EdinburghNLP/nunavut-hansard-plusplus huggingface dataset:
From my memory, the cost of getting goods to Sanikiluaq through Moosonee, Ontario, was substantially cheaper than bringing it around from Montreal by ship. So I think it’s a good avenue that your department should be looking into.
You have to take in a number of factors.
One is that the people who used to supply the transportation service would be willing and/or are still in the business. But it is a good comment and I will ensure that my staff look into that possibility.
Total Operations and Maintenance. $67,985,000.
Total Operations and Maintenance. $5,510,000.
Several months ago in the House, the minister announced the purchase of Avenger vehicles for help in search and rescue in the communities. At the time, he didn’t have the details of when and where these vehicles will be delivered.
Can the minister bring us up to date?
Initially, when I talked about it, we talked about funding nine amphibious vehicles. Our department has taken the responsibility of taking the cost of shipping the amphibious vehicles to the communities and thus, we enabled ourselves to buy three more.
We are purchasing 12 units and they will be located in the following communities: Arviat, Cambridge Bay, Igloolik, Pond Inlet, Taloyoak, Rankin Inlet, Sanikiluaq, Pangnirtung, Kugluktuk, Iqaluit, Repulse Bay, and Baker Lake.
And I understand that the tender for this has closed and they will be delivered on this summer’s sealift.
In relation to your opening comments about fire prevention, this is a question I would like to add.
In J-7, under Protection Services, your department’s draft 2009-2010 business plan indicates that one of its priorities is for the “Office of the Fire Marshall to complete a review of the Fire Prevention Strategy and make recommendations for the future direction of the strategy.”
What problems have been identified with the GN’s present strategy and/or who would be consulted during this review?
If I could ask Mr. Maley to respond to that very good question.
The whole area of fire and in conjunction with the fire strategy, it has been an exercise where it was a result of some substantial property losses in the early days of Nunavut and when we started tracking data, we found that there were a number of trends.
One of those happens to be safety with children around the home, vandalism, arson, and those kinds of things.
So the fire strategy was developed in order to start mitigating this issue, as broad as it is, on a task-by-task basis.
One of the things we found is that our ability to fight fires, our training, and our equipment has increased, though the number of fires has not necessarily.
So what we’re finding now is that we will be concentrating more on an education process, where we concentrate more on public awareness and those kinds of things.
This truly is an issue that affects all organizations, it’s not just the housing associations, or the municipalities, or even the government, it’s everybody and so that is kind of where the fire strategy is heading.
Mr. Minister indicated about purchasing amphibious vehicles.
What type are they? Warm-blooded, cold-blooded, or hovercraft?
Are they hovercraft?
Hon. Lorne Kusugak: They are lukewarm-blooded vehicles.
These vehicles, Mr. Chairman, can be fitted with a track, float in water, go over snow or any rough terrain, can’t fly like Superman but will be fitted with everything, Mr. Chairman.
They have eight wheels on them and they will be equipped with GPS, lift jacks, and communications equipment.
Further to your question, there will also be training provided to the municipalities on how to use this equipment and whatever equipment that is attached to it.
It might not sound fitting to talk about cell phones under Protection Services, but I’ll try.
With the use of cell phones becoming more common in Nunavut, has your department considered anything about how they could assist in search and rescues?
I know cell phones don’t have a lot of good range in mountainous areas, but a lot of our communities are in low-lying areas.
If there was cell phone service in communities, could it possibly aid in search and rescue and in cutting down the costs of searching for people?
In case you’re searching for me after nine, I turn my cell phone off.
Any kind of tool we have out there that we can get in order to be able to contact anybody is a very worthwhile tool in terms of search and rescue.
Though cell phones have a limited use, depending on transmitters and transformers and stuff like that, they do come in very handy.
In fact, I was in a meeting recently with the head of NorthwesTel, the major provider of cell phone service in a growing number of communities in Nunavut.
In our discussions, I brought up the issue of the possibility of expediting cell phone service in all of the communities in Nunavut, regardless of size, because it has potential to save lives, keeping in mind that a majority of the searches that are done in communities could be within a cell phone distance away.
A lot of times, they’re just around the hill or they may not necessarily be lost and decided they’re going to spend the next few nights fishing or they are broke down and they’re within the distance of cell phone capability.
So it has real cases where we could be using or providing cell phone service to search and rescue.
I know it’s proven itself already in the communities where there are cell phones, so it is one that I and our department are currently talking about at least.
In your talks with NorthwesTel, you asked about implementing it in all communities.
Did they give you any kind of timeline and when and if they could do that?
In our discussions, we just talked mainly about the benefits of having it.
One has to realize that it’s an expensive venture, but it’s also not way out there.
In some communities where their telephone service is providing the equipment, they may need to be upgraded. Some of them could be automatically supplied with the equipment needed for that service. Not being a telephone expert, I don’t know the details of it, but we never got into if it will be by this fall or by next year.
But we definitely are talking about it and have given an indication that we will talk about it further to see if there are possibilities of cost sharing and looking for other funding agencies to be able to fund it for the purposes of emergency search and rescues.
The minister says that it’s expensive for the implementation of cell phones.
I guess it’s just a comment that it’s also expensive to send a Hercules airplane from the south to search behind the hill for that person who doesn’t have a cell phone, who may be within cell phone range.
So I think the venture has merit and it’s something that should be looked into.
Did you want to comment on that, Minister Kusugak?
It is expensive every time you do a search, but the most expensive thing in life is life.
So I don’t think it’s fair to assume that if we have cell phones, we will do away with Hercules aircraft and so forth, but it is expensive.
But on the other hand, whatever the cost may be for a cell phone service, we have to also keep in mind that it is a private business and therefore, they are a for-profit company and we have to weigh the pros and cons of paying government dollars for them to be able to expand their service.
So we will work through that over the next year or so and try to come up with some kind of a balance in terms of dealing with the cell phone service.
In regard to Protection Services on J-7, with the increased shipping lanes and shipping presences… and this may be a federal question, Mr. Chairman, but I wanted to direct this in essence to protection services up here.
The Canadian Coast Guard provides radio frequency services and presence to most southern coastal towns.
What are the possibilities or is there a possibility of having Coast Guard presence in Nunavut?
Very good question, Mr. Aupaluktuq, and if I could have Mr. Maley respond to it, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Maley (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. (interpretation ends) I thank the member for the question.
In our emergency management section, the director of protective services has spent a lot of time and effort cultivating the GN’s relationship with not only the Coast Guard but also the military.
And honestly, having been with this department for a number of years, I can tell you that the relationship and services that we get now from Trenton and from the Coast Guard are unbelievably improved.
One of the things that are happening this year with the military is, as I think most of the members are aware, Operation Nanook, which is happening here in Iqaluit, which is once again another large military exercise.
These kinds of exercises look at communication and we’re hoping that through the military’s experiences in the north and by doing these kinds of exercises like the ones we had in Pangnirtung, they are all able to see the merits of your suggestion.
So our response is yes, through continued collaboration, we’re hoping that eventually we can receive all of the benefits that other jurisdictions get with things like Coast Guard communications.
I wanted to add something to what Mr. Rumbolt was saying.
I was just going to ask: is NorthwesTel the only group that you have been discussing cell phone communications with?
It wasn’t a discussion in terms of how could we do this, it was more of a meet-and-greet kind of a discussion. It was very minor, no details, and it was more of a “Hi, how are you” kind of discussion.
And yes, to that extent, at this point, I’m not looking to go beyond that. It was more a meet-and-greet discussion.
I would like to recommend speaking to the Nunavut Broadband Development Corporation.
I know they have been working on that as well and I know that the Government of Nunavut, in other sections of O&M, has actually provided funding to that organization, I guess $250,000.
I know they want to try and expand and it’s all local business.
Community service providers might be another option if that’s the way we’re thinking about going in terms of supporting local community businesses.
I thank you for the question.
I have directed the department to take a serious look at it, aside from the discussions I had with NorthwesTel.
The gentleman, if he’s watching, he’s saying, “I’m never going to visit his office again.”
Aside from the discussion I had with the gentleman, I have directed our department to take a look at the cell phone service and other communications services we have in Nunavut and see where we could go with it.
At the appropriate time, our department will be meeting with the interested parties to discuss the possibilities of cell phone service and I’m sure that will include all of the people interested in tackling the cell phone service in Nunavut.
So our department will be looking into it in the coming weeks and/or months, Mr. Chairman.
I’m sure if he sat down and spoke with Minister Taptuna, he would be able to give him some answers on that because I know that he always had an open door and I would go talk to him at any time.
I’m going to change directions in terms of questioning.
When we were doing capital estimates, I had sort of asked questions about… . I foresaw the possibility of construction slowdown.
I know that he’s not here right now, but Minister Tootoo wants to make sure that all of the houses get built and whatnot.
At the time, there were some PYs. I noticed that there are 20 PYs in Protection Services, seven under Safety Inspection, and eight under the Fire Marshal’s Office.
Are those positions filled now? Are we up to capacity on those positions?
Just like Minister Taptuna, my door is always open any time you want to come and see me. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting with you on a few occasions and look forward to further discussions.
If I could have Mr. Rafter respond to that very good question.
According to the most recent information we have for the department, which was tabulated on or about March 31, 2009, there are six vacancies in Protection Services across the territory and that would be in the four locations that we have staff.
I know, from following what’s been happening in Arctic Bay with some of the construction that’s been going on, sometimes the construction gets held up.
It’s no fault of the building inspector or electrical inspector because they’re overworked and they’re travelling so much that they can’t get into the community to do inspections so that they could do the next phase in terms of the construction, so sometimes there are delays and whatnot.
I’m just wondering if the minister can assure us that there will be no delays in construction because of positions not being filled.
We do the best we can in terms of trying to make sure that there are no construction slowdowns during inspection phases. We will try to ensure again that construction is not slowed down because of lack of inspections to those construction sites.
I have no more names for Protection Services.
Chairman: Turn to page J-8.
Operations and Maintenance. $27,006,000.
Does anybody have questions?
Your department’s proposed budget for building maintenance has increased by over $2 million from $16,204,000 in 2008-09 to $18,712,000 in 2009-2010.
What accounts for this increase?
It is due mostly to Contract Services being increased to improve maintenance.
Maybe I could have Mr. Rafter elaborate on that if you would allow him, Mr. Chairman.
Approximately $850,000 is due to exclusively either new infrastructure or enhanced maintenance budgets due to forced growth.
Additionally, the minister had mentioned earlier that two communities in the western Arctic had turned back the return functions associated with maintenance that were being conducted at the municipal level and other government services or services provided by other government entities.
It was contributions commonly referred to as CTIs and so this is where you see the money come back into the budget, it had come out of contributions and into Contract Services, where the Kitikmeot regional office will be providing those maintenance services with their own sources as opposed to contributions.
Mr. Aupaluktuq (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. (interpretation ends) Your department’s draft 2009-2010 business plan indicates that one its priorities is to “Deliver community based training for potable water, wastewater and solid waste management in Arviat, Baker Lake, Cambridge Bay and Gjoa Haven with the Municipal Training Organization (MTO).
Upon completing these courses, Hamlet employees will be in a better position to meet guidelines established by the regulatory authorities…”
How were these specific communities selected to take part in this training? Will it be provided to other communities in future years?
Hon. Lorne Kusugak: It’s more of a scan, I guess, because there are varying sizes of water supplies when you look at these communities’ sizes.
Based on community sizes and different needs, it’s a pan of those. So we get a blend of it, Mr. Chairman, if that makes sense.
I have no more names on page J-8.
Total Operations and Maintenance. $27,006,000.
Chairman: Go back to page J-3.
Total Operations and Maintenance. $170,723,000.
Chairman: Is the committee agreed that the Department Community Government Services is concluded?
I would like to thank the minister and his officials for coming to the committee here.
I would like to also ask the minister if he has any closing comments.
I would also like to thank my colleagues for posing questions in regard to our O&M budget and our business plan.
Only through working together can we achieve more.
If you have any further questions in regard to my department, you know exactly where my office is and the door is open.
I would also like to thank Mr. Rafter and Mr. Maley for making an appearance.
While I don’t have a deputy minister, Mr. Maley is my acting deputy minister and I would like to thank him as our department has quite a large mandate.
I also thank my officials for being able to be here, Mr. Chairman.
Perhaps we can take a five-minute break before we review the Department of Finance.
>>Committee recessed at 17:09 and resumed at 17:23
Bill 01 – Appropriation (Operations & Maintenance) Act, 2009-2010 – Finance – Consideration in Committee
Chairman: Welcome back, everyone.
I would now like to ask the Minister of Finance, Minister Peterson, to make his opening remarks.
I thank the members of the standing committee and Committee of the Whole.
It is my pleasure to discuss the main estimates and business plan for the Department of Finance for 2009-2010.
The Department of Finance has a number of priorities in 2009-2010 that will impact the future of our government.
These priorities include:
Address the concerns identified in the Report of the Auditor General of Canada to the Legislative Assembly of Nunavut – 2009: Financial Management Practices – Follow-up on the 2005 Report to the Legislative Assembly of Nunavut.
Continue to implement the Building Financial Information Capacity initiative with the assistance of the Department of Community and Government Services.
Develop an implementation plan for a human resource strategy within the Department of Finance.
Develop a consultation strategy for the review of the Liquor Act.
Implement Memorandums of Understanding with each territorial corporation.
The majority of these initiatives are aimed at supporting the continued improvement of financial management across the Government of Nunavut.
We must improve technical capacity and competency, but we must also increase the number of staff within the Department of Finance and across government. It is not only professional accountants that we need but also economists, policy officials, auditors, and tax specialists.
Other initiatives advance the self-sufficiency of our government and Nunavummiut, such as the report card initiative, a devolution agreement, the review of the Liquor Act, and Memorandums of Understanding with our territorial corporations.
In addition, the Department of Finance has the responsibility for a number of ongoing programs that affect Nunavummiut, such as:
Harvesters Fuel Tax Rebate Program
Household Allowance
Nunavut Electricity Subsidy Program
Harvesters Workers’ Safety and Compensation Commission Program
Employees Medical Travel Program
During 2008-09, the Department of Finance played a role in:
The conclusion of a new collective agreement with the Nunavut Employees Union, both in terms of negotiation and implementation
The signing of the Building Canada Fund Agreement with the Government of Canada
The department, in 2008-09, also developed the Household Allowance and P3 Policy.
It continued its efforts in strengthening financial management across government, which has led to:
improvements in tabling the public accounts, both in terms of timing and the quality of the public accounts
the near completion of the Financial Administration Manual
the ongoing provision of training to staff across government
a new signing authorities matrix across government
the integration of financial processes
The staff complement of the Department of Finance is 209 and encompasses six lines of businesses:
Advisory and Administrative, with a budget of $1 million
Policy and Planning, with a budget of $3 million
Financial Management, with a budget of $2.5 million
Internal Audit Services, with a budget of $1 million
Comptrollership, with a budget of $14 million
Centrally Administered Funds, with a budget of $33 million
The total budget allotment for the Department of Finance is $54.9 million for 2009-2010.
As can be seen above, most of this allotment, or 60 percent, is for Centrally Administered Funds, which is not “controllable” by the Department of Finance.
Of the remaining budget of $21.7 million, 81 percent, or $17.6 million, is for compensation and benefits.
It should be noted that the department is budgeting compensation and benefits to anticipated actual in this fiscal year.
In summary, Mr. Chairman, the department will continue to play its central agency role in addition to supporting the initiatives of other departments and territorial corporations across government.
I would be pleased to answer questions.
Chairman: Thank you, Minister Peterson.
I would now like to ask the Co-Chair of the Standing Committee on Oversight of Government Operations and Public Accounts if he has any comments.
I am pleased to provide opening comments on behalf of the Standing Committee on Oversight of Government Operations and Public Accounts on its review of the 2009-2010 Main Estimates and Business Plan of the Department of Finance.
The standing committee notes that the department’s proposed 2009-2010 operations and maintenance budget of $54,883,000 has increased by approximately 4.5 percent since the introduction of the department’s 2004-05 main estimates.
The number of positions in the department has increased from 154.0 PYs in 2004-05 to 209.0 PYs in 2009-2010.
In 2003, the Government of Nunavut announced the establishment of a Crown Agency Council to address issues related to the government’s relationship with its major Crown corporations and agencies.
During the Second Legislative Assembly of Nunavut, the government began the practice of providing annual ministerial letters of expectation to Crown corporations and agencies in order to establish priorities and provide direction with respect to their operations and initiatives.
The current government, through its new Public Agency Council, has indicated that it will be undertaking a Memorandum of Understanding-based approach to this process.
The standing committee looks forward to the timely tabling in the Legislative Assembly of priority-setting items that are directed to Crown corporations and agencies.
Members also look forward to the tabling in the Legislative Assembly of the terms of reference for the new Public Agency Council, in addition to the 2009-2010 corporate business plans of the Nunavut Development Corporation, the Qulliq Energy Corporation, and the Nunavut Business Credit Corporation.
Mr. Chairman, as you will recall, the standing committee held hearings last month on the Report of the Auditor General on the Nunavut Housing Corporation.
The standing committee recently presented its report on these hearings and made a number of recommendations.
The standing committee strongly urges the Public Agency Council to take into account these recommendations in the development of this year’s Memorandum of Understanding between the GN and the Nunavut Housing Corporation.
On April 1, 2009, the Report of the Auditor General of Canada to the Legislative Assembly of Nunavut – 2009: Financial Management Practices – Follow-up on the 2005 Report to the Legislative Assembly of Nunavut, was tabled in the House.
The Department of Finance’s 2009-2010 business plan indicates that one of its priorities is to address the concerns identified in the Auditor General’s report “by developing and implementing a concrete action plan…” The standing committee looks forward to holding hearings on the Auditor General’s most recent reports in the fall of 2009 and reviewing the government’s action plan.
The department’s business plan indicates that the transaction processing functions of the Department of Health and Social Services and the Department of Executive and Intergovernmental Affairs “have now been recentralized to the Department of Finance regional offices located in Iqaluit, Cambridge Bay and Rankin Inlet as part of a shared services model.
Further recentralization of transaction processing for other departments is currently being assessed.”
The standing committee looks forward to the minister reporting to the House on the status of this initiative.
Mr. Chairman, the tabling of the government’s annual public accounts continues to be an issue of concern.
The public accounts for the 2006-07 fiscal year were not tabled in the Legislative Assembly until September 16, 2008.
The Government of Nunavut’s interim financial report for the 2007-08 fiscal year was tabled in the Legislative Assembly on January 26, 2009.
The public accounts for 2007-08 have not yet been tabled.
The 2007 federal budget provided $23 million to “Strengthen Financial Management in Nunavut.”
The Department of Finance has indicated that $15 million of this funding will be used to “create an efficient and effective business computer network.