EdinburghNLP/nunavut-hansard-plusplus huggingface dataset:
In line with Sivumut Abluqta, half of our spending will be invested in health, education, and housing, the three pillars of our economic and social development.
Investing in these programs will best prepare Nunavummiut for the future.
In balancing our spending against our revenues, we anticipate a surplus this year of almost $36 million and have set aside a further $38 million for contingencies. Prudence remains my watchword, Mr. Speaker. It’s an approach that meets today’s needs while preserving our ability to respond to developments.
The overall picture is reasonably good.
Our finances are in good shape, as attested by Moody’s decision to maintain our credit rating at Aa1, in line with most provinces.
Our economy is growing.
Last year, employment rose almost 6 percent, with Nunavummiut finding jobs in government and construction.
This year, the Conference Board of Canada predicts the Nunavut economy will grow a further 4 percent or more.
Last year, the average weekly wage topped $1,000 for the first time.
With wages rising faster than inflation, Nunavummiut have more purchasing power.
All of these are excellent signs for the future.
I am also encouraged by the progress our government is making in managing taxpayers’ dollars.
We are positioned properly to deliver on our service commitments to Nunavummiut.
Self Reliance and Optimism
Let me turn now to the four main themes of Sivumut Abluqta.
Our top priority is the self-reliance and optimism that Nunavummiut will bring to bear as they move ahead in today’s economy.
Our people need the capacity to work.
They must find their way in a modern life that differs fundamentally from that of their ancestors.
The government’s role is to provide quality education and training that prepare Nunavummiut for employment.
Investments in education and employment are the way to reduce poverty, improve health, and realize our destiny.
Quality education and high student achievement depend on students’ ability to find the right path at the earliest opportunity.
The government recognizes the value of early childhood [education].
This budget provides increased funding for early childhood education, including nearly $1.3 million for enhanced security systems and program supports.
Additionally, the Department of Education will create an Early Childhood Learning Division to review the Child Day Care Act and support early childhood programs and facilities.
Moving up into the elementary and secondary schools, young Nunavummiut face challenges in sustaining their attendance. Through our work with district education authorities, we will involve parents more actively in encouraging their children to attend school.
This budget allocates an additional $1 million to the district education authorities.
While we are talking about schools and daycares, let me point out that the government takes very seriously the Auditor General’s comments about adequate fire protection.
The Department of Community and Government Services is working with the school system to implement fire safety guidelines and correct all of the problems raised in the Auditor General’s report.
In enabling students to complete high school, we should expect that many of them will go on to college, university, or career and vocational training.
Through improving career training and professional development, we have helped Nunavummiut to find work, but we must recognize that education continues throughout one’s career.
Post-secondary education will also become attractive.
Nunavummiut should have a wide range of options for advanced education and occupational training.
This budget provides Nunavut Arctic College with an additional $1 million this year to improve its community and distance learning program and establish an Inuit Language and Culture Centre of Excellence within the college.
These improvements will better equip Nunavummiut for employment while integrating Inuit language and culture into all college programs.
While we take these steps to strengthen our education system, we will also address the unique challenges of providing for the health and well-being of Nunavummiut.
It’s important that we provide an adequate level of medical service in each community.
Previously, we focused on the number and type of health care providers, and now we must focus on the actual needs of our people.
The better we understand the balance between the demand for health services and our ability to meet these needs, the better we can allocate our resources.
The health department, in spending nearly $300 million, accounts for 22 cents of every dollar we spend.
This is why we must strengthen our health care management to ensure our health system is effective and efficient.
Healthy Families, Strong and Resilient Communities
Mr. Speaker, the success of Sivumut Abluqta depends on self-reliant Nunavummiut, living in healthy families, and strong communities, contributing to our shared future.
We recognize the need to support the individual and the need for community-based solutions to improve health, social well-being, and local economies.
There are many challenges.
Mental health, suicide, food security, social assistance — these are issues for too many families.
Investments in economic development will help, and we can see the signs of progress.
Over the past five years, the number of working Nunavummiut increased by around 1,700.
Employment has been growing around 3 percent per year.
We need more jobs.
We also need people who can fill them, but many Nunavummiut struggle with challenges that prevent them from contributing their skills and knowledge.
Today, two families in five depend on income assistance.
As their poverty endures, so do our challenges of food insecurity, poor health, and inadequate education.
In this fiscal year, the government will complete and implement the Makimaniq five-year poverty reduction action plan.
The Department of Family Services, working with NTI and other partners, is developing community initiatives and building social networks.
It is bringing people together with a dedicated poverty reduction fund.
Too often, poverty coincides with suicide, criminal activity, and family violence.
Inuit women experience violence 14 times more often than the national average.
The government tabled the Ilagiitsiarniq Family Violence Prevention Strategy in this House last year.
We are now recruiting staff to move forward with that program.
At the same time, we must also renew and strengthen our efforts to prevent suicide.
Part of the answer lies in our ability to provide mental health and addiction services in the communities.
The Department of Health is working to expand its counselling and treatment services. The government has increased funding for mental health and addiction services to $15 million.
We will continue to work closely with our partners, including the RCMP, NTI, and the Embrace Life Council.
Addiction remains a difficult issue for Nunavummiut.
As my ministerial task force on liquor pointed out, there is a role for the government to play in helping Nunavummiut to make healthy and informed decisions about alcohol.
These decisions would become increasingly important in the context of beer and wine stores.
We should help Nunavummiut to avoid patterns that lead to individual and social harm.
My department will take steps this year to strengthen the government’s social and corporate responsibility with respect to liquor.
In strengthening our families and communities, we must also find a way to reduce crime.
Nunavut’s rate of violent crime is at least eight times greater than the Canadian average.
The justice department will move ahead this year with the development of a crime prevention strategy and deliver crime prevention programs across the territory.
Departmental officials have been consulting Nunavummiut in all of the hamlets about their priorities.
Effective crime prevention requires that the police know and understand the communities in which they operate. The RCMP is stepping up their efforts to recruit Inuit language speakers and to improve their own language skills.
The police are holding monthly information sessions in all three districts.
Their Aboriginal Pre-Cadet Training Program has expanded into Nunavut to attract young Inuit into careers with the RCMP.
The police are also working with Nunavut Arctic College to improve officers’ knowledge and skills in the Inuit language.
Crime prevention will eventually reduce the stress on our corrections system.
Overcrowding remains a serious challenge for the Baffin Correctional Centre.
We have made some progress.
The justice department will have a new building in Iqaluit ready by the end of this year.
Looking further ahead, the justice department is developing a plan for a more effective long-term solution to the crowding problem.
Violent crime, domestic disputes, addictions, and mental health issues are all linked to our continuing housing crisis.
Nearly three in five Nunavummiut live in public housing.
Nearly half of our children live in homes that are overcrowded.
As our children grow up, they too will want homes of their own.
Our housing shortage of roughly 3,600 units is a serious problem.
By providing us with $100 million in last year’s federal budget, the federal government has shown that it remains willing to help.
The Nunavut Housing Corporation put $30 million of that fund to work last year.
The remaining $70 million will support this year’s housing construction, but the scale of our housing problem requires a far greater investment than we can make now.
The Government of Nunavut will continue to lobby Ottawa for long-term housing investments.
In the meantime, we will do what we can with what we have.
This year, the government will provide the Nunavut Housing Corporation with an extra $7 million, mostly to cover the rising cost of utilities in public housing and for additional staff housing.
At the same time, the housing corporation will advance its Blueprint for Action.
The blueprint will focus on the need for housing that is more economical, more energy efficient, and better able to meet our population’s varied needs.
In particular, the housing corporation will target the needs of a growing elder population.
>>Applause  Economic Development
In developing self-reliance and optimism, healthy families and strong communities, our most powerful ally is a strong, growing economy.
Ours must not only grow, but also diversify so that Nunavummiut can choose their own path to our shared success.
Today, that path leads most probably to a job with the government, as we are the territory’s dominant employer, but the private sector holds massive potential.
The number of jobs grew 6 percent last year, with strong growth in construction.
Some 12,500 Nunavummiut earned paycheques last year.
Nearly three in five working-age Nunavummiut found work.
Looking to the last five years, employment has been rising more than 3 percent per year.
The trend is positive and now it must accelerate.
We will invest in projects and opportunities that provide our healthy, educated workforce with a wide range of choices.
Sivumut Abluqta points to the need for economic development that is responsible and sustainable.
This is an important priority, and the Department of Economic Development and Transportation has several initiatives underway.
Transportation is central to our way of life.
Health care, education, and training all depend on a safe and efficient transportation system.
This year, we expect to complete improvements at Rankin Inlet and to start construction at the airports in Iqaluit and Cambridge Bay.
More broadly, the government is working closely with the Nunavut Economic Forum to renew the Nunavut Economic Development Strategy.
This updated plan will guide our development through the next ten years.
The Department of Economic Development and Transportation expects to release the updated strategy following the Sivummut Four conference next fall.
Creating opportunity for Nunavummiut also means a stronger focus on the intent of Article 24 of the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement.
Following a comprehensive review and extensive discussions with Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated, the government will draft a renewed NNI Policy.
This instrument should strengthen the ability of Inuit firms to sell goods and services to the government.
At the same time, we will preserve the government’s ability to obtain the best value for money.
Successful economic development means that we manage our resources responsibly and that we manage wildlife sustainably.
Harvesting plays a critical role in social and economic development.
Our wildlife management system recognizes that our fragile ecosystems have long recovery times.
Future generations must be able to live from the land as Inuit have always done.
The Department of Environment will work this year to complete a management plan for Baffin Island caribou.
It will also implement a polar bear management plan across the territory and continue the development of a management plan for grizzly bears.
The department will also survey the bear populations in the McClintock Channel and Gulf of Boothia to determine the number of bears and where they live.
The environment department will also complete the renewal of the Nunavut Fisheries Strategy and it will support the development of new commercial inshore fisheries in all regions.
The availability of land plays an important role in economic development.
As members know, Nunavummiut decided in 1995 not to allow municipalities to sell their land for at least 20 years.
As we approach that 20-year mark, the Department of Community and Government Services will prepare this year for a referendum on land sales in 2016.
Good Governance
Mr. Speaker, our plans to grow the economy, to strengthen families and communities, and to foster self-reliance all depend on the government’s ability to manage its resources wisely.
Our government must become very focused on achieving the results that Nunavummiut expect and deserve. We will invest our human and financial resources to enable Nunavummiut to live healthy, productive lives.
Sivumut Abluqta commits us to provide good government through the wise use of our resources.
This means that government employees need the skills and the tools to make management decisions based on timely, accurate information.
Our approach to good government reveals itself in our approach to developing policies and programs and delivering services. We see it as well in our decisions about money.
The budget papers that I am presenting today are the result of thousands of decisions involving the elected Members of this Assembly, the public service, Nunavummiut, and other stakeholders.
Good fiscal management depends on people with the right knowledge, skills, attitudes, and resources.
Our ability to forecast developments and budget for our activities is essential to our success.
The finance department has been holding fiscal workshops with all departments and public agencies.
This is part of our work to adopt a standard and consistent process within the government for preparing, analyzing, and monitoring departmental budgets.
As our internal processes improve, we will strengthen our ability to plan further into the future.
As members know, we aim to plan three years forward so that we gain greater control over our financial resources and improve our services to the public.
This year, the government will fully implement the Expenditure Management Handbook, which guides public servants in making budgets and forecasts.
By improving the analyses submitted to the Financial Management Board, the public service will contribute to better decision-making.
We must ensure that the Government of Nunavut provides full value for the taxpayers’ dollar.
Our government will review all its programs to ensure they are being delivered in ways that are economical, efficient, and effective. We will also review processes this year for monitoring grants and contributions to ensure that we receive good value from these agreements.
My department will work closely with the Department of Executive and Intergovernmental Affairs to conduct these reviews.
At the same time, these two departments will complete the government’s Human Resources Strategy and implement it this year.
The government took very seriously the observations made by the Auditor General during the Third Assembly.
Ms. Fraser told us that we needed to do better in identifying human resource shortages and to improve the timeliness of staffing competitions.
It’s important that we improve our ability to recruit and retain the employees we need so that we can deliver programs and services to Nunavummiut.
Staffing vacant positions has long been a challenge.
As of December 31, 24 percent of government positions remained vacant.
Through the new Human Resources Strategy, we will gain the ability to place the right person in the right job at the right time.
It is important to this government that we make continued progress toward a representative level of Inuit employment.
Our public service should reflect the population that it serves.
It must embrace Inuit societal values and improve its use of the Inuit language.
As of December 31, Inuit represented 50 percent of employees in the 10 government departments.
The Inuit Employment Plan provides departments with tools to increase this number.
The measures include priority consideration for Inuit in all recruiting actions.
The government also provides leadership development opportunities, training, and internships.
Our government remains committed to achieving a representative workforce.
We must ensure that our public service represents Nunavummiut.
Through its Official Languages Program, the Department of Culture and Heritage continues to lead the government and public agencies in meeting our language obligations.
Government departments have been improving language training and proficiency testing, and expanding training for interpreters and translators.
The government has increased its financial support for publications and other media that promote Inuit language use in communities and among our youth.
This year, the government will establish a song-writing contest to promote new music in Inuktitut.
In the coming year, we will establish an award to recognize the authors whose works promote Inuktitut literacy among youth and adults.
Mr. Speaker, there you have it.
I have described how our government will marshal its resources to support fully the goals of Sivumut Abluqta.
We approach this challenge with optimism and a commitment to make progress.
We are going in the right direction.
We are building on the accomplishments of three previous Legislative Assemblies.
Working together, this Fourth Assembly can help Nunavummiut to step forward toward a better future.
Finally, Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank our public service.
We appreciate their hard work and their commitment to delivering our public services to all Nunavummiut.
Member’s Statement 030 – 4(2): Happy Birthday, Paul Okalik (Mapsalak)
I rise today to recognize our fellow MLA whose birthday it is today. I hope Mr. Okalik has a good day today.
Member’s Statement 031 – 4(2): Congratulations to Jordan Takkiruq (Akoak)
Thanks for saying my name right today.
I rise today to congratulate Jordan Takkiruq of Gjoa Haven.
Mr. Speaker, Jordan Takkiruq is a student of Gjoa Haven’s Qiqirtaq Ilihavik School who competed at this year’s Canada-wide science fair, which was held earlier this month in Windsor, Ontario.
This national event brings together students from across the country. This weeklong national event is held each year in May. Approximately 500 top young scientists from grades 7 to 12 compete for over $1 million in prizes and scholarships.
Mr. Speaker, Jordan’s project concerned dental health. Using an innovative approach, Jordan exposed caribou teeth to a number of different substances. His project confirmed the importance of promoting better dental health in Nunavut.
Mr. Speaker, Jordan’s hard work earned him a silver medal award of excellence in the junior category, a $300 cash prize and a $2,000 entrance scholarship to Western University.
Mr. Speaker, Jordan is already hard at work preparing for next year’s science fair, where his project will focus on how garbage and sewage can be converted into energy.
Mr. Speaker, I strongly encourage all young people in Nunavut to consider pursuing a career in the sciences, and I will ask all members to join me in congratulating Jordan Takkiruq in his accomplishments.
Member’s Statement 032 – 4(2): Congratulations to Nunavut Quest Mushers (Enook)
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the individuals and organizations that took part in this year’s Nunavut Quest, which recently celebrated its 15th anniversary.
Mr. Speaker, the Nunavut Quest was founded in April 1999 to commemorate the creation of Nunavut.
Mr. Speaker, I would first like to recognize Moses Oyukuluk from Arctic Bay and Niore Iqalukjuak, who used to live in Arctic Bay and now lives in Clyde River.
Moses is still taking part in the dog team races.
On April 24, nine teams left Igloolik and began a 400-kilometre journey to the finish line in Pond Inlet. The teams were welcomed to Pond Inlet and invited to celebrate their achievement during a closing ceremonies event.
Mr. Speaker, I wish to extend my congratulations to the competitors from my constituency of Tununiq: Panoele Okango, Lee Innuarak, and Michael Innuarak, who was this year’s third place finisher.
Mr. Speaker, I would also like to note that Michael was the youngest competitor from Tununiq and only a few years older than his 16-year-old competitor from Igloolik, Isaac Irngaut.
Mr. Speaker, it is with great pride that I am able to congratulate such talented young men.
They have displayed great commitment to their heritage and completed a very demanding race. These young men are truly role models to all Nunavummiut.
Finally, Mr. Speaker, my congratulations to this year’s Nunavut Quest first place winner and three time champion, Andy Attagutaalukuttuk from Igloolik.
This year’s race was made possible through the collaboration. Mr. Speaker, I ask all members to join me in congratulating everybody who contributed to this year’s Nunavut Quest.
Member’s Statement 033 – 4(2): Tribute to Judah Taqtu (Shooyook)
I would also like to recognize a person who is no longer with us, Judah Taqtu, who started polar hunting in 1983 by using dog teams back when dog team driving was no longer utilized at all.
He was able to go and raise dogs from an outpost camp.
Mr. Speaker, today, in Arctic Bay, when we saw how the dog teams were able to be utilized, we were then able to revive dog team raising.
I would like to recognize him because he was able to utilize dogs for 22 years without using any mechanized form of transportation.
Occasionally, we do use mechanized transportation. He was able to utilize traditional dog teams 100 percent.
Because of someone like Judah Taqtu, Mr. Enook was able to recognize people who participate in dog team quests. There were other pioneers.
Even though the person is now deceased, while he was still alive, he said to take part in the HTOs. I have been trying to get the HTOs to recognize his accomplishments, but they never did formally recognize him. Now I would like him recognized for having been one of the early pioneers.
Member’s Statement 034 – 4(2): Recognition of Annie Manning Lampron (Joanasie)
Mr. Joanasie (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Good day to everyone.
I rise today because I want this piece I’m holding here that was made by a person from Cape Dorset.
This is a very fine piece of artwork because Inuit have great skills in all kinds of art, whether it be drawing, carvings, sewing, and otherwise, and are well liked.
I would like to recognize Annie Manning Lampron, who was able to win a prize from the telephone company.
Mr. Speaker, her prize was $2,000 and she was able to receive it during the Christmas holidays.
It came at a very opportune time when she had entered that competition.
I would like to encourage Nunavummiut to do artwork.
Member’s Statement 035 – 4(2): Baker Lake against Suicide Team (Mikkungwak)
I would like to welcome our guests from other places.
As a resident of Baker Lake myself, I rise today to recognize BLAST, the Baker Lake against Suicide Team.