EdinburghNLP/nunavut-hansard-plusplus huggingface dataset:
We have done a bit of reviewing.
If the operations are more expensive than what they are getting then we'll increase.
Ninety dollars is an average that we pay for each person in custody.
If there were two, they would be getting 180 dollars for one day.
I got the responses that I wanted.
Mr. Chairman, in the Baffin region or anywhere in Nunavut, how many correctional camps do we have in the territory.
We have six operating in the whole of Nunavut.
Your second last question.
I would like to thank the Premier for responding to my questions.
If anybody would like to start a correctional camp is it possible to do so even if you have six operating right now.
If a person wanted to set up a camp.
Is that open.
We are open to people that would like to start correctional camps and we are also reviewing how to set up a better system.
I would want the people to be well aware and also keep everything safe.
Your last question, Mr. Irqittuq.
That was my last question, but I would like to ask another last question, Mr. Chairman.
If someone were to make a request to start a correctional camp, would your staff go that individual’s community and help the person who wants to set up the camp, to get it started.
Is that the process.
I will allow you more questions if there are more questions.
Under corrections we were talking about our inmates that are in southern institutions for over two years.
Is there any movement in this government to build a federal institution in Nunavut.
Yes, it is federal penitentiaries that are currently under the federal system.
But we have had preliminary discussions with the federal government where perhaps we could look at a joint arrangement where it is part federal and part a territorial facility.
But we haven’t had detailed discussions with the federal government yet.
But there is a plan that we are going to talk to the federal government and maybe do some movement on a federal institution within Nunavut.
That is the kind of answer that I like.
I know it is Friday.
Under community justice, I had a couple of questions and I don’t want to beat this one to pieces because it is a tragedy that happened in the past.
With community policing and RCMP contracts, the RCMP are now stating publicly and they were very quiet about it in the past, now they are stating in public that they are short of officers, due to public safety, safety for them and us.
Is your department willing to talk to the RCMP about maybe trying to find some more money for additional RCMP officers in Nunavut.
To date we haven’t received any detailed requests from the RCMP but I believe that there is a review taking place, so I will await the results of the review and consider it.
Mr. Chair, maybe you could direct me as to when I should ask this question about the victims assistance fund.
I don’t see it in this book.
You can ask your question Ms. Williams.
I will be asking a question regarding the victim assistance program.
Where is that in this estimate.
That is a very excellent question.
We don't fund this program.
Usually those amounts are restitution paid by the person who committed the crime.
They are funds that are collected through the court system.
I would just like to know if there was a report by the victim assistance committee.
When will the minister be tabling it in this House.
We haven't seen as of yet but once we receive it we will table it.
I should add we intend to hire an employee for victims’ assistance under the community justice budget during this fiscal year.
Ms. Williams: Thank you, Mr. Chairperson.
I am just wondering if the community justice committees in the communities are the only link to this department then we may want to do more things for communities to take on more responsibilities.
There is very little increase to the community justice committee fund.
How is the department, how is the minister going to accommodate this with very little money under the community justice committee budget.
Currently we are requesting additional money for the justice committees.
We understand that they've been under funded in the past.
So we are asking for an increase.
Further, we have had some training programs for the justice committees and we intend to do some more.
If there are no more questions. Justice branch summary.
Total operations and maintenance, 12 million 265 thousand dollars.
Total expenditures, 12 million 665 thousand.
This is more of an information item.
More of an information item 5-15.
This community constable agreement. I know there is one like this in Coral Harbour.
Are there any other programs like this in any other communities.
Chairperson (interpretation): Thank you, Minister Okalik.
Mr. Arvaluk (interpretation): We want to know where.
Right now we have 22 employees present in different communities.
We can identify the communities that they're employed in if you so chose.
I didn't know that there is as many as 22.
There's only 115 thousand dollars allocated for this program.
How many hours do they work in a day.
Hon. Paul Okalik (interpretation): Yes, it seems like a small amount but they're not the only ones that we are funding.
The federal government also pays half of this amount towards the policing services.
Mr. Arvaluk (interpretation): I asked how many hours are worked in one day.
Also, as an addition, are the communities happy with this program of community constables.
The hours vary from community to community so I cannot really answer that question.
What we want to know is if there are problems with this program then we would like to hear what those problems are.
Perhaps, there are so many questions, we would like to hear a report from the justice department.
These community constables are very handy to have for the RCMP and the bylaw officers.
When the RCMP officers are not able to be there, these community constables have been a real help to the communities.
They've been beneficial for the communities and they go on further training to Regina, Saskatchewan.
How can we improve this community constable agreement because it is somewhat confusing.
I would like to see at least a two-page report providing an update on the program, and how beneficial they are for the communities to have.
I would also like an indication of how many hours on average per week are worked.
I would like to see a report of this some time in the future.
Yes, I agree with Mr. Arvaluk.
By setting aside funds, we are trying to get more community constables who will help in the communities and we can include this in the report when we draft this report.
The community constable is not the only resource there is also the Department of Sustainable Development, economic development officers and perhaps in the future we will have nurses.
Those are some of the things that are all concerned.
Communities are proud of the community constables.
So I would definitely like to see a report on the community constable programs.
Because they are becoming more community based, that is just something that I wanted to mention.
That is more like a comment and I don’t hear a question there.
He just said that it is more of a comment than a question.
He just made me smile.
I want to ask about the court interpreters that have taken legal interpreting training programs.
Are our legally trained interpreters sufficient now because I don’t see any more programs of this kind in the future.
Keep that smile on your face Ms. Williams.
Right now we have sufficient legal interpreters, but if there were a requirement for more legal interpreters we would set aside more funding.
Some of the funding was received from the federal government but we are the watchdogs of those programs, if we have to add to those funds then we will.
Chairperson (interpretation): Thank you, Premier.
He has given a good, clear answer.
One of the questions that came up in my mind too was the training of the JPs.
Training and development funding is provided to enhance their training.
Is there any more training to be had in the future, because the Premier briefly touched on this.
There is no funding set aside for this program so are we going to see any more Justice of the Peace training and development in the future.
Yes, last year there was 190 thousand dollars allocated by the federal government and we added to those funds.
Those dollars came from the federal government and we will be requesting additional funding. We will use our own dollars to keep the program going and we will be asking the federal government for additional funding.
The federal government did provide funding last year but it has not been resolved for this year.
Right now we are on information items.
Information item 5-15.
Going on to 5-16.
If not we will go back to page 5-5.
Thank you, any comments.
Details of expenditures, 37 million 495 thousand.
I just wondered what page you are on now.
Rather than 555, I looked for that page but I couldn’t find it.
Chairperson (interpretation): I am sorry for saying that in Inuktitut.
We are on page 5-5.
Can you find your page now.
Total operations and maintenance, 37 million 495 thousand.
Total expenditures, 37 million 995 thousand.
I would like to thank the people from the Department of Justice.
The comments were very interesting and I believe that we are going to go ahead with what has been said today.
Mr. Okalik, if you have any closing remarks.
Hon. Paul Okalik (interpretation): Thank you for those very good questions and also I would like to thank my officials.
Thank you, and we will see you very shortly.
Chairperson (interpretation): Thank you, for coming to the witness table while we dealt with the department.
At this time we have completed the Department of Justice.
Do we agree to deal with Bill 1 Appropriation Act, 2001-2002, Department of Culture, Language, Elders & Youth, capital estimates.
Are we agreed that we will begin with the capital and then go on to the main estimates.
Minister Kattuk, you can do your opening remarks now. Mr. Kattuk.
Hon. Peter Kattuk (interpretation): I will be doing my opening comments in English.
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Legislative Assembly, during the past year the Department of Culture, Language, Elders and Youth made significant progress toward establishing the framework that is required for the promotion, preservation and protection of the traditional Inuit culture and heritage in Nunavut.
Part of that progress was staffing our vacant positions.
I am pleased to report to the Legislative Assembly that we have now staffed 72% of our positions, and we are actively attempting to recruit and hire staff for any remaining vacant positions.
During the past year we have been working with the Department of Health and Social Services in the area of suicide prevention.
Together, we are delivering a series of community-based Youth Peer Counselling Workshops.
These workshops are providing many of our youth with skills they can pass on to other youth in their home communities.
Increasing the self-esteem of our youth and improving their knowledge of Nunavut’s rich cultural heritage is an important part of our mandate.
This month we are also holding three regional workshops for our elders, and in the 2001-02 fiscal year we are planning three regional combined Elders and Youth conferences.
My department is also continuing to support the important work of the Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit Tunngaviksaliuqtiit Task Force.
We have identified an appropriate candidate for the IQ Co-ordinator position and we are currently working to appoint the individual.
The Task Force held their first meeting in Iqaluit on January 23rd to 26th.
Their next meeting will be held this April in Iqaluit.
We have also completed the appointment process for the members of the Status of Women Council, and hired the Senior Advisor for Women’s issues and People with Disabilities.
The Senior Advisor has just finished assisting the People with Disabilities Society with their annual general meeting, which was recently held in Iqaluit.
My department also continues to support the Status of Women Council, women’s organizations and the Council for the Disabled, through the provision of contribution funding.
The appointments to the Nunavut Historical Advisory Board have now been made.
This Board will provide an important advisory role during the planning process for any future facilities that are designed to protect and preserve Nunavut’s cultural heritage.
We have set aside funding for the Board’s future meetings.
In the area of language, I can advise the members that our Language Bureau in Kugluktuk is now fully operational, with most of the positions staffed.
Our department provides 702 thousand dollars in contribution funding to community-based organizations or individuals for the promotion, preservation, protection, revitalization and enhancement of the Inuktitut language in Nunavut.
Through the Canada-Nunavut Co-operation Agreement for French and Inuit Languages, the Federal Department of Canadian Heritage provides Nunavut with an additional 1.1 million dollars for community-based Inuktitut language initiatives.
Because we signed the initial Agreement late in the 1999-00 fiscal year, we benefited from a one-time carry-over of additional funding into the 2000-01 fiscal year.
As a result, we were able to fund an extensive number of projects, including providing the Department of Education with funding for the Elders in the Schools program.
We are currently advertising throughout Nunavut for community-based proposals to access these language-funding sources for the 2001-02 fiscal year.
A second component of the Official Languages Agreement with the Federal Government is the provision of 1.45 million dollars in funding for French language services.
This funding is for the translation of legislation, support for community language development, and the provision of all Government of Nunavut services in French, as required under the Official Languages Act.
Although we do not currently receive funding from the Federal Government for the provision of Government of Nunavut services in Inuktitut, we are actively pursuing funding for this purpose.
I look forward to reporting back to the Legislative Assembly later this year regarding the status of this issue.
Mr. Chairman, another area I am pleased to report on is our Grants and Contributions program for Cultural and Heritage Activities, Elders and Youth initiatives, Communications and Radio, and the Arts.
The support for community-based initiatives in all of these areas has been highly successful.
We are currently refining our accountability process for Grants and Contributions in order to evaluate the performance of the projects, and ensure the approval process is fair, transparent, and reflects community-based needs.
For the 2001-02 fiscal year, our first priority will be local community-based projects.
The Nunavut Literacy Council is currently conducting training seminars in all Nunavut communities.
One of the components of their seminars is how to draft proposals.
I would like to take this opportunity to commend the Literacy Council for their work in this area.
My department is also working on the following initiatives with other departments.
Minister Anawak’s Department of Community Government and Transportation, to promote the benefits of volunteering to the individual, our communities and Nunavut as a whole, and to recognize the contributions of Nunavut’s volunteers during the International Year of Volunteers.
Minister Akesuk’s Department of Sustainable Development, to promote the development of a film industry in Nunavut, by contributing to, and supporting, the Nunavut Film Symposium in Iqaluit.
My department is also actively supporting the Arctic Winters Games Host Society, in their endeavour to administer and promote the 2001-02 Winter Games in Iqaluit.
With regard to our 2001-02 capital budget, my department will be focusing on the following three capital projects.
Nunavut Heritage Feasibility Study – 300 thousand dollars.
This study will determine our needs for a facility that will house our large collection of museum objects and archaeological specimens originating from Nunavut.
These items are currently housed at the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre in Yellowknife.
The return of these items cannot be achieved until Nunavut has a facility that can maintain these materials according to professional museum standards.
The cost for housing our cultural artefacts outside of Nunavut will soon approach 300 thousand dollars per year.
In order to help offset this cost, my department has indefinitely suspended the hiring of four positions.
Youth and Elders Feasibility Study – 200 thousand dollars.
This study will assess the community-based requirements for these facilities, including the identification of design and renovation options.
Language Centre Feasibility Study – 300 thousand dollars.
This study will determine the Capital Standards and Criteria for a Nunavut Language Centre.
The Centre will provide Nunavut with a facility to study the Inuktitut language, and the resources to preserve our linguistic heritage.
The balance of our proposed capital funding will be allocated to the Cambridge Bay Heritage Centre.
In conclusion Mr. Chairman, we are working proactively to meet the many challenges and objectives outlined in our 2001-02 Business Plan.
Chairperson (interpretation): Thank you, Minister Kattuk.
I would like to ask the Chair of the Standing Committee on Culture, Education and Health to do his opening comments.
The Standing Committee on Culture, Education and Health has reviewed the budget estimates and business plan of the Department of Culture, Language, Elders and Youth for the 2001-2002 fiscal year and I am pleased to provide you with the committee's comments.
The Standing Committee notes that the department’s total capital budget remains unchanged from last year.
Since the last budget session, 200 thousand dollars of that capital has been allocated to the Heritage Centre portion of the Cambridge Bay High School.
The remaining 800 thousand dollars of the 2001-2002 capital is dedicated to background and feasibility studies for various facilities.
It appears that future development of these facilities will depend on outside funding and the committee looks forward to learning where the funds will be going.
The committee would like to emphasize that clear criteria must be applied fairly and consistently in order to achieve transparent and accountable government.
The committee congratulates the newly appointed Status of Women Council.
The committee was pleased to hear that the position of a Senior Advisor has now been filled, providing important support to the Status of Women Council and to the Council for the Disabled.
The Standing Committee had recommended that the minister consider establishing a Status of Men Council, as the committee feels that boys and men need support as well as women.
Members have noted from their own families and experiences that many men in today’s changing society are also experiencing hardship and need this kind of support system.
The committee had further recommended that an Equality Advisor position be established to provide support to the different Councils.
The committee was disappointed to see no change in the department’s business plan based on these recommendations.
The Standing Committee fully supports activities involving the integration of Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit in all aspects of Government and looks forward to hearing how the department plans to progress in this regard.
The committee notes that the Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit Tunngaviksaliuqtiit Board has been allocated 200 thousand and recommends that the Board’s activities, outcomes and results be tabled in the House.
The Standing Committee understands that in mid-January, the department entered into negotiations with the federal government for the Official Languages Agreement that provides financial support for French and Inuit language services.
The committee feels that more detail should be made available on the types and levels of service provided.
Specifically, the committee recommends that information be made available on
the government’s current capacity for providing interpretation and translation services;  on what levels of funding are allocated to producing advertisements and publications in all relevant languages; and on initiatives aimed at building Inuktitut and Inuinnaqtuun language capacity in government employees.
Members feel certain that such information will also be valuable to the Special Committee to Review the Official Languages Act.
As the minister sits on this committee, he will no doubt appreciate the important contribution that his department has to offer to this important process.
The Standing Committee had recommended that the department work with the federal government to increase the amount of support made available for Inuit languages and looks forward to hearing the results of those negotiations.
The committee notes that the amount listed in the Main Estimates remains unchanged from last year.
The department is again budgeting nearly two and a half million dollars to be made available through grants and contributions.
The Standing Committee has raised a number of concerns in the past with regards to the way in which grants and contributions are allocated, tracked and evaluated.
The committee was pleased to hear that the department has taken the Standing Committee’s recommendations into consideration and will have revised policies in place for awarding these funds in the upcoming fiscal year.
The committee looks forward to seeing these policies tabled in the House.
Members also look forward to a future review of project outcomes as this will be an effective means of evaluating the policy’s performance.
The committee has strongly recommended that the department support and encourage more activities at the community level such as suicide-prevention programs and language skill workshops.
The committee also looks forward to seeing a number of community-based programs involving both Elders and Youth.
The committee has recommended that Elders be supported in the role of passing on knowledge and language skills, as well as in the special role they can play in the area of suicide prevention.
The committee notes that the issue of suicide is addressed in the department’s Business Plan and encourages the department to continue working alongside the Departments of Health and Social Services and Education on this issue.
I anticipate that individual members will also have questions and comments as we proceed.
I would now like to ask the minister to move to the witness stand.
Can the minister please take his seat at the witness stand.
Before we proceed, Mr. Arvaluk would like to make a comment.
Mr. Arvaluk (interpretation): Now that the minister is seated, I would like to report progress.
There is a motion to report progress and it is not debatable.
Mr. Kattuk, on Monday, you can come back and seat yourself at the witness stand if you'd like to say something before you leave.
Hon. Peter Kattuk (interpretation): This morning, during members’ statements, I was trying to encourage the members to ask questions but it didn't happen.
Chairperson (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Kattuk.
We'd now like the Speaker to come back to the House.
Meeting of the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Services at 2:15 this afternoon in the Tuktu Room.
Orders of the Day for Monday March 26, 2001:
• Bill 6
Before we adjourn for the weekend I will take this opportunity to thank two of our pages that have been with us for the past week.
Today is their last day in assisting us and they return to school on Monday.
First, Jessie Mike.
Number two Leah Appalia Sageatuq
I'm sorry if I mispronounced your name.
Thank you for helping us all week.
Again, thank you.
This House stands adjourned until Monday March 26 at 1:30 p.m.
>>House adjourned at 2:00 p.m.
Monday March 26, 2001
Pages 1061 - 1118
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery. 4
Reports of Committees on the Review of Bills 4
Monday March 26, 2001 4
050 – 1(5): Ikajuruti Inungnik Ungasiktumi – Federal Funding Approved (Picco) 4
051 – 1(5): Nunavut Education Week (Kilabuk) 4
052 – 1(5): Funding for Language Preservation (Kattuk) 4
053 – 1(5): Community Consultation on Gambling (Anawak) 4
153 - 1(5): Recognition of Elders’ Contributions (Alakannuark) 4