EdinburghNLP/nunavut-hansard-plusplus huggingface dataset:
I move, seconded by the Hon. Member for Netsilik, that the Speaker be authorized to set such sitting days and hours as the Speaker deems fit to assist with the business before the House during the 2014 fall sitting of the Legislative Assembly.
Motion 012 – 4(2): Extension of Review Period for Bill 1, Northern Employee Benefits Services Pension Plan Act (Savikataaq)
Mr. Savikataaq: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I seek unanimous consent to deal with my motion today.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker and my colleagues.
WHEREAS Bill 1, the proposed Northern Employee Benefits Services Pension Plan Act, received second reading on March 20, 2014 and has been referred to the Standing Committee on Legislation for consideration;
AND WHEREAS Rule 68(1) of the Rules of the Legislative Assembly of Nunavut provides that bills referred to a standing committee shall not be proceeded with until the Assembly receives the report of the committee or 120 days pass from the day the bill was given second reading;
AND WHEREAS the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories is presently considering Bill 12, which mirrors the provisions of Bill 1;
AND WHEREAS both Bill 1 and Bill 12 set out a proposed new legislative framework for the continuation of the Northern Employee Benefits Services Pension Plan, which was originally established in 1979 by the Government of the Northwest Territories;
AND WHEREAS the provisions of both Bill 1 and Bill 12 impact a significant number of employees and employers in both Nunavut and the Northwest Territories;
AND WHEREAS the appropriate standing committees in both legislatures have been considering amendments to both Bill 1 and Bill 12 to address concerns that have been raised by members and stakeholders;
AND WHEREAS it is essential that the new legislative framework for the continuation of the Northern Employee Benefits Services Pension Plan be harmonized to the greatest practicable extent between the two jurisdictions;
AND WHEREAS an extension in time for the standing committee’s review period will allow for coordination between the two jurisdictions concerning the consideration of Bill 1 and Bill 12;
NOW THEREFORE I MOVE, seconded by the Hon. Member for Iqaluit-Niaqunnguu, that the period of time for the standing committee to report Bill 1 back to the House be extended by a further 120 days.
To the motion. Mr. Savikataaq will speak to his motion.
As Chair of the Standing Committee on Legislation, I am pleased to take this opportunity to speak to the motion before us today.
Mr. Speaker, as I noted in my motion, Bill 1, the proposed Northern Employee Benefits Services Pension Plan Act, was referred to the standing committee for consideration following its second reading.
At the same time, our counterparts in the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories have been considering Bill 12, which mirrors the provisions of Bill 1.
Mr. Speaker, as you are aware, the situation where two different legislatures in two different jurisdictions are considering essentially the same piece of proposed legislation is quite unique in Canada.
The last time that this situation occurred here was in 2007, when both the Nunavut and Northwest Territories legislatures considered a new Workers’ Compensation Act.
This “mirror legislation” initiative was necessary because of the fact that the Workers’ Safety and Compensation Commission has continued to be shared by the two territories, a decision which has been beneficial for both jurisdictions.
Mr. Speaker, the situation with the NEBS Pension Plan is essentially the same. Employers and workers in both Nunavut and the Northwest Territories participate in the plan.
This type of plan is referred to as a “multi-employer public sector pension plan,” and it has been in existence since 1979.
In 1999, NEBS was incorporated as a not-for-profit corporation.
At that time, the plan was regulated under the federal Pension Benefits Standards Act.
In 2004, the federal Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions determined that the NEBS Pension Plan no longer qualified for regulation under federal legislation.
Consequently, work has been underway for a number of years between NEBS and the Government of Nunavut and the Government of the Northwest Territories to develop new legislation for both jurisdictions which would establish a clear legal framework in which the NEBS Pension Plan will operate into the future.
The product of this work is the two bills which are currently before both legislatures.
Mr. Speaker, it is important to recognize that all parties agree on the necessity to establish a clear legislative framework for the NEBS Pension Plan.
However, it is also important to recognize that concerns have been publicly expressed in recent weeks by a number of northern organizations concerning specific elements contained in the two bills, and members do not wish to dismiss these concerns out of hand.
Mr. Speaker, it is very important to recognize that today’s motion [should] in no way be interpreted as opposition to the idea of introducing new legislation to govern the NEBS Pension Plan.
It is also very important to recognize that the NEBS Pension Plan will continue to function and pay benefits to retirees as we work towards finalizing our consideration of the bill.
However, given the shared nature of the pension plan between two jurisdictions, it is essential that the two bills which emerge from the two legislatures be as harmonized as possible.
Mr. Speaker, sometimes things are easier said than done.
In the case of lawmaking, it is important to recognize and respect the fact that legislatures in Canada are essentially sovereign.
Consequently, any amendments that may be proposed to either Bill 1 or Bill 12 should be carefully considered and discussed by committee members in both legislatures as well as by the sponsoring ministers in both jurisdictions.
Mr. Speaker, although some organizations have publicly called on both legislatures to kill both bills and go back to the drawing board, we have also heard calls from other parties to pass both bills without any amendments or improvements whatsoever.
Mr. Speaker, members of the standing committee do not believe that either extreme is necessary or desirable at this stage.
Consequently, Mr. Speaker, the motion before the House today gives all of us the opportunity to get the job done right, and I urge all members to support the motion.
As the minister responsible for this bill, I can assure you that the Department of Community and Government Services is working closely with the Government of the Northwest Territories and the Northern Employee Benefits Services Board, as well as keeping Nunavut municipalities informed of the progress being made.
Mr. Speaker, my department will continue to move the legislation forward to ensure that municipal corporation employees are covered by a pension and can enjoy a good standard of living in their retirement years, as this is the essence of this legislation.
Abstained. (interpretation) Thank you. (interpretation ends) The motion is carried.
>>House recessed at 15:27 and Committee resumed at 15:47
Before we proceed, Nunavummiut listening to the radio and watching the televised proceedings, welcome to your Committee of the Whole.
We wish to continue with the review of the capital appropriation for the Department of Economic Development and Transportation, followed by the Department of Education and, if time permits, the Nunavut Housing Corporation.
Does the committee agree to continue with the review of the capital estimates for the Department of Economic Development and Transportation?
Minister Kuksuk is at the witness table.
Does the committee agree to bring in his witnesses?
Minister Kuksuk, for the record, please introduce your witnesses.
Hon. George Kuksuk (interpretation): Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. Good afternoon, my fellow Nunavummiut.
With me today to my right is my Deputy Minister, Pauloosie Suvega, and to my left is my Assistant Deputy Minister, Jim Stevens.
Those are who we are.
Welcome to the House, Mr. Suvega and Mr. Stevens.
We will now continue with our review.
On Friday, we were on Economic Development and Transportation, page K-3.
Mr. Mikkungwak was asking questions and I advised him that he would be asking questions first.
Mr. Mikkungwak, you may now proceed.
During our committee review last Friday, I was going to ask this question and with this opportunity today to ask further questions, I will be asking about the MVIS (Motor Vehicle Information System).
In relation to the budget figures requested by your department for this program, can the minister or his officials indicate whether or not the funds will improve this system?
There are quite a number of Inuit who are awaiting new cards, with some people waiting for six months or even surpassing a whole year. Will the funding improve the system so that the waiting times are shortened?
Hon. George Kuksuk (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you very much.
Yes, the MVIS is quite outdated and our department has continued to request the replacement of the information system and to get new software.
However, what I can tell the member is that once the new system has been put in place, it will alleviate the problems and shorten the waiting times we face today. It is obvious there will be an improvement.
Any update will result in improved times and that seems obvious.
I now want to ask about the waiting times faced by our residents in applying through the existing MVIS. Will the new system lead to faster service and processing of licences?
As per my earlier response and we continue to reiterate that yes, it is clear that as we replace the components for the system, we will see an improved service once the new technology is up and running.
Thank you for recognizing me for a second time on this line item.
Mr. Chairman, last week, I had some questions and I became fairly focused on the Inuit employment component and the land transfer, and I nearly forgot my favourite topic that, inadvertently, Minister Ugyuk reminded me of through her Minister’s Statement today.
One of the barriers that people with disabilities, in my opinion, face is the second they get off the plane when they come to Nunavut and at that time, and as I have been harping on repeatedly every chance I get, is the implementation of a jet walk into the airport project.
Mr. Chairman, I brought this up a number of times and it has been stated in the past that it is in the future plan of the airport project to add this feature at a later date. Until I get a clear yes or no that this is going to be part of the initial construction build of the new airport terminal, I’m going to continue to ask this question.
Mr. Chairman, is there an update able to be provided by the minister on the status of the implementation of a jet walk into the construction project?
Regarding your question for an update on this issue, I will refer it to Mr. Stevens.
Based on the continued used of combi jet aircraft by the airlines now serving the Iqaluit airport, the plan is not to install them at this time.
However, the design allows for their future installation.
While I appreciate the response that, at the current time, there are more combi aircraft coming up than full passenger configuration, as most members are aware, we’ve had meetings with our main two airlines that service the north.
Both of them, at this time, do provide some full passenger configuration flights.
I had a fairly firm commitment that, as long as the need is there, they will continue the usage, if not even enhance, of full passenger configuration flights coming to Iqaluit.
I think a little bit of proper foresight into servicing our residents, especially our residents who have mobility issues, could and should be addressed now.
I understand there is potential for three jet walks to be installed at a later date.
The minister may have a challenge convincing me that an initial build construction of having one jet walk is not a valid focus. Could I get the minister’s commitment that they will look a little bit harder at their budget line and the costs associated with implementing, in the construction phase currently, of adding one jet walk?
Yes, I commit. I will make sure that we work on this issue.
We will also write correspondence to the appropriate entities to make sure that something happens along that line.
If, at such time, it is decided by the minister’s department to not pursue the construction of a jet walk during the initial phase, what other alternatives to assist our residents, with the dignified manner of exiting and entering the aircraft, are on his table?
I’m not exactly sure, so I will refer this question to my Deputy Minister, Mr. Suvega.
As the minister alluded to, we will continue to pursue all options, including working with industry and perhaps a variety of different partners that could make that investment possible.
As a bit of a backup, we currently do provide some busing services with some handicapped features that are available on these buses.
We hope to continue to use that given some of the extreme environments that passengers face on the ramp.
Mr. Hickes: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I thank the deputy minister for that response.
Within the response, basically it talks about once the passengers are on the ramp. In a previous lifetime, I was a cargo person with an airline and I’ve had to assist carrying people down and up to enter and exit the aircraft. What I’m asking for is: are there any other alternatives that the department is exploring to assist people with mobility issues in entering and departing aircraft?
I would like to have Mr. Suvega to supplement his earlier response.
We do continue to look at alternative methods of servicing the disabled.
We’re continuously looking at different types of options, such as scissor lifts or other lifts and escalating devices. We are proactively trying to work with industry and a variety of other partners.
We’re also trying to learn the best practices of other jurisdictions that have to deal with any extraordinary measures for dealing with disabled people.
Welcome, Minister Kuksuk and your officials.
Mr. Chairman, let me know if I get out of line on this. I just made it back to this community last week Wednesday and I don’t recall if this was asked.
For all of Nunavut’s airports, are you resurfacing only all the runways, Mr. Chairman?
If I understood you correctly regarding the airport, they’re just resurfacing the runways. (interpretation ends) Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
In your planning process, are you also extending any runways, and which runways would those be within Nunavut?
I’m not exactly sure which communities they are, but Mr. Stevens can provide a proper response.
Chairman: Qujannamiik, Hon. Minister. (interpretation) Mr. Stevens, please provide a proper response.
At this time, there are no additional runway lengthenings being planned.
Would you consider a project like that in the near future, lengthening of some runways that need to be? I believe that would allow larger aircraft into our community.
Regarding the lengthening of runways, we will look into it.
If there is a need to lengthen any runway, we will have to do a study first to see if there is any requirement in any community.
I just want to ask a couple of more questions since Mr. Mikkungwak asked about the MVIS system and I just want to get some more clarification, if I could.
Earlier, the minister stated that this new system would improve the services to our communities.
I wonder if the minister can explain how this new system will improve the delivery to our communities.
There are going to be a number of improvements.
For example, our employees will be trained on exactly how the Motor Vehicle Information System works and operates.
We all know that these systems were first started in the early ‘70s to date. I’m sure it’s going to make an improvement and it’s going to provide better services.
We would possibly hire employees from the communities to operate this system.
Chairman: Qujannamiik, Hon. Minister. Mr. Rumbolt.
In a letter that the minister recently wrote to me concerning one of my constituents who was having issues obtaining their identification cards, which took many months, and you listed several unacceptable delays in the process… .
In part of the letter, you stated that there are still 65 documents outstanding from my community.
Is this a common theme throughout Nunavut?
Hon. George Kuksuk (interpretation): Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. (interpretation ends) No, (interpretation) they are not all like that.
I wonder if the minister can update us today on how many communities are having issues with the MVIS system that is presently operating.
Once I have the information about the numbers in all of the communities to which the member is referring, I will be able to give him (interpretation ends) that information.
One of the reasons for these lengthy delays in getting the identification cards and driver’s licences out to my community is because of our geographic location.
All the information has to go from Sanikiluaq to Gjoa Haven to Iqaluit, then the picture-taking is done in Ottawa, and then they’re sent back to Iqaluit for distribution where, in this case, it sat there for two months before it was mailed to my community.
Will this new system be moving away from having the picture-taking and the documents done in Ottawa?
To get a fully detailed response about picture-taking and documents being done, when we may be able to move away from Ottawa to do that, I would like Mr. Suvega to respond to that, please.
Speaking specifically on the manufacture of the ID cards through Ottawa through Canada Bank Note, it is an arrangement we expect will be there for quite a while. We don’t have manufacturing capabilities within the territory to produce the permanent cards.
However, it is our hope that, with the new system, we will be able to issue temporary cards or temporary pieces of ID by printing them with a photo identification that will allow individuals to not just get drivers licences but also general ID cards with a temporary photo and temporary capabilities.
As I stated earlier, one of the reasons for delay is because of the mailing from Ottawa to Iqaluit and back to Sanikiluaq.
What is the reasoning for these IDs having to go from Ottawa up to your Motor Vehicles Division in Iqaluit and then out to communities?
Why can’t the organization in Ottawa mail it directly to our communities and save a lot of time?
I will have Mr. Suvega answer the question on why there is a problem regarding the mailing of these IDs from Ottawa to the communities. I don’t have that information.
I will have Mr. Suvega answer the question.
Primarily, they are for security reasons. These pieces of ID contain sensitive and personal information, and our staff have to verify the accuracy of the IDs being produced and record them within our systems, and then they are distributed to the individuals who have applied for these pieces of identification.
That leads me up to my next question when you mention GLOs because, in the letter, it stated that the person I was trying to enquire about the ID card is now to be with the GLO to be distributed.
What do you do in cases where there is no GLO in place? At present, we don’t have a GLO in our community.
Where is this person’s ID sitting at this moment?
I would respond to that if I could, but I will have to get my Deputy Minister, Mr. Suvega, to respond to the question. (interpretation ends) Thank you.
Those are carried out by existing Motor Vehicles staff within the department.
We also try and work proactively with other departments as they try and hire vacancies, such as government liaison officers.
Ongoing training is an important component to our existing Motor Vehicles staff as well as any staff that take on motor vehicle functions, such as government liaison officers.
In cases where you mail the information out to clients in the community and it goes to the GLO office and when there is no GLO in place or he steps down or whatever the case, have you given instructions to municipal liaison officers, if they are able to access your office, to pass this information onto the clients who are waiting for it?
I don’t have the details as to why that is and I will have my Deputy Minister, Mr. Suvega, answer the question. (interpretation ends) Thank you.
We do, as mentioned, try to work proactively with a variety of partners, including hamlets with municipal liaison officers, with EIA, and with the government liaison officers.
If and when we do find out that there is a vacancy of any GLO office, the standing direction, really, is the existing Motor Vehicles staff have to process the applications and continue to work with hamlets in expediting and trying to get pieces of ID to specific individuals in communities.
If there is, perhaps, let’s say, and this is just a hypothetical situation, a breakdown within the hamlet, on a very odd occasion, we might turn to you, as Members of the Legislative Assembly, to assist us in maybe getting a hold of individuals in communities.
I had no more questions, but because of the response just now, I do again.
Mr. Suvega just stated that they can’t mail the IDs directly from Ottawa for security reasons.
I can’t think of a document that is more secure than a passport and those items are mailed directly to the individual. I just want an explanation on what the difference is.
As Mr. Suvega responded to questions on this matter, I would like him to complete his response. (interpretation ends) Thank you.
I can’t respond to the passport side of the question because that is a federal responsibility.
On the driver’s licence and general ID cards, the complete processing of any pieces of ID must be processed within the territory.
Again that is largely why those IDs land up in the administration centres. Motor Vehicles staff have to record these IDs coming in and verify the accuracy of the information as well as the identity of the individual applying.
I can verify that individuals do get their passports mailed to them because that’s how I always receive mine.
As for you’re asking if the information is correct on the driver’s licence or ID, you stated that you’re doing training for your staff.
Isn’t all the information checked to see if it’s accurate before it leaves?
Chairman: Thank you, Mr. Savikataaq. Minister Kuksuk.
Hon. George Kuksuk (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I would like Mr. Suvega to continue his response. (interpretation ends) Thank you.
As part of the normal processing process, yes, all information is verified before it is sent out. It is again double-verified when it comes back.
Just as an example, a common area where errors can occur is when last names are being registered.
There are a lot of common last names throughout the territory and it is easy, as part of the processing process, that last names could be mixed up because their Inuktitut names are a little bit more difficult to verify in southern centres.
I don’t want to dwell on this, but it shouldn’t matter what the last name is on anybody’s identification.
They just copy whatever information they received. Isn’t that correct?
I’m sorry, but I was looking for a response and I didn’t hear your question properly.
Would you mind repeating your question, please, if you don’t mind, Mr. Chairman. (interpretation ends) Thank you.
Please repeat your question, Mr. Savikataaq.
Mr. Suvega stated that, due to the last names being different up here, it’s harder for southern companies or people to verify if the information is correct.
What I stated was, “Isn’t that information all checked out here already?”
It doesn’t matter what a person’s ethnicity of their last name is.
The information that is received down south should be the information coming up.
Perhaps it makes more sense now. Minister Kuksuk.
Hon. George Kuksuk (interpretation): Yes. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.
As we stated earlier, the many surnames in Nunavut is one of the reasons and there are other reasons as well.
There are different reasons for the applications not being completed properly, not just the names.
If there are mistakes or if there are things that they don’t understand, although people may think that they completed it, sometimes they are not completed and they have to be sent back.