EdinburghNLP/nunavut-hansard-plusplus huggingface dataset:
With regards to this individual, the search is still continuing, and air and land searches happening at this very minute.
We will keep you in mind.
There’s another individual from the Northern Quebec region near Sanikiluaq who hasn’t been seen for a few days. We will also keep the people Umiujaq, Nunavik, in our thoughts and prayers.
Member’s Statement 375 – 2(4): Request to Increase Narwhal Quota by Repulse Bay Hunter (Mapsalak)
I rise today to talk about the hunters of Nunavut, especially Repulse Bay.
Mr. Speaker, I know the Government of Nunavut is not responsible for Fisheries and Oceans but I’m sure, as a government, the federal government is listening to us, especially the Nunavut HTOs and the Nunavut Wildlife Management Board.
Mr. Speaker, the people of Repulse Bay go narwhal hunting every year and they have a quota of 72.
Usually, their quota is gone within three days because we have an abundance of narwhal in that area. Those 72 narwhals are caught right in front of our community; you don’t have to go anywhere far, and that’s how abundant they are.
But, in any case, the Hunters and Trappers Organization of Repulse Bay made a request to increase the quota and the response from the Nunavut Wildlife Management Board was that the population was depleting.
They even suggested decreasing the amount from 72 but the people of Repulse Bay are well aware that there is nowhere near a depletion of this population.
So I would urge the Department of Fisheries and Oceans and the Nunavut Wildlife Management Board to do something about it and increase the quota for the residents of Repulse Bay.
If there are no more, then we will continue on with our Orders of the Day.
Return to Oral Question 420 – 2(4): Airline Service to Remote Nunavut Communities (Netser)
Hon. Patterk Netser: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. (interpretation) Friday is just around the corner.
(interpretation ends) Mr. Speaker, I have a Return to Oral Question asked by MLA James Arvaluk, Wednesday, February 27, regarding Airline Service to Remote Nunavut Communities.
As members may be aware, Mr. Speaker, over the past year, the department has been working on the preparation of an updated Nunavut Transportation Strategy.
As part of this process, extensive consultations have been held with the Northern Air Transport Association and its members.
In the course of these consultations, the need for improved services to our smaller communities has been discussed with each of the air carriers in Nunavut.
The government’s ability to influence the price of airlines and the levels of service is limited, and we are not in a position to subsidize the air carriers.
Nevertheless, there are measures we can take, such as seeking additional federal resources to make improvements to the airport infrastructure in our smaller communities, and considering the cost and level of service to small communities when we make decisions on government contracts with the airlines, such as for medevac services.
We were encouraged, Mr. Speaker, by the announcement last summer by Canadian North that their service was being improved in the Kitikmeot region and we anticipate a similar announcement soon for the Qikiqtaaluk region.
The issue of air service to our smaller communities will be addressed in the updated Nunavut Transportation Strategy, Mr. Speaker, which I look forward to tabling in this House in the spring.
If there are none, Item 5.
If there are none, I would like to welcome the television audience.
Question 466 – 2(4): Renewal Options for Medical Travel Contract (Tootoo)
Mr. Speaker, I’m sure the minister will recall on the first day of our sitting I asked her about the medical travel contract that they just finished closing an RFP for.
And, I asked them why the extension option in the existing contract wasn’t exercised and it seemed like the government was hiding behind the fact of a motion that was made here in the House. I had a look at that motion and that motion, even the Premier’s comments to it, are just dealing with leases, not contracts.
In fact, my colleague from High Arctic just indicated the other day that there was a contract left for renovations and repairs to the school in Arctic Bay that was sole sourced to a firm outside of Arctic Bay, and here they’re saying that they’re doing that because of the motion.
So I guess my question to the minister is: did the Department of Health and Social Services approach the parties involved in the medical travel contract to see if they would be interested in going with that extension option that was available?
I believe the motion spoke to the issue related to long-term contract arrangements and the commitment of this government to go through the transparent process in extending leases, such as the one that was debated related to the Enokhok Development Corporation lease in Cambridge Bay and that motion was around that extension.
When I spoke and referenced the motion, it was related to any extension of contracts and the transparency.
So in making a decision about the medical travel contract, we wanted to do the public process, to be transparent, and to allow all competitors in Nunavut to bid on that contract.
I have the motion right here in front of me and there is nothing about contracts; it’s just leases.
I think that if the government is sincere in the minister’s comments, we wouldn’t see the sole sourced contract they issued in Arctic Bay for renovations to the school there.
So they seem to be selective when they choose to use something and when they don’t. I think everyone needs consistency.
I know Minister Picco indicated earlier that they don’t have capacity. Hopefully, they could have some consistency in the way it operates.
The minister never did answer my question, Mr. Speaker.
Did the Department of Health and Social Services approach any of the existing contractors to see if they would be interested in going with the one-year extension that was available under the existing contract?
The whole issue around the medical travel contract; I didn’t approach the airlines. I didn’t go to the airlines and say, “Do you want this?”
What I did was sought the decision of my Cabinet colleagues in going to the public tender process, the rationale behind that, and then the decision was that all the airlines in Nunavut should have an opportunity to bid on the contract, whether it be through Canadian North, First Air, Calm Air, Kivalliq Air, or Air Canada.
All those airlines had an opportunity to bid on this contract and the decision was made, that in fairness to the competitors out there, that was the best option for our government to proceed and we went on the basis of that.
I think there’s a little bit of a difference between a brand new 20-year sole sourced lease and the exercising of an option that’s already in an existing contract for one year, but the minister indicated that they didn’t.
Can the minister indicate whether the department, and again, Mr. Speaker, I never asked her if the minister did ask or if the department did, but did the department do an analysis of any cost savings that could have been incurred with the one-year extension option, given that the price on that contract was a three-year-old price?
In fairness, the decision was made to go through the public process of seeking proposals from the airlines in Nunavut and outside of Nunavut to submit proposals to the Government of Nunavut on the scheduled medical travel contract. That was a public process and every airline in Nunavut and outside of Nunavut had an opportunity to put forth that proposal.
Why did we do that?
Because we needed the information to make a decision as to whether, in fact, extending by another year is a cost savings.
So to go on a basis of just a cost savings to existing contracts was not the full picture of what options we had out there. Since those contracts have been in place, other airlines have started flying in the North.
So in terms of going through the public process, the information before us allowed us to make an informed decision in terms of what savings would be in place, what routes are being proposed and so on. So that was the process that we followed, through the procurement procedures that are established through CG&S.
So that’s the process that we followed and the information, again, as permitted by our Premier, the methodology, how that process was handled, will be shared with all Members in this House as soon as I have the information from CG&S that will allow Members in this House to review the process we followed and how the contracts are being awarded.
I guess the department didn’t take a look at that from what the minister was saying.
As the minister also indicated, they did look at it after they got the proposals in and she indicated that, I’m not putting any words in anyone’s mouth; I’m just saying that’s what the minister said, Mr. Speaker, once they reviewed that, it looked like there would be savings as a result of going with this option.
So could the minister confirm how much of a savings, based on the old contract and the new contract for next year, that we would have had as a result of their informed decision?
I think I answered that before. As soon as the information is completed with CG&S, I will share it with the Members of this House.
The methodology, the criteria, how the points were awarded, what routes are contracted out, and the savings and the perks that were offered to the airlines, I’m more than prepared to share that information with the members.
And, as soon as I have that information with CG&S, we will have that information and it will be transparent.
Any member has an opportunity then to ask questions on that once I’ve had an opportunity to share that information with all members.
Question 467 – 2(4): Unincorporated Community Funding Policy for Bay Chimo and Bathurst Inlet (Peterson)
Mr. Speaker, during our fall session in 2007, I asked Minister Brown about Community and Government Services providing help to the communities in Bay Chimo and Bathurst Inlet.
The minister stated that her department couldn’t help the communities because they were outpost camps as per the Government of Nunavut’s policy.
As you can expect, Mr. Speaker, the people of my riding were very upset with her statement. They believe, irrespective of government policy, that they are communities and should be helped by the Government of Nunavut, Community and Government Services in particular.
My question for the minister: can the minister tell the House if she has had, since the fall session, an opportunity to discuss with Cabinet the creation or a reestablishment of an Unincorporated Community Funding Policy that would help these two communities?
Ever since you had asked the question, I spoke to the Premier in regard to this issue. When I was talking with the Premier, the number of outpost camps is slowly increasing.
According to what I have heard, our Department of Community and Government Services provides support to the outpost camps that you just mentioned; they provide fuel to the outpost camps.
I might be wrong, but according to what I have heard, the Department of ED&T has a program for providing funds to outpost camps.
I have heard in the past that they have provided $8,000 or $10,000 through that program.
There was another outpost camp proposal from Rankin Inlet and I have heard about that but I could be wrong.
We would like to provide for the outpost camps, but if we help one, we have to provide assistance to everyone.
What I would like to say is that we have limited resources. In fact, we cannot keep up with the larger communities and even the smaller communities in Nunavut because they keep requesting additional dollars for capital projects when our budget is inadequate.
We would like to provide assistance to people who would like to propose outpost camps, but I cannot tell you exactly what’s going to happen now.
Mr. Speaker, the minister seems to fall into the mindset that Bay Chimo and Bathurst Inlet are outpost camps.
I have clearly told the minister that the people don’t believe they’re outpost camps, irrespective of government policy that says they qualify as or they fall into some outpost camp policy.
Previously, under the Government of Northwest Territories, they qualified for funding out of the Unincorporated Community Policy which allowed them to receive funding from the government.
So it’s a very sad situation, Mr. Speaker. People are moving away from these two communities because the government won’t support them.
So my question for the minister: can the minister tell the House if there is a benign policy of neglect within the Government of Nunavut that actually encourages residents of Bay Chimo and Bathurst Inlet to relocate away from their communities that they have lived in all their lives?
I don’t want to be like that when I’m a Minister of Community and Government Services; I would like to provide assistance to those people and I don’t even want to say no.
I know that there are other avenues for them to get assistance.
For instance, you can look to the other departments, such as ED&T. Another thing that I have heard is that the federal government provides assistance through Census Canada.
After the statistics survey has been done, they provide $32 per individual.
So, perhaps, we can provide some assistance too. I do not want to give you a guess, so I’ll be looking into that.
Although I tried to look into that, our government was unable to provide assistance when I spoke to the Premier.
I thank the minister for that answer and her suggestions.
Mr. Speaker, the minister is the Minister of Community and Government Services, and in my mind and the mind of all my constituents, Bay Chimo and Bathurst Inlet are communities here; they’re not outpost camps.
I think there should be a distinction drawn between what are outpost camps and what are communities, and although they are not incorporated communities, they are communities.
I’ve looked through the minister’s business plan for 2008-09 and I can’t see anything in there for the communities of Bathurst Inlet and Bay Chimo.
So I would like to ask the minister: can she tell me what programs and services her department can provide to the communities of Bay Chimo and Bathurst Inlet in 2008?
I would like to provide my response by way or correspondence to your question so that I can provide adequate responses and so that I could provide a written response at the same time.
I’m not sure if that will help me or my constituents in those two communities.
Mr. Speaker, I have asked the minister about an unincorporated community funding policy.
Can I ask the minister if she will commit today to personally recognize that Bay Chimo and Bathurst Inlet are not outpost camps, and as such, present a draft policy to Cabinet for unincorporated funding status for the communities of Bay Chimo and Bathurst Inlet in 2008?
I will commit to bringing it to the attention of my colleague in the Cabinet, and if possible during this session, I will bring something back in the form of information and I will work with the Cabinet.
Question 468 – 2(4): Awarding of Medical Travel Contract (Curley)
I have a question also to the Minister of Health.
She indicated last week, last Wednesday I believe, that she will issue a public press release in terms of airlines that have been awarded a contract.
Mr. Speaker, we’re not concerned about the press release.
What we’re concerned about, Mr. Speaker, is fairness in awarding the contract. I believe the minister, as I stated earlier in my Member’s Statement, that she has created an economic disparity in the regions like the Kivalliq with respect to airlines.
Can the minister clearly explain to the House why she chose to disrupt the air transportation services that were working quite well by excluding one of the major airlines with respect to medical air travel?
First of all, for the record, the Department of Health works with the current practices that are in place for contracting; the RFP process, the Procedures Committee; in reviewing any RFP contracts. I didn’t create them personally, as implied by the member. I didn’t create that.
The process was followed using the procurement procedures of CG&S. That practice is in place to be fair and transparent, and as soon as I have that information from the CG&S Department, I would be happy to share it with the Members of this House.
I’m not creating anything; I’m waiting for the information to share, and unfortunately, you’re getting one side of the information as it is right now, but I’m waiting for the information from CG&S, through the minister, to share with the people in this House that have requested the information.
I think the minister should take her job seriously when she’s dealing with the public impact that she is about to create when there is a disruption with the Air Transportation Policy.
There has to be a fair evaluation of the negative impact that changes to the air transportation could have.
When the contracts are changed, there is an economic impact.
Have these been considered when the evaluation is considered by the minister or her officials?
The review process, as I mentioned before, will be shared to explain the methodology of how these contracts were awarded.
There’s more than just prices; routes, their services; there’s a whole combination of factors that are evaluated based on the submissions received.
So once I have that information from CG&S that’s responsible for contracting, I would be happy to share it with the members.
I can’t speak to the methodology because I don’t have that information with me at this moment as well. So once I have it, I can speak to some of that through my colleague responsible for helping review the proposals independently.
There’s a set process that we follow and once we have that information, again, I will share it with the individuals.
There are a number of factors in evaluating and assigning points for every submission.
Unlike the Baffin region, regions like the Kivalliq rely on one major commercial jet service to points from the south to our regional centre and that particular carrier has now been excluded.
Has the economic impact been considered as a part of that evaluation process by the minister?
Again, the process that was followed factored a number of categories; the routing, the prices, services and so on; for every submission received.
Proposals were evaluated on their own merit. Once I have that information, I think it will become very clear to the member what was proposed by the airlines by region.
So once I have that, I’ll be able to speak to your question in a more thorough way.
But, I don’t have the CG&S file in terms of the procurement procedures, the whole methodology and so on.
That’s handled by CG&S. So I’m waiting for that information to present to my colleagues.
Our Premier had made the commitment as well to procure that information in the House.
I think the minister should obviously understand from her colleague that the strategies without goals don’t mean anything. It appears that the contract that was awarded did not include a goal to include economic impact, whether negative or positive.
At this moment, the minister does not appear to appreciate the fact that fundamental changes with air carriers do have negative economic impacts, not only with medical travellers but the business community as well.
CG&S, in itself, is not able to fully evaluate the methodology in that respect because they’ve got it by the minister’s instruction.
So can the minister put a stop to the medical contracts until fair consultation has occurred with the Members of this House?
The member has not seen the full details of the contract to make the assumption that it appears whatever.
I can say right now, in Nunavut, the airline contracts we have, for instance, in the Kitikmeot, there’s one airline that has a contract for medical travel and that’s First Air. One airline; 100 percent of the services is First Air. In the Kivalliq, there are no contracts right now.
In the Baffin, North Baffin up, it’s 100 percent First Air. Iqaluit to Ottawa; 60-40 split. That’s what’s in place right now.
So what we’re proposing that will be produced in here, it will be significantly a little bit different from that. I’ll have to get that information, and then once you have that information, you’ll be able to make your own assessment as to what’s been decided on and proposed by the government.
Have we considered the economic impact?
Yes, we have. That’s part of the process. It’s a committee that reviews the process.
So once I have that, I’ll share it with you and you can evaluate the information yourself and make the decision of whether it’s fair or not.
Question 469 – 2(4): Seal Pelts Sold at Auctions (Kattuk)
I would like to direct my question to the Minister for Economic Development and Transportation.
This past winter, we heard that seal pelts were auctioned in Thunder Bay or Timmons, and only five percent were sold at that time.
Can the minister inform me if this is true that only five percent of the seal pelts were sold at the auction in Thunder Bay or Timmons?
On January 5, the seal pelts were auctioned in North Bay, and he is correct when he stated that there weren’t very many that were sold.
The main reason was that the buyers going to the auction couldn’t land due to bad weather.
This problem that occurred is not going to be a big factor for the seal pelts.
Are you going to continue to hold more auctions in the future for seal pelts from the communities of Nunavut?
This coming May is the next upcoming auction.
In the meantime, sealskins are still being sold.
My next question is with regards to hunters that sell sealskins in the communities.
Will this poor showing at the auction disrupt the sale of their seal pelts?
This coming May, once we know how well the sealskins are sold, we will have a better picture.
Question 470 – 2(4): Attendance at Meetings – Northern Air Transport Association (Arvaluk)
I would like to thank the minister for his Return to my Oral Question that I asked last week on the issue of improving airline services in Nunavut.
Mr. Speaker, the Northern Air Transportation Association’s next annual meeting will be taking place from April 14 to 16 of this year in Whitehorse.
Will the minister or his officials be attending this meeting in order to continue discussions with the airline industry on ways to address such issues as the high cost of shipping essential goods to our remote communities?
I haven’t been informed by my staff on the upcoming meeting but I will commit to the member that we will see what we can do in terms of attending that meeting. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
In the minister’s return, he indicated, and I quote, “there are measures we can take… considering the cost and level of service to small communities when we make decision on government contracts with the airlines, such as for medevac services.”
Can the minister indicate to me what involvement he and his department had in the recent awarding of the GN’s new medical travel contracts and can he clarify how the new contracts will help our smaller communities?
I understand my officials were involved in the process of the awarding of the medical travel contract.
I was very interested to note that the Kativik Regional Government in Nunavik has introduced a program to assist residents with the high cost of living.
I understand that one of the elements of this program is assistance to provide rebates on airfares.
Can the minister indicate to me if he has looked at Nunavik’s approach as a possible model for us?
I have not heard about that but we are always open to ideas on how we can improve the transportation system across Nunavut.
The minister’s response to me indicated that an updated Nunavut Transportation Strategy will be tabled in the House at the spring sitting.
Can the minister indicate to us what direction the strategy is heading in?
Yes, I agree this is your final supplementary.
Once it’s tabled, then the member can have a look at the Tabled Document and I’m sure he’ll have more questions on that matter.
Question 471 – 2(4): Extension of the Medical Travel Contract (Tootoo)
Mr. Speaker, the minister indicated that they didn’t approach any of their current carriers under the existing contract on whether or not they were interested in exercising the option of a one-year extension.