EdinburghNLP/nunavut-hansard-plusplus huggingface dataset:
I want my colleagues to join me in congratulating the three people and they are: a young person, Jenna Kilabuk, for her work with assisting youth through recreation and other matters; Jayco Ishulutak, who is a carver and tries to help his fellow Inuit; and thirdly, Meeka Arnaqaq, who is a lay minister and helps out people in any way, and she got recognized for her work.
I ask my fellow MLAs to join me in congratulating the recipients of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal.
Member’s Statement 397 – 3(3): The Success of the Northern Youth Abroad Program (Elliott)
Before I begin my Member’s Statement, I would like to apologize to one of my constituents.
During my Member’s Statement on Tuesday honouring the recipients of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee medals, I neglected to name Susan Salluviniq from Resolute Bay who was honoured with one of the medals.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the ongoing success of the Northern Youth Abroad Program which, over the past 15 years, has provided opportunities to more than 225 Nunavut youth to live and work in southern Canada and sub-Saharan Africa.
Mr. Speaker, youth involved in the Northern Youth Abroad Program earn high school credits and gain work experience and life skills during their participation. This, in turn, has an immensely positive impact on educational achievements and career opportunities.
Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to inform you that four youth from my constituency have been selected for the 2013 Northern Youth Abroad Canadian Phase of the program.
Andrew Iyerak;
Napassi Joseph;
Donathon Kigutikakjuk as an alternate; and
Stacy Shappa as an alternate.
Mr. Speaker, Jaqueline Arnayumayuq is also an alternate in the international phase of the program as she participated and completed the Canadian phase last year.
These youth are all from the community of Arctic Bay.
Mr. Speaker, the Northern Youth Abroad Program has a longstanding and supportive relationship with the Government of Nunavut and I am pleased to note that the government’s proposed budget for 2013-14 includes a significant increase in contribution funding for the Northern Youth Abroad Program.
Initiatives such as the Northern Youth Abroad Program help to enhance the confidence and worldview of young Nunavummiut, which can lead to higher levels of education and skill attainment.
Mr. Speaker, programs of this kind help prepare our youth of today to become the leaders of tomorrow.
I ask my colleagues to join me in congratulating all the participants who have been selected for the 2013 Northern Youth Abroad Program and to the program as a whole for over 15 years of success in supporting and encouraging our youth.
Member for Rankin Inlet South and Whale Cove, Minister Kusugak.
Member’s Statement 398 – 3(3): Avataq Hockey Tournament (Kusugak)
Hon. Lorne Kusugak (interpretation): Thank you and good morning, Mr. Speaker.
I also pass along good morning wishes to residents of Rankin Inlet and Whale Cove.
It is Friday and I am happy it is, as there weren’t many Fridays where the Montreal Canadiens were in first place. Today, they are in first place, so I am quite happy.
I am from Rankin Inlet, so I want to share my pride in an upcoming event. Over the weekend, there is an annual hockey tournament around this time.
The Avataq Hockey Tournament will once again be run, and Rankin Inlet will have a large number of transient people watching the tournament. I envy those who will witness the tournament, but I have duties to attend to here, so I unfortunately can’t attend.
I am proud of this tournament and hockey players playing in the tournament have a good weekend playing in the tournament.
Please note that the residents of Rankin Inlet will be very hospitable, as is their norm, and I know there will be many recreational activities planned.
Some fans rarely seem to leave the hockey arena during this event and they will once again be found at the arena, Mr. Speaker.
We tend to hear about certain people who are asked to return home since they seemingly abandoned their children during the tournament.
So you will hear on the radio about certain elders to go home, such as Tuaji, Misiraalaaq, Tattuinee, Aliyak, and Tullit. They usually go to the arena in the morning and don’t return home until the last hockey game is over. Our elders in the community totally get immersed in the hockey games and they enjoy this time, so I can just envision them there.
I wish all the hockey teams a good tournament that are travelling to Rankin Inlet.
You will be welcomed in Rankin Inlet and I hope it is an injury-free tournament. So I welcome all of the hockey players and fans who will attend this tournament in Rankin Inlet.
Members’ Statements. We will move on in our orders of the day.
As I mentioned earlier, I was proud of the young filmmakers at the middle school. (interpretation ends) Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize the Iqaluit Aqsarniit Middle School Film Club whose work I have mentioned earlier today and the names are:
Hope Carpenter, if you can stand up as I call you;
Christie-Ann West;
Sarah Kuutiq;
Catherine Suklan;
Sadie Pincett;
Sheldma Niuresz;
Daniel Kaziz-Calamayin;
Kundai Andre Makaika;
Excuse my pronunciation here.
Emily Grace Matthews;
Malaya Idlout Mullin;
Faith Twerdin;
Ben Qaqasiq;
Kunuk Rojas;
Malaya Aqatsiaq;
Misuma Umiunva-Nuvas;
Emily-Ann Niego;
Nicole Amagoalik; and
Their grade 7 teacher, Mark Caine, and the principal is Don Peters.
Give them a big hand.
I welcome you all to the Gallery and hope you have a great trip to Toronto and learn lots.
Item 5. Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery. Moving on in our orders of the day.
Question 511 – 3(3): Conduct of Recent Municipal Elections (Aupaluktuq)
My questions are for the Minister of Community and Government Services, Hon. Lorne Kusugak, who is responsible for the administration of the Local Authorities Elections Act.
As I noted earlier this week, Nunavummiut went to the polls last fall to elect new municipal councils and mayors in a number of communities.
Can the minister advise the House if any significant problems were reported to his department regarding the conduct of the recent municipal elections?
No, there were no significant problems reported.
Earlier this week, you tabled the most recent annual report of the Chief Electoral Officer of Nunavut.
These annual reports include the official voting results of territorial general elections and by-elections, which then become matters of public record.
However, under the Local Authorities Elections Act, there is currently no legal requirement to table the official results from municipal elections.
Will the minister commit to tabling the official voting results from the 2012 municipal elections in the Legislative Assembly before the end of the winter sitting?
There is no requirement to table the local municipal elections results in Nunavut.
I appreciate the response as well.
Federal and territorial elections do follow such as Acts.
I want to ask the minister if he will commit to bringing forward an amendment to the Local Authorities Elections Act to require municipal voting results to be tabled in the Legislative Assembly for the benefit of the permanent public record.
The municipal election results are always available through the municipalities and through the media and other means. Therefore, I don’t have any intentions and our department has no plans either to amend the Act to make a requirement to do such.
As Canadians and Nunavut Canadians, we have the fundamental right to perform civic duties. The Local Authorities Elections Act prohibits such things as intimidation of voters and corrupt practices.
These rules are essential to ensuring that Nunavummiut have confidence in the integrity of the democratic process.
Can the minister indicate how many complaints and/or investigations concerning breaches of the Local Authorities Elections Act have been undertaken in the last five years?
We don’t have that level of detailed information before us.
We would have to go back five years to look into that, Mr. Speaker.
I’m not able to respond to that at this time.
Question 512 – 3(3): Meeting with Nunavut MP (Schell)
My question is for Madam Premier and it’s in line with the questions that I have been asking the last couple of days.
She had quoted during the week of February 14 that she had met with Prime Minister Stephen Harper and had requested $500 million for two projects in Nunavut. Also, she had stated or it had been stated in the media report that she had met with our local MP, Leona Aglukkaq, also John Duncan, Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada, and Peter Penashue, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs and President of the Queen’s Privy Council of Canada.
My question for the Premier is: did she meet with Leona Aglukkaq during the week of February 14 and what issues and concerns did she discuss with her?
Hon. Eva Aariak: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate my fellow colleague’s sudden interest in my affairs with my dialogues with Ottawa and I thank him for that.
On February 14, I did not meet with Ms. Leona Aglukkaq, but prior to that date, I was on a telephone conference with her.
Then I’ll ask: did she meet with John Duncan or Peter Penashue during that week of February 14?
During that week, I met with Peter Penashue and it was a very good meeting and I thank him for accommodating me for that day.
Again, I did not meet with Minister Duncan that week, but I was on a telephone conference with him.
Well, according to the media report, it states in here that she had met with all of these individuals during that week.
Did she see the media report and, if that wasn’t correct, why didn’t she correct it or make comments on it?
No, I did not see the media report.
Media reports sometimes come out with certain things that may not be totally accurate in terms of the dates and whatnot. Just to reiterate, I did not see the media documents.
I find it hard to believe that neither her nor staff have seen the report because I’m sure they read the Nunatsiaq News online at all times there, but I’ll have to take her word for it. I find it hard to believe that she has not seen that report.
Speaker: No question there, just a comment.
Question 513 – 3(3): Exemptions in Official Languages Law (Tapardjuk)
I would like to direct my question to the Minister of Languages, Minister James Arreak, my Annuraaqatik.
It has been a long wait, but I was pleased to finally hear the minister’s announcement yesterday that Nunavut’s new Official Languages Act will come into force on April 1, 2013.
I noted, however, that he specifically stated that subsection 12(7)(c) of the Act will not be coming into force.
For the benefit of the listening public, section 12 addresses communication with and services to the public by a territorial institution.
It states, in part, under subsection 12(7), “The administrative head of a territorial institution shall take appropriate measures consistent with this Act, including posting such signs, providing such notices or taking such other measures as are appropriate…
(c) to implement this section with respect to its communications and services to the public, including communications or services that are delivered through contract with a third party.”
Can the minister clearly explain why subsection 12(7)(c) of the Official Languages Act is not coming into force and can he clarify if the government plans to bring it into force at a later date?
I also thank my Annuraaqatik, Mr. Tapardjuk, for asking a very good question which needs to be known by the public.
The new Nunavut Official Languages Act will be coming into force on April 1, however, section 12(7)(c) will not be enforced.
The reasoning for this section not being implemented is that the third party contracts listed in there are quite numerous.
I believe there are over 1,000 contracts listed, such as the RCMP contract which is quite lengthy and it includes many other contracts, quite long and numerous.
Due to these reasons, although we will be enacting the legislation with all languages being used that are recognized as official languages within Nunavut are coming into force, however, they are not all on the same starting point, especially with the new sections and that is why we have to use all three official languages when we introduce any documentation.
When the Act comes into force, we will let the members know when the other sections noted will become law.
For the unilingual people, we are left out and I’m not sure when the other Act will be coming into force.
Mr. Speaker, the Department of Culture and Heritage is responsible for administering federal funding under the Canada-Nunavut General Agreement for French and Inuit Languages.
Last year, the federal government made $2.7 million in funding available for language programs.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask the minister if he can provide an update on how much of this funding has been used to address Nunavut’s language needs in the current fiscal year.
It is because we don’t want to screw it up and that is why this has been deferred. It is not abandoned, as we will have to introduce it afterwards.
However, even if we were to await the start date that was mentioned, perhaps 12, so rather than have one section late, we prefer to initiate them together on the same date, especially for the recognition of official languages and these Acts.
At that time when I had wanted to introduce the Uqausivut report on the language issue, I wanted to table that and strengthen our arguments to negotiate the language issues with the federal government, especially when speaking about Inuktitut and Nunavut’s official languages. I also stated that we would be able to reintroduce the report.
Once it was completed, we would be able to garner more funding for this initiative.
At this time, the status hasn’t changed. We are still expecting further funding for Nunavut down the road, specifically for languages in Nunavut.
I should have gotten some clarification first about the $2.7 million that is going to be used for official languages.
Has the money been spent and where did it get spent?
At this time, I don’t have a breakdown of how that money has been spent.
We get $2.45 million for Inuktitut and French languages and this money is used for programs related to those languages.
At the end of the fiscal year, I don’t have a breakdown of how that money has been spent, but we use it in every Nunavut community.
Also I thank the minister for those expectations I will now hold onto as to when they will come into force.
In his Budget Address that was delivered earlier this week, the Minister of Finance indicated that $7 million would be allocated to Culture and Heritage for the Official Languages Program, with $5 million for the Language Implementation Fund.
Can the Minister of Culture and Heritage clarify how departments, agencies, municipalities, and private sector organizations will be able to access these funds as they seek to meet their obligations under the new Official Languages Act?
I also thank Mr. Tapardjuk for wanting public awareness about this issue.
Yes, the $5 million is assistance funding for the departments to have government documents converted into Inuktitut and to ensure that they are using the language.
Whenever departments require assistance, the department of Heritage and Culture will administer the funds, as well as the action items required that would qualify.
The question the member posed about the fund will be distributed in that manner. Further, the expectations the members alluded to, will be released once we have completed the work and when they are able to be implemented. For section 12(7)(c), once it is completed we will be tabling it.
Question 514 – 3(3): Medical Boarding Homes for Rankin Inlet and Cambridge Bay (Ningeongan)
He’s probably feeling my heart beat since he’s so close to me.
Mr. Speaker, medical clients from the Baffin region who travel to Iqaluit for appointments and medical treatment at the Qikiqtani General Hospital have a well-supported boarding home to stay in. Their medical appointments are coordinated, food and transportation is provided, and they are well looked after.
I am happy for them.
By contrast, medical clients travelling for medical services at the regional health facilities in Rankin Inlet and Cambridge Bay have no such boarding facility to go to and nowhere near the same level of support for food, transportation, and coordination of appointments.
Can the minister clearly explain why the communities of Rankin Inlet and Cambridge Bay do not have medical boarding facilities for medical clients travelling from communities within the region?
I thank Mr. Ningeongan for his question.
Indeed, I felt his heart beating. He’s that close, or is it the heat from his heart?
Mr. Speaker, it’s a very difficult question to answer. I know, in the Government of Nunavut, in the early days of this territory, they planned for two regional health centres, one in Cambridge Bay and one in Rankin Inlet.
They had good intentions. I don’t think the planning was complete.
As we all know, in most communities in Nunavut, housing is in short supply. When they planned the regional health facilities, there was oversight in planning for housing to support the facilities and that has been a serious issue in Cambridge Bay. I’m well aware, from my days when I was mayor, I used to ask the government, “Where’s the housing so we can house the nurses and doctors?”
So it’s a real issue.
If we are to build facilities and provide facilities, we would have to have discussions with Health Canada because they pay for the services under the Non-Insured Health Benefits Program.
Mr. Ningeongan: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, Minister Peterson, for your response.
Currently, medical clients travelling to Rankin Inlet from outlying communities have to find relatives to stay with or stay in hotels.
It is often difficult to find accommodation with relatives who, in addition, are often not compensated for what they provide. This arrangement also results in a loss of communication about appointments and travel. Can the minister explain why medical clients travelling to the Kivalliq regional centre are expected to rely on the support of their relatives while in places, such as Iqaluit, Ottawa, or Winnipeg, such services are provided?
Hon. Keith Peterson: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I again thank Mr. Ningeongan for the question.
Mr. Speaker, to address one comment in his question, we rely on billets in Cambridge Bay and Rankin Inlet. So if the billets feel that they’re not being compensated, then they should talk to our regional office.
I believe they’re entitled to $100 a day for providing accommodation and meals to their billets. If they’re providing private accommodations, then they’re entitled to $50 a day.
We’re not expecting free service for medical patients.
With respect to why the facilities are in the south, in Ottawa or Iqaluit or Winnipeg or Edmonton or Yellowknife, for that matter, it gets back to lack of housing.
If we don’t have housing for nurses and physicians who can offer specialized services, then we do have to send the folks south.
Until we have facilities like boarding homes, we will likely continue to rely on billets.
As I stated earlier, at times, there appears to be some problems with communications if and when patients coming out of Coral Harbour, for example, to Rankin Inlet, there’s nobody really there to support services for these patients, especially if they’re unilingual members of the community.
They have trouble trying to figure who is supposed to pick them up from wherever the accommodation is to the health facilities.
Can the minister commit to looking at Rankin Inlet facilities or accommodation issues and Cambridge Bay to see if there could be some form of improvements so as to make it easier for medical clients that are presently travelling to these regions or central locations?
I thank Mr. Ningeongan for the question and I share his concerns for our patients.
It’s very stressful to travel. It’s stressful to go to another community. If you don’t have someone to pick you up or take you to your appointments, it can be a very stressful situation.
Mr. Speaker, my staff has advised me that they’re reviewing the potential for a Rankin Inlet facility.
Again, we have to have conversations with Health Canada. I have instructed my staff also to look at options for the old boarding home in Cambridge Bay.
That facility is right across the street from my office, so I see it every day when I go to the office. It has some good potential to offer use for something, whether it’s a boarding home or a mental health or addictions facility. We’re looking at different options to improve our health services in Nunavut.
If the government is unwilling or unable to commit to making capital investments in medical boarding homes for the Kivalliq and Kitikmeot regional centres, will the minister commit to addressing the issue and consider partnerships with organizations, such as the development arms of the regional Inuit organizations, or other potential investors to provide this much needed service?
Mr. Speaker, I believe the department would be willing to entertain any proposals from the private sector. Again, it’s a function of available capital and O&M as well.
So if there are developers out there in the private sector, I think our department would seriously consider any proposal they put to us.
Question 515 – 3(3): Liquor Regulation in Nunavut (Elliott)
In his responses to questions asked earlier this week by my colleague from Baker Lake, the minister informed the Legislative Assembly that it will not be possible to introduce a brand-new Liquor Act within the life of this Assembly but that it “may be possible” to make some amendments to the current statute.
Can the minister clarify why it will not be possible to introduce a new statute at this time and can he provide some indication as to what specific changes to the current law may be possible to make before the current Assembly dissolves?
Mr. Speaker, the life of the Assembly will come to an end on September 22, I believe the date is.
We have quite a legislative backlog to deal with and the standing committees, the Department of Justice, and the Department of Finance have a significant amount of work in order to create an entirely new Liquor Act.
So we’re just being cognizant and transparent about that.
We don’t want people to get their expectations up that there will be an entirely new Liquor Act, but we can look at amendments to the Liquor Act.
Some of the amendments might deal with heavier fines for bootleggers.
There’s some indication that opening up a beer and wine store is something that might be possible under the legislation.
In his responses that he provided earlier this week, the minister made reference to a “committee” that is apparently reviewing the recommendations contained in the report of the Nunavut Liquor Act Review Task Force.
Can the minister clarify who sits on this committee and when it is expected to complete its review of the task force’s work?
The committee consists of senior officials within the Government of Nunavut, and they have completed their review.
I may be tabling their responses to the liquor task force report later in this Assembly.
The final report of the Nunavut Liquor Act Review Task Force states that, and I quote, “We strongly support the view that communities, with appropriate assistance, are in the best position to determine their alcohol status, to monitor consumption, and to design and implement harm reduction strategies.”
However, it has also been argued that the territorial Liquor Act should provide that the rules concerning access to alcohol are the same in all of Nunavut’s 25 communities.
What is the government’s position on this issue?
Mr. Speaker, we live in a democratic country.
The Government of Nunavut respects the wishes of the local communities.
For example, earlier this week or last week, the Hamlet of Kugaaruk held a plebiscite and they chose to remain a dry community.
Any major decisions on whether to open up liquor and make it freely flowing in the communities would be in consultation with the local community.