EdinburghNLP/nunavut-hansard-plusplus huggingface dataset:
As impressive as this may be, I am not in a position this day to stand before you to promise new and exciting investments in the days ahead.
Finance ministers relish the opportunity every year to announce new initiatives on behalf of the government. Unfortunately, that is not the situation we are in this year as our budget for 2007-08 remains largely unchanged.
We certainly anticipate that our financial situation will improve through the year when our TFF has been finalized.
Once our new grant receives federal approval, and provided there is a significant and a sufficient increase, we will present supplementary appropriations during 2007-08 to address growth pressures as well as new initiatives.
In the meantime, however, we are doing the only responsible thing. That is living within our means.
The main estimates I am tabling today underscore that our government is both accountable and prudent.
We are spending only what we can reasonably afford while still providing necessary services to Nunavummiut.
In doing so, we are strengthening the foundations for economic growth and creating a platform for continued social progress.
This approach is in keeping with Pinasuaqtavut. It reflects strongly Nunavut’s values of self reliance.
Just as previous generations of Inuit have weathered challenging times, we too move forward from the obstacles we face today as we work collectively to secure a brighter future.
That future is already unfolding before us in the way of new homes and schools, new businesses and jobs, and new hope in our communities.
In the same way that our parents and grandparents struggled to see Nunavut become a reality, we must also make sacrifices today to set the stage for a better tomorrow.
We need to examine what each of us can do to ensure we continue to build a stronger territory for our children and generations to follow.
I am confident that with the understanding and support of all Nunavummiut, we will succeed. Indeed I have no doubt that Canadians from coast, to coast, to coast, will continue to admire our steady progress in developing our young territory.
I firmly believe the 21st century will see our highest hopes realized and that we have every reason to face the future with confidence.
In closing Mr. Speaker, let me thank a couple of groups of people. First of all, Rosie Uluyuk from Rankin Inlet, who made the sealskin Kamiik I am wearing today, and also my staff here in the Assembly, and also my staff over in finance, who spent many, many, many hours putting together a budget, our main estimates.
More importantly, let me thank Mr. Speaker, their spouses and their children who spent those many, many, many hours alone waiting for their father or their mother to come home even on weekends.
Ministers’ Statements. I apologise. Item 3.
Member’s Statement 007 – 2(4): Thanks to Everyone During Recovery (Curley)
I wanted to rise today to say thank you and to acknowledge the many people who gave me their support when I wasn’t able to participate at the fall session.
There were a lot of people who stated their support when I had just come out of surgery. I would also like to thank every single one of you. My wife and relatives, we felt your prayers and your support when I was in Winnipeg.
One thing I wanted to touch upon this morning Mr. Speaker was the people in my constituency who were extremely concerned at that time when I needed medical attention, and the whole of Nunavut and outside Nunavut, and in the other provinces. I would like to say one thing which I heard very often at that time, they wished me well, and wished me a speedy recovery.
A lot of people said their prayers, and then after that I healed up very, very fast.
But, one of the things that I felt at that time Mr. Speaker was that the people of Nunavut care. They care for their people. My colleague, Levinia Brown, who called us on occasion, and the other Members of the Legislative Assembly who called me at home to wish me a speedy recovery.
First of all, when you have such major surgery like that, it’s between life and death, and I would like to urge all of you to make sure that you get medical examinations on a regular basis.
With the heart you feel tired very easily, and we don’t tell people that we’re sick, but I want to make sure that you get your blood pressure checked.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the medical staff of Rankin Inlet for taking extremely good care of me and being very prompt. And when I went to Winnipeg I was very well taken care of, and on the way back, even though there is a shortage of medical personnel.
I would like the Minister of Health to make sure that she sends that to her staff.
My doctor, when I first saw her after a two month recovery, she examined me for 10 minutes and said I don’t want you back here again.
I didn’t want to see her again either.
I wanted to make those comments and assure you that the people of Nunavut care and we will have good meetings this time around.
I was told by the doctor and the Speaker to make sure that I get some time off and that everything will go perfectly as planned even without me.
Member’s Statement 008 – 2(4): Welcome Back to the House (Peterson)
I would like today to welcome you and my colleagues back to the house. I was hoping to do it yesterday but I am doing it today. I am very happy to be here.
Our Kitikmeot contingent had quite an adventure getting here. I believe we have spent nearly 15 hours on airplanes and at least six or seven hours sitting around in airports, hanging around restaurants and coffee shops. I have to praise our Legislative staff for tracking our progress and making sure we had hotels to stay in every night.
I would also like to like to thank the residents of Iqaluit for welcoming us back to their city for the next three weeks.
My constituents often kid me about “going home to Iqaluit.” I want to assure them that I have no permanent plans to take up residence in the X0A 0H0 postal code.
My constituents have sent me here for the winter Session to raise important issues and concerns on their behalf. It is not a secret that the West Kitikmeot often feels isolated from the decision-making that occurs in Iqaluit.
I look forward to productive discussions with all members that will benefit the Kitikmeot and the territory as a whole.
During this sitting, we will be considering the government’s 2007-08 budget.
From what we heard from the Minister, funding is in short supply for all the government’s proposed programs and services. We will be required to make difficult decisions about which ones to fund.
We are a consensus-style government, and as such, we should remember that Nunavummiut elected us to work together to represent them to the best of our abilities.
During this sitting, we will have heated debates and exchanges more than likely, but this is healthy for us if we always remember to respect each other during our debates.
This is how Nunavummiut will learn what their government is promising to do for them and they will continue to have faith in us as elected representatives and leaders.
In closing, I wish you an uneventful and smooth three-week stint in the Speaker’s Chair as you strive to keep the House business flowing daily without delay.
Speaker: Thank you Mr. Peterson.
Welcome back. (interpretation) Item 4.
High Arctic Member, Mr. Barnabas.
Member’s Statement 009 – 2(4): Canada Winter Games Medal Winners (Barnabas)
I would also like to welcome my colleagues for coming into Iqaluit.
I rise today to congratulate the people from Arctic Bay who went to Canada Winter Games. They won two medals.
Tom Naqitarvik won a gold medal and Alukie Kigutaq won a silver medal.
Today, my aunt Rita Nashook had her birthday. She is now 74 years old. I would like to wish her a very good day along with all the rest of the birthday people.
Speaker (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Barnabas. Members’ Statements.
Member’s Statement 010 – 2(4): Congratulations on Performance of Beauty and the Beast (Tootoo)
Welcome back to the members who were finally able to get in.
I would like to say a very special happy birthday to my daughter Taya. It is her 12th birthday today.
She is having a party with 25 kids after school.
I’m sure they’re going to have a lot of fun and have a good sleep tonight after they get all sugared up. I want to tell her that I love her and I’m very happy, and can’t believe that she is 12 already.
Happy birthday Taya.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate our performers from Inuksuk High School. Despite storms and setbacks the Inuksuk High School once again made the city proud when actors took to the stage to bring to life Beauty and the Beast.
This is a classic story that encourages us to look beyond the surface and find the true character and beauty within every person.
Mr. Speaker, as always, the high school put on a tremendous production and I would like to recognize the many hours that were put in by the actors, musicians, set and costume designers, and the lighting and staging crews.
Mr. Speaker, it would take me forever to read of all their names, but there is a program that I will table later, and all members will be able to see why I didn’t want to name all the names of the people that put in a lot of time to help out in that event.
Mr. Speaker, events like this are made possible by the support of community minded business people, and I would like to thank too all the generous sponsors.
Mr. Speaker, this was the last high school performance for many of our students who will be graduating this year.
I would like to take this opportunity to wish Lauren Solski, Bjorn Simonsen, and Harris Ali a very bright future.
Mr. Speaker, yesterday I rose in this House to celebrate the diversity of this city.
I am very grateful that that very diversity provides Iqalummiut the opportunity to enjoy the arts.
I ask all members to join me in congratulating every one who made this production of Beauty and the Beast possible.
I look forward to their next productions.
Speaker (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Tootoo. Members’ Statements.
I don’t think there are any more.
Speaker (interpretation): I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge a person who is now 26 years old, one of our interpreters, Naimee Kilabuk from Pangnirtung. Happy birthday.
I’m sorry, I didn’t see you.
I would like to acknowledge my older brother, Ben Kovik.
People think he is older than me, and they think I’m his younger brother, but he’s my younger brother.
And, I would like to acknowledge my cousin Johnny who is sitting beside him and also the individual sitting here at the very end from Arviat. He left us way ahead, but we saw him, although he left our community.
We miss you Tommy in Arviat.
I would like to take this opportunity to welcome a constituent of mine, a friend of mine who had a very frustrating year watching hockey, and his name is Jutanee Davidee sitting over there in the Gallery.
As my colleague would, if he were here, Mr. Picco, I’m sure, would take this opportunity to welcome in the Gallery a former Mayor Mr. John Mathews to the Gallery.
And, I believe he’s teaching the financial management module through the Arctic College, I believe all of the students are here, on behalf of Mr. Ed. Picco I would like to welcome Mr. Mathews and all of his students to the Gallery.
I would like to welcome each and every one of you sitting out in the Gallery.
Welcome. Today is a budget address day, so I would like to allow my colleagues to review the budget address. We will take a short break and we will resume at three o’clock.
>>House recessed at 14:16 and resumed at 15:04
Question 007 – 2(4): Fiscal Framework – Budget Address (Tootoo)
I would like to ask the Minister of Finance about a couple of important issues that I didn’t hear him talk about in his budget address today, which I’m sure he’s expecting a few questions on that.
As the minister knows that the Government of Nunavut’s collective agreement with the Nunavut Employees Union expired in September of last year and we all know the importance of ensuring a stable frontline workforce that enjoys good morale.
And in fact, the Premier was thanking all of them yesterday for the good work they do and that they really appreciate the work that our employees do.
I was just wondering if the minister can inform the House today how his fiscal framework for the coming year takes into account a settlement with our major union.
If there was an agreement with the GN staff collective agreement is reached, we have funds set aside for that.
I will get more detail on that as I am going to be with the Minister of Human Resources on a different day.
I want to deal with some stuff in the budget address today.
In reviewing the budget package I noted that the GN addressed some of the needs to act on the recommendations made by the Auditor General and our Standing Committee with respect to financial management.
Can the Minister update the House today when the decision will be made with respect to the recommendations that have been made on the need to review the GN decentralized infrastructure.
Yes, we are still continually working on that and our officials at the Department of Finance are still reviewing that.
We are still reviewing the plan with the federal government and GN. I am not sure when I can table the information but we are still working on that.
I think every Member in the House supports the Minister in his effort to achieve a new formula financing agreement with Ottawa that truly meets our real needs.
However, while we hope for the best we must be prepared for the worst.
I would also like to commend the minister and his budget address in that things are not as rosy as we would like them to be.
As a government we need to be prudent and work within our means and accept and realize that fact.
Can the minister tell us what options are still on the table in terms of things like imposing mandatory leave without pay and what options are off the table in the event that we need to cut spending in the coming year to address the projected deficit?
Yes, the way it is set up now we have not really considered any changes or different consideration than the ones we are working on for Nunavummiut.
Nothing is frozen right now but I am not too sure how long it will be but perhaps up until June. We will consider it as a department but we have not considered anything else.
We have not made any plans for what we should do if we do not get any funding.
I guess that is a “what-if it doesn’t happen”.
In his budget address, they also indicated what might happen if things do change for the better, or he had indicated that once our new grant receives federal approval, and provided there are significant increases, that they will present the supplementary appropriation during this year.
I would like to ask the minister; he talks about them meeting their growth, and also new initiatives that aren’t addressed, and there are not enough resources within this budget.
But, if that does happen, the process that we follow through is any time budget items and things come before the standing committee for review prior to being presented in the House.
Would the minister commit prior to bringing in any supplementary appropriation of any new funding, to follow that process and have the standing committees review it prior to it being brought forward into the House so that all members of this House will have the opportunity to have some input into that.
Yes, if we do get supplementary funding, they will have to be approved in the House. We can work with the standing committee if there is any new additional funding allocated.
Once the department has finalized the details, then the standing committee can be involved.
Question 008 – 2(4): Plans for Inuit Employment in the Mining Sector (Alagalak)
In regard to your budget address, it was very good to hear, and I’m sure things that we had forgotten I’m sure will come up some time in the future.
The issue I didn’t see in the budget address, I would like to ask the Minister of Finance, the issue we had been discussing last winter in regard to planning ahead for a Mining Strategy, or having a Mining Strategy.
We discussed having some funding set aside, or made available. I was wondering if the minister had considered this. He is aware of the fact that in Baker Lake they started working in the wintertime, and we heard that only Inuit people could stay outside working in the cold weather when they were constructing the road.
Some individuals had to get into heavy equipment, which they have never seen at all before, even though we were notified ahead of time.
Also, the plan to have the uranium mine to start operating within ten years, I was wondering if the minister had considered the fact that Inuit could be employed, or have you considered that fact?
I mentioned it a bit in regard to the trade school in Rankin Inlet and with that trade school; the mining sector will be involved with the training program in Iqaluit and Cambridge Bay.
The trades schools will be used to... we’re very pleased with the construction of the road in Baker Lake, for example.
Once the heavy equipment arrived in our community, the Cumberland company started training last fall.
Quite a few Inuit attended the training program in Ontario.
All of these individuals who took training in Baker Lake, Qamanittuaq, and Gjoa Haven, I think there were 45 individuals who are now employed on the construction of the road.
I think there were about 65 individuals who went to the training course.
The Inuit people working at the Cumberland Resources Mine were trained last fall, and I met with the company that bought the Meadowbank Mine in Toronto a few days ago.
I also met with the private mining companies and they would like to train Inuit people using their own funds. Soon the Department of Education and the Department of Economic Development will be involved.
Yes, this is on going.
The training program that was made available in Ontario for the heavy equipment training course; in spite of the fact that there was a training course for heavy equipment operation, I heard that some individuals who took the training course didn’t see the heavy equipment right away and it was the first time that they’ve seen the heavy equipment and they never even worked in the middle of winter. There was some damage done to some of the things they were to transport.
This coming winter the mining sector will take on the responsibility of training the Inuit people. The individuals who took the training already will need to find additional jobs once the construction of the road is completed.
So I was wondering if the minister could elaborate to us what percentage of the funding could be used for training purposes from the GN. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Your supplementary was the first supplementary, although I said second supplementary, but it was your first supplementary.
The training program is the responsibility of the Department of Education. I don’t know the percentage they have targeted.
I could tell you, with the Department of Economic Development, we have a position opening up, a mining training coordinator position to work with the mining sector and with the Nunavummiut, to coordinate the training program through Arctic College in Nunavut, and to work with the sponsors.
This is in progress within the Department of Economic Development.
As I have stated before, the mining sector themselves will be using their own funds to train Inuit people, which I was very happy to hear about; it was very good to see it actually occurring in the Cumberland Resources Mine.
Cumberland Resources is a good example.
There were 45 Inuit people in the Keewatin region that are now working on the construction of the road, and once the construction of the road has been completed, heavy equipment will continue to be used because those people working right now in that mine will continue to work, and they will also be trained in different fields, if they are interested.
The training program is still going to continue and progress.
Question 009 – 2(4): Tax Relief for Homeowners (Curley)
I would like to direct my question to the Minister of Finance as he stated or discussed the tax relief for single parents.
This is going to be very beneficial for the single parents and I’m in support of that. Everyone is going to be very pleased to see that.
But I would like to ask the Minister of Finance, Mr. Speaker, that even though the department is not responsible for fuel and gas, but your department is responsible for the Fuel Tax Rebate, I think the cost of fuel is .09 percent, which is paid by Nunavummiut.
Can the minister tell Nunavummiut that the price of fuel in Nunavut, it is the highest cost of fuel in Canada. We’re paying the price of July prices, and the price of fuel had decreased, it was reduced, but the consumers pay at least $78 and we still pay for the tax on top of that.
Can the minister give more support, especially for homeowners in Nunavut some time in the future, and perhaps have a tax reduction because the cost of living up here is the highest and they can’t afford to keep up with that.
I was wondering if you could consider that.
Yes, I can definitely check into this and talk with the minister and our staff on how we can work on this. We definitely can look into this.
Maybe he can make changes where the homeowners are increasing, and some staff are moving from staff housing to homeownership. It’s very expensive. Especially for the younger, single parents.
It’s a big burden. If they can have a tax relief fund, even just a subsidy, maybe we’ll have to use the tax rate.
The reason I’m asking this is that the Government of Nunavut is trying to recover $78 a barrel because they bought it at that price, and you’re trying to recover that price.
It’s impossible.
So for that reason, it’s now $60 a barrel but we’re still paying $78 a barrel.
I wonder if the minister, along with a consultation with the Cabinet, I wonder if they can spread it out more so it would be cheaper, not just the gasoline but heating fuel too.
It could have even been higher. The last session we had, we subsidized the fuel, and this is helping a lot of Nunavummiut.
Yes, his question that he is raising, we definitely can look into this to see where we can give more assistance.
At this time, they are presently working on a hedging policy.
They are still working on this, and we’re looking at the regulations.
Once that is complete, we will be able to use this where we can buy the oil when it’s at its cheapest.
Yes, we heard about the hedging policy at the committee meeting, and I’m pretty sure that we will be talking about this more.
But, in regard to tax, especially for the homeowners, we encourage homeownership in Nunavut. The fuel subsidy, which presently applies to the seniors, it doesn’t apply to the homeowners.
The government agencies are subsidized.
What we’re asking is for you to assist the homeowners because we want more homeownership in Nunavut.
Maybe you can start with tax relief, and when would you be able to start that?
Yes, I will direct my staff to check into this and to work with the Nunavut Housing Corporation and with Community and Government Services.
I can direct my staff to check into this because we do encourage homeownership in the communities.
If there’s an increase in homeownership, then we wouldn’t spend so much.
We hear that a lot of homeowners are selling their houses because it costs way too much to operate and maintain.
I will direct my staff to check into this further.
Mr. Curley (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My last question: when there’s an increase in the price of fuel we pay the highest tax especially when it was $78 a barrel but at this time it’s $60 a barrel but the Nunavummiut are still being charged at that high rate.
Even when there’s a decrease in the world cost of oil, even though the price is fluctuating, we haven’t seen any changes in the subsidy of power.
I believe it was 10 cents a litre but there was an increase in electricity. I wonder if the Minister of Finance can review this, because I believe he administers that, to see if it can be subsidized further.
We bought oil when the price was at its peak last summer.
Yes, we want to help those homeowners and we want to see more homeowners in Nunavut instead of the government just building houses because it would benefit the whole of Nunavut.