different organizations, and some by our department.
It depends on who is doing the research. The research data is owned by the researcher.
As I stated earlier, the research vessel has been collecting data now for many years.
Some of this data may be of interest to other Members of the Assembly.
Will the minister commit to tabling annual reports on the research vessel’s activities in the House?
As I stated earlier, the data is owned by the researchers and it is their data and they can do what they want with it.
I can’t table it.
Going back, it has been doing research for a long time. A lot of the research that is done is for baseline data so that they will know if there are any changes happening due to environmental conditions, shipping conditions, pollution, climate change, and all that.
A lot of this data is used as baseline data so that 20 years from now they will know what the bottom once looked like, what animals lived there and what organisms lived at the bottom there.
I can’t table the data here, but it’s useful data that will be used by Nunavummiut in the future.
I understand the fact that they can’t table data that’s collected for other entities, but as he stated, some of the data collected was for our own government’s use.
Maybe he can update us from time to time on that kind of information.
When the research vessel came into service, the intention was to do research throughout Nunavut.
Can the minister update us today on what activities the research vessel will undertake in the coming years?
Speaker (interpretation): Thank you. (interpretation ends) The Hon. Minister of Environment, Mr. Savikataaq.
They had a five-year research plan and we’re at the end of that. They have to come up with a new plan for this vessel now.
Normally they have a meeting in January/February.
The people who want to use the boat to do research and the Department of Environment decide on what research will be done on this vessel.
It’s not ice rated, so it can only work where there is no ice and when there’s no ice.
The amount of use that it gets is so that it takes advantage of the full season because there are more researchers that want to use the boat than there is time available to use it.
As for where it can do its research, when it was built, it was not built as an ice-class vessel. Therefore it can only operate where there is no ice, so that limits it to where it can go.
As of right now I can’t tell the member what research will be done next year.
That will be decided this coming winter.
Speaker: I’ll go on to the next member. (interpretation) Oral Questions.
Question 442 – 4(3): Food Security (Joanasie)
Mr. Speaker, the Community Harvesting Infrastructure Fund of the Department of Economic Development and Transportation’s Country Food Distribution Program provides funding to municipalities and/or hunters and trappers organizations for such activities as the repair, upgrade, design, purchase, and installation of community freezers.
Under this program, the department reviews applications that are submitted from community-based entities.
I would like to ask the minister if he can indicate approximately how many communities in Nunavut have been able to acquire new community freezers since this program was introduced.
I also thank the member for asking about that matter.
In your question, you mentioned more than one funding program.
For the (interpretation ends) Country Food Distribution Program, (interpretation) the purpose of the fund is specifically for country food or for the construction of community freezers. I can’t state exactly how many communities have built freezers, as the funds are also used for country foods.
As an example, if you recall a meeting in Cape Dorset this summer, the community expended up to $30,000 under the country food program. In Sanikiluaq the funding was used to purchase a community freezer.
However, I have not compiled the data on the communities’ usage of this fund and for what purpose. The funding is still available within our current fiscal year and this program is ongoing with funding available past this current fiscal year.
Mr. Speaker, the department’s budget for the Country Food Distribution Program for the 2016-17 fiscal year is $1,576,000.
Can the minister confirm that information regarding how municipalities and HTOs can apply for assistance under the Country Food Distribution Program is provided directly to municipal offices and HTO offices on an annual basis by her department?
Yes, the amount listed was approved by the members totalling  $1,576,000.
Out of these funds about $292,000 was spent on staff responsible for this program.
The staff member can be approached either by municipal staff or the HTO managers and if they wish to get further clarification, they can approach our offices to request the information.
With respect to the agreement, all communities are earmarked $30,000 as their limit.
If people wish to get the particulars on how to access this funding for country food distribution or community freezer funding, they can approach our department for that information.
Mr. Joanasie (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I also thank the minister for that response.
Mr. Speaker, last month the Nunavut Food Security Coalition was scheduled to hold its annual meeting in Igloolik.
The coalition, which receives funding from the Department of Family Services, also provides grants and contributions for community food security initiatives.
Can the Minister of Economic Development and Transportation describe how she works with the Minister of Family Services to ensure that there is no duplication or overlap between the different programs that exist to support food security in Nunavut?
The departments collaborated on this matter last year, with my officials as well as (interpretation ends) Family Services (interpretation) officials.
The subject we just broached was discussed with respect to the funding requests either for country food distribution or community freezer funding.
The working group travelled to various communities to come up with an interdepartmental approach to accessing country foods or other programs available under economic development and better ways to raise revenues related to providing country food separate from income support.
This was discussed in that forum, Mr. Speaker.
Question 443 – 4(3): Blueprint for Action on Housing (Mikkungwak)
As the minister is aware, the current public housing rent scale came into effect in the fall of 2013, which was three years ago.
Under the current public housing rent scale, tenants at the lowest end of the income scale pay a minimum rent of $60 per month.
Tenants at the highest end of the income scale pay the maximum rent.
According to the Nunavut Housing Corporation’s Rent Scale Procedures Manual, “the maximum rent charged for a public housing unit is the rent ceiling.
Rent ceilings are based on the Government of Nunavut’s staff housing rents” and they “apply for all Nunavut communities.”
I believe that it is important for us as MLAs and ministers to be aware of how the decisions that we make in this Legislative Assembly impact ordinary people.
Can the minister tell us what the current rent ceiling is for a two-bedroom public housing unit?
Minister responsible for the Housing Corporation, Mr. George Kuksuk.
What my colleague alluded to, yes, at that time around 2014 the rent scale for public housing was started with a new rent scale category and the rent increases on the scale were highlighted on how it would move up to each level.
With respect to his actual question, I don’t have the information on the two-bedroom unit rental price.
If it were within the department records, then I can have it printed and made available to my colleague. I have not seen any information on the two-bedroom apartment rent amounts.
I would have to first look into that prior to presenting the information to my colleague.
Two-bedroom rent ceiling is a little over $1,400 a month.
As a former member of Baker Lake’s local housing association’s board of directors, I do recognize and appreciate the challenge in developing a public housing rent scale that is fair and affordable and which does not act as a disincentive to getting a job.
I also recognize and appreciate that high income individuals can and should pay more than low income individuals.
Last week the minister tabled the Nunavut Housing Corporation’s new Blueprint for Action on Housing, which I have now begun to review with care.
One of NHC’s proposed actions is to, and I quote, “…review best practices related to various models of subsidized housing as alternatives to rent geared to income” and to “…review possible development of a fixed-rent subsidized housing model targeting high-income public housing tenants, particularly those currently paying maximum rent in public housing.”
Can the minister describe the kinds of alternate approaches that are under consideration?
Speaker (interpretation): Thank you. (interpretation ends) Minister responsible for the Nunavut Housing Corporation, Mr. George Kuksuk.
I can give a short answer to his other question.
He touched a little bit on the plans that we have. The blueprint for action contains many things.
We’re going to be doing things about the contents of that plan because it’s a 20-year plan and we are not the only government that is responsible for it.
We have to rely on NTI and other organizations as well to work on that.
To put it shortly, that blueprint has many contents in it and his question is mentioned in the blueprint for action.
The Nunavut Housing Corporation’s new Blueprint for Action on Housing also indicates that it will “…explore avenues to support the creation of more collective ownership options, such as cooperative housing and community land trusts.”
As the minister will recall, a plebiscite on the sale of municipal lands was held earlier this year.
Can the minister explain how “community land trusts” would work in Nunavut?
As I stated earlier, the blueprint for action contains many things and there are many departments involved with it along with our department.
The land issue is also an issue, but I can’t provide a definitive answer at this time as I don’t have the details.
However, to use this example, the CGS department or even the municipalities have to be involved from the outset to resolve the land issue with our public units, including other uses for our lands.
I can’t respond as I don’t have the details here.
Question 444 – 4(3): Food Security (Angnakak)
My questions are for the Minister responsible of Family Services, whose department is responsible for the government’s Poverty Reduction Division and support to the Nunavut Food Security Coalition.
Earlier this summer the government issued a request for proposals for support in organizing the annual meeting of the Nunavut Food Security Coalition, which was scheduled to take place in Igloolik in September.
Can the minister indicate when he will be tabling the final report from this meeting?
I can’t release the actual date at this time and I am unsure when this can be tabled, as the report is still undergoing work and further, our Canadian government is involved in the food security discussions.
The Nunavut Food Security Coalition is canvassing the archives for information from past meetings, as well as the report on the consultation tour that was coordinated by the federal government.
These reports have to be completed and with this as the reason, I can’t say in the House when I would be able to release the final report.
I look forward to seeing that report.
The government’s request for proposals indicated that it was looking to “engage a food supply chain expert” to “develop and provide a presentation on food supply chain management, including information on quota systems, price fixing mechanisms and import tariffs.”
As the minister is likely aware, the Province of Manitoba regulates the price of milk through its Milk Prices Review Commission. Can the minister indicate if our government is considering direct regulation of the prices of essential foods?
Yes, we are also working with them on an intergovernmental level and with other jurisdictions.
As per my statement, these organizations are working towards finalizing the various food assistance programs into a more cohesive program that can provide real benefits.
It is also related to poverty and how best to support low-income families under the food security discussions, as well as to see how to parlay the existing programs under the departments of Health, Economic Development and Transportation, and Environment.
They are cross-linking the various funding programs to determine the extent of assistance in Nunavut for food-related benefits.
This is a complex issue to even debate or discuss, as the main reason for the review is to see how best to provide tangible assistance to Nunavummiut who are in most need of lower prices for healthy foods.
I don’t think I got all the answers to my question, but maybe you can read the Blues and get back to me.
Mr. Speaker, I believe that reducing poverty in the territory will also reduce food insecurity.
One of the minister’s statutory responsibilities is to table the government’s annual report under the Collaboration for Poverty Reduction Act.
As he will recall, the 2013-14 report was tabled on May 27, 2015 and the 2014-15 and 2015-16 reports are now due.
Will he be tabling the outstanding annual reports before the end of our current fall sitting?
I also thank my colleague for reminding me of my tabling responsibilities.
Since I became minister, I have looked into those matters.
I know that I have to table reports and I will be tabling reports after this.
If it’s not at the fall session, it will be at the winter session when I will be tabling those reports.
We want to make sure that food is not so impossible to get.
The Canadian government had a food mail program in the past that was utilized by many people.
It has since been changed in Nunavut. The Nunavut Association of Municipalities passed a resolution in 2007 to change the Food Mail Program.
Even though it has been changed today, it has become worse. We see food prices that are a lot higher now.
The stores like the Co-op and Northern did not like the Food Mail Program that ran through the post office.
That’s when there was a food freight subsidy and the price of food used to be cheaper back then.
I just wanted to explain that as part of my initial response.
I agree with the member that I need to table the reports that are late.
I would like to inform the member that I have dealt with some of them and I will table them when I can.
Question 445 – 4(3): Ending Social Promotion in Nunavut Schools (Okalik)
Mr. Okalik (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Speaker. (interpretation ends) We have made education a priority during this term, as one of the few.
During the beginning of our mandate, I’ll refer to a couple of news articles, one from CBC on November 15, 2013.
This is a question to the Premier.
When asked if social promotion ends now, the Premier replied, “It has to.” This is November 15, 2013.
Another article from Nunatsiaq News dated November 26, 2013, Willie Nakoolak, Chair of the Nunavut Coalition of the District Education Authorities, said “the coalition is ‘encouraged’ that Premier Peter Taptuna has promised to end social promotion.”
We are in the final year of our mandate and social promotion is still alive and well.
Can the Premier explain when this promise of ending social promotion will be honoured?
There are many things that we have planned on doing. When we developed our Sivumut Abluqta Mandate, we did it in conjunction with every MLA and NTI. It took a number of different consultations to get to our Sivumut Abluqta Mandate.
Of course these issues are tied in with the development of the Special Committee to Review the Education Act.