EdinburghNLP/nunavut-hansard-plusplus huggingface dataset:
It had that value and that’s something Mr. Curley keeps talking about when he talks about the private sector that they were going to move in that direction.
They not going to come in and buy a pig on a pole.
They need to know what the evaluations and so on are.
So those types of things need to be carried out.
So that’s some of the transition funding as well as the liability evaluations, there is assets evaluation.
What is the cost of the evaluation of the asset on the ground?
What is the evaluation of that asset?
So, Mr. Chairman, there are quite a few things that need to be accomplished even if the Fuel Corporation doesn’t go forward.
We announced that it was postponed based on your recommendation.
I really like that gentleman. He’s good.
Mr. Chairman, so those are some of the issues around the $500,000 and what they would be used for.
Then, because the members have brought it up it up in the past, very strongly and forcefully, the Auditor General comes in and looks at the way the money has been spent.
It’s not going into some hole.
It’s not going down to Saskatchewan.
It’s going to be used and accessed by the government and would be audited as per the financial accounting procedures that are place.
So, there is a whole process for management information systems, for integration of the great plans, accounting software application process and so on.
That’s what the money would be used for.
If the money is not voted for right now, we still have to do the assessment based on the Auditor General’s Report and the member’s review.
That where the Auditor General says we have to prepare for those environmental sites.
We still have to look at the costs of remediation of the 19 sites.
That’s been unknown.
We still have to do the evaluation of the tanks.
So that money will have to come from somewhere.
I hope that helps answer the questions on the $500,000.
And again, Mr. Chairman, I want to point out something, whether we agree or disagree with the amount, what we’re doing right now is a good thing, because you have an opportunity where either you’re for or against something.
There is no need to go and get mad or anything like that.
If it goes forward, the very best.
If it doesn’t fine, then we have to find another way.
I think this is a good debate and Mr. Curley, is correct, if there is money deleted out of the budget, it will be the first time that it’s been done here, and that may be the very best.
That’s a very good indicator of a check and balance and that’s what the whole process of the House is for.
So, I don’t see any reason to react to that.
I think that the statement that the Member from Arviat made is a good one.
The constituents need to be assured of the money that is being spent and it is public money.
I think there are those checks and balances in place to show where the money was being spent and so on.
I would be, of course, supporting the motion.
At the same time, yes, I will be supporting the motion.
And when it comes time to vote for that motion, then of course I will be voting with the government’s side of the House.
That woke some of them up.
In all seriousness, Mr. Chairman, again if there isn’t support for it, then we have to look at some other issues, how do we do some of the things that are supposed to be called for and then again, as the 19 members, we have to address that at some point.
So with that, I hope that gets a better explanation as to what the money is being used for, and so on.
I just want to remind you that you can only vote once.
I would like to thank Mr. Picco.
He indicated that he will support the motion.
We don’t seem to be too clear on this money; not being able to identify exactly what it will be used for.
We hear different things from different people, and we also heard from the other side, from the Premier.
We are elected to represent our constituents and we want to represent them well.
It was also indicated earlier, there are six hamlets that are in a deficit situation.
They have constantly been asking for money and they are always short.
Those are the communities that we represent.
We want to delete this so when we get to voting for the motion, we have to think of our constituents.
I will get the mover a chance to speak before we vote.
I don’t want the government to think that if we delete $500,000 that we will lose it.
It will not be like that.
We will be able to utilize it on more useful things.
Just like what Mr. Arreak just mentioned, we can say that there’s lack of funding for landfills.
We heard just yesterday, I wonder if those people whose machines broke because of their oil.
Will they be compensated?
We heard that this will be used for tank farms.
On J-10, if it’s going to be used for that, it would indicate so on the description.
We shouldn’t just sort of beat around the bush on these.
I just wanted to specify again, I don’t want you to think that we will lose $500,000, we will just be making it into a better use.
If we are going to set up a corporation, we will have to be prepared because we have not seen any written material, and that’s not how you set up corporations.
You don’t have to do it like that, Mr. Premier, because it’s like that, the corporation is not established that way.
The plans are approved, they have to have (interpretation ends) vision, cost analysis, feasibility studies; is it worth, not worth it?
(interpretation) We have not seen anything of that nature in front of us, and that’s not how you operate things.
A lot of energy corporations are well over $100 million in debt, but we are going to have to pay ourselves if that turned into a crown corporation; maybe the corporation would go deeper into a deficit situation.
So I want you to support this motion in the Auditor General’s Report, and once that surfaces, we will have to deal with it.
There’s no mission statement.
I know the Auditor General will say that there is no mission statement.
So, for that reason we are not losing that.
Maybe next year we can revisit it and maybe make improvements if you support this motion. So I ask you to vote for that. Vote for the motion.
Chairman (interpretation): Minister, if you can go to your regular seat while we are voting.
Before members vote, I just want to say to Mr. Kilabuk that I cannot recognize you where you are and ask you to return to your seat.
All those in favour of the motion, please stand.
Then sit down when I have called your name.
All those opposed, please stand.
All those abstaining, please stand.
Hon. Peter Kilabuk,
Hon. Louis Tapardjuk,
The results are: for the motion, 9; against, 0; abstentions, 8.
(interpretation): Thank you.
I’m sorry, go back to your seats. Mr. Mapsalak.
I was listening to the Inuktitut translation.
It was mentioned 9 opposed, that is what I thought I heard.
Chairman (interpretation): Nine voted yes, 8 abstained, and no opposition.
>>Committee recessed at 17:54 and resumed at 18:05
Chairman (interpretation): Thank you, for coming back.
We are on page J-10.
I just to go on record.
I just want to state on the record for the first time that we have deleted a line item from the Main Estimates.
As I am still the same minister for this department I was very pleased to take part in that motion.
I am sure that it won’t be the last one.
We still have four more years to go.
Community and Government Services. Branch Summary. Government Services.
Total Operations and Maintenance. $48,905,000, less reduction of $500,000 for a revised total of $48,405,000.
To J-12.
Protection Services.
Total Operations and Maintenance. $4,880,000.
During my opening comments I was talking about fire prevention and I am sure that there was $2 million for Fire Protection and Safety.
I would like to thank the department for that line item because this is very important.
Mr. Chairman, I want to state to them that the firefighters are volunteers and they are always busy.
They should be recognized and acknowledged by the Members of the Legislative Assembly.
Although I don’t see them all the time but I would like to state to the volunteer firefighters.
They work very hard and some of the firefighters are very young, especially in Rankin Inlet.
My friend, Peter Karlik’s son Ambrose, has been working for the Fire Department for quite some time and he is also taking part in the fire drill.
I would like to state to the minister that we are in support of this, and we are proud of them and we are very thankful that the firefighters have to face dangers.
So therefore we have to acknowledge.
Mr. Minister, if you can relay that message from the Legislative Assembly Members that we appreciate them.
Sometimes they save lives and they save some infrastructure too.
I wanted to state that.
Also I am in support of the fire prevention drills and the training programs.
Perhaps you or your Deputy Minister can relay the message to the firefighters that we really do appreciate and acknowledge them.
Hon. Peter Kilabuk (interpretation): I agree with my colleague that we have to acknowledge the firefighters and we have to acknowledge the volunteer firefighters and we know that they are very important.
In the Main Estimates for this line item, I thank my colleague for stating what he said because the volunteer firefighters will have to be acknowledged.
We have to acknowledge the volunteer firefighters and appreciate them and we’re going to have some funding line item for that.
Mr. Chairman: Mr. Curley.
Mr. Curley: I’m finished.
Mr. Chairman: Mr. Barnabas.
At this time I’m very happy to see the Search and Rescue assistance.
This is quite critical now, that in some communities, because that we have to search for hunters, and especially right now because of the weather due to climate change and because of the ice melting earlier.
And also in my community I have seen some individuals that have to be rescued by Search and Rescue teams especially when they are on the flow edge.
So the Search and Rescue teams work really hard.
There are many volunteer Search and Rescue teams but they have to look for outside funding.
They actually have to get look for money from the affected members of the family who need to be searched for or rescued because they have to purchase fuel, and when the search and rescue snowmobiles whether it be by boat and if they don’t work properly then they run into a lot of problems.
So therefore I would like to thank the minister for this line item and in regards to the fire prevention and at this time the fire fighters currently at times the firefighters that can’t get into, firefighters equipment have to be in a warm place all the time and due to lack of space on some of their fire fighting equipment are left outside.
And when there’s a fire that occurs in winter time there’s a potential problem because the weathers so cold and it could freeze up the fire fighting equipment.
For that reason I just wanted to make a small comment in regards to that.
Mr. Chairman: I don’t think that’s a question.
I too want to make a comment in regards to this.
Some of the issues I wanted to raise have been brought up by Mr. Curley and Mr. Barnabas.
I am in support of the community volunteer firefighters, and they are volunteers and they work very hard and they always monitor their firefighting equipment on a daily basis.
That’s’ how it’s done in Repulse Bay with the firefighters.
And the extinguishers, as someone had said, that some extinguishers, we run into problems when we don’t have enough space for our firefighting equipment and some of our firefighting equipment have to be left outside and they end up freezing.
And were always in shortage of firefighting equipment and it seems like they are left alone, or neglected.
For that reason, I was wondering you go check and check the firefighting equipment at the community level.
Do you go to the communities to investigate the firefighting equipment, if they are up to date?
The Fire Marshall's Office does go to the communities, and work on their firefighting equipment.
Also, I would like to thank the Minister also for his response.
The Search and Rescue teams have faced challenging issues especially during the winter and anywhere in the season.
They work really hard to search and to rescue individuals that are out in the hinterland.
The hamlet complex that burned down, the Search and Rescue team that had an office that was situated in that building that had burnt down and they were trying to make their money and they had purchased capital assets like GPS, telephones and satellite phones etc. that are basic needs.
When they are searching and rescuing but they lack funding and assistance.
Search and Rescue Assistance, is there an increase in the funding for that line item for Search and Rescue.
Search and Rescue, we know what challenges they’re facing.
Since I became the Minister for this department, I became responsible for their operations and they were able to let us know about their problem about the lack of space.
My staff at this point, we’re now starting our discussion point.
If we look at the fire fighters, by-law officers, nurses, and RCMP, they work together in some communities.
Perhaps if they can work closer together, that way they can use their equipment, perhaps we can alleviate some of the challenges that they’re facing.
We are encouraging other departments to work together to find out how they can provide more assistance in Search and Rescue.
We would like to be able to look at all those so we’re now discussing, questioning or some kind of a consultation process where we can just consult with some of the communities, not just on fire fighting and Search and Rescue but on actually working together.
I too would like to echo the comments of my colleagues about the important role of the volunteer fire fighters and other fire fighters in Nunavut.
I think they are under appreciated and under represented.
I had the privilege of participating in Closing Ceremonies last fall for the municipal training organization.
They had a level 1 firefighters course in Cambridge Bay.
Folks came from all over the Kitikmeot Region and Nunavut.
It was an intensive two week course.
All the firefighters appreciated it.
I had a chance to look at some of the photographs they took of their training.
If you were to use some of their photographs in brochures and promotional posters about the dangers of fire, I’m sure people would be a little bit more cautious and safe in Nunavut when it comes to fires.
It was very scary to see flames shooting out of buildings, and smoke, and other such things.
They do play an important role.
They have to go in and save folks when there are fires.
I thank the Search and Rescue folks as well, they’re very important to all communities.
When people get lost, they’re the first people we have to call.
A lot of those fellows go out in zero visibility.
We had a situation three years in April 2001, when two kids were lost in a blizzard.
The Search and Rescue guys, as a Mayor I had to tell them not to go out but they went out anyways.
There could not have been more than 2-3 feet of visibility and they found those guys.
So it is quite amazing.
The thing that concerns me the most, Mr. Chairman is that Search and Rescue groups in the communities do not seem to have the facilities and the training and that comes in similar amounts of the volunteer Fire Departments.
They seem to have to rely on their own wits to keep their organizations together.
I do not think many of the organizations, Search and Rescue groups in Nunavut are formerly organized and volunteers around town have to bring their own snowmobiles and equipment.
They have to get time off work to go out for days on end.
I know through your department there is a Coordinator in Iqaluit here to the Mayor, to your office.
The person in Iqaluit authorize a Search and Rescue, and that covers the Search and Rescue guys for Workers’ Compensation Board, and insurance purposes in case one of them or more of them lost their lives or are injured.
In the communities, the Fire department have fire halls, they have practice facilities, they have vehicles, they have equipment, and they have whole range of things to support their volunteer work.
Those Search and Rescue folks, in many cases, do not seem to have facilities.
They have to bring their own equipment.
People’s lives depend on those guys and those folks and in the wintertime and in the summertime as well.
I think we have to really look hard to provide more support to all those Protection Services.
Look at that group in particular since they do plan for all their communities.
The Fire Departments are getting their support, they are getting more, and they deserve more.
I think Search and Rescue deserve a bit more help as well and we should endeavour to support them.
That was more or less of a comment so we will go on to the next comment.
I am also very proud of the organizations that do volunteer services, like the Fire Departments and the hunters and trappers or the search and rescue.
They work extremely hard in Clyde River, and I think that they should be provided more training opportunities because of course it is dangerous work that they do.
They are very well functioning and they provide this service on a volunteer basis.
I think the Fire Departments are very well coordinated and I am very proud of them.
With the Search and Rescue it is very true that have to use their own equipment like snowmobiles, and other equipment.
I supported Mr. Peterson’s comments.
They do go out on the land when there is zero visibility, in order to find the people who are lost.
I would like to ask the Minister if there is going to be training provided for the Search and Rescue volunteers, and especially in the different seasons like in the summer and in the winter.
Chairman: Thank you Mr. Arreak.
Hon. Peter Kilabuk: With the support of my Deputy Minister.
I don’t mean to sound like a man armed with pistols.
There is a very strong focus on Search and Rescue with the new Director of Protection Services that we have just recently hired.
This man comes with a lot of knowledge as he is a former member of the military. Right now he is doing comprehensive planning developing training especially for Search and Rescue groups.
So, there is some work underway.
As I just indicated with somebody who has a good sense of background in this field.
Do another comment, Mr. Arreak?
Very briefly, in Nunavut, it seems that there are very few financial resources for those types for these types of services that are required.
Do you get training funds from the federal government in order to provide training for these organizations.
On page J-18, there are monies that are identified for the use of Emergency Planning under an MOU.
I also support my colleague’s comments in regards to the Fire Prevention and Search and Rescue Assistance.
In terms of the fire prevention and the Fire Department, I would also like to see them recognized as they do a very crucial job.
As well, the Search and Rescue people work very hard when they have to search for hunters who are lost on the land.
I think it would be beneficial for those who are in the search and rescue field that they are recognized even with plaques.
I think they would really appreciate that.
In terms of Fire Prevention through the Fire Marshall's Office, if they would have additional training.
As we know, most firefighters have been in the field for many years and that’s very beneficial for the young people that are coming through as firefighters where that they can learn from experience.
As we know, all these firefighters are volunteers.
At times, the inexperienced make mistakes but we can learn from our mistakes.
I have a couple of questions for the Minister in regards to the Main Estimates.
I don’t see any additional support being provided to the Fire Department.
I have worked for the hamlets and one of the challenges that we had was the Fire Department facilities.
We have two facilities where there is a garage and a small office there.
In the communities the fire extinguishers should be inspected to make sure that they’re functioning.
You have to rotate them or service them every two or three months.
We don’t have an individual who takes care of these fire extinguishers.
In the communities the population is increasing very fast, and every house has to have a fire extinguisher.
Some of the privately owned houses do not have fire extinguishers, or even if they do have fire extinguishers, they have never been serviced.
What is your department’s thought on setting up a plant to make sure that everything is well serviced?
Fire volunteer training is ongoing and the Municipal Training Organization also has a set of photographs of firefighters in training.
I am very pleased that we are going to include $2 million.
There is less than a million that will be geared to the training of the fire volunteers.
In regards to the extinguishers, we will identify some funds that will be used for the servicing of fire extinguishers.
It will make a big difference and will help alleviate some of the concerns that have been voiced by the communities.
>>Committee recessed at 18:31 and resumed at 18:55
Mr. Alagalak had questions before the break.
What I was saying before the break was the volunteer fire fighters work very hard in the communities and to try to keep up with the firefighting equipment.
I feel that some of these people have to be trained to fill those fire extinguishers and to inspect them.
If they make a mistake, then they could be taken to court.
There should be some funding for individuals to be trained to do those sorts of things in the communities.
It wouldn’t even cost about $1,000 at all to set up.
I would like to ask the Minister if this has been given to the Fire Marshall's Office to do?
During the Nunavut Association of Municipalities meetings, this was discussed at length.
I just wondered if there would be any pilot project at first by the department to do those sorts of things?
We know that the volunteer firefighters are taught codes and standards.
At this time, also I’m happy to say through the Municipal Training Organization, those volunteer fire fighters are trained to do those kinds of things.
The training will continue as well.
Just to assure the member.
Chairman: Thank you. Mr. Alagalak.
Yes, I’m happy to hear that because we have to be very proud of those volunteer firefighters and they should be welcomed by the department for doing services that they are proud of and for them to be able to be proud of themselves to do the job that they’re doing.
I’m sure that this going to continue in the communities and I will be relaying that message through the local radio.
It’s just a comment, Mr. Chairman, at this time.
I would just like to confirm for the record, Mr. Chairman, how many Search and Rescue groups are there in Nunavut?
I believe each community has Search and Rescue Committees.
Could the minister tell us if they’re all properly incorporated?
Mr. Chairman: Thank you. Mr. Minister.
I wanted the question for the record.
I don’t believe every community is set and registered but the Committees I believe are in all of the Nunavut communities.
Mr. Chairman: Thank you. Mr. Peterson.
Just so we are clear here.
Can the minister tell us how much funding that all the Search and Rescue Committees get in total from this section of the budget?
Mr. Chairman: Go ahead Mr. Minister.
I think the total money used differ from year to year.
I’ll just ask my two officials if they have something further to add to that.
Mr. Chairman with the fact that the searches are different varying from different from a couple of day to more days, depending on the extent of the search it does vary from year to year.
So I can’t give my colleague an exact figure as to how much is spend on Search and Rescue annually, but we can provide expenses from the previous year.
I appreciate that there might be difficulties to do that.
I know in Kitikmeot when there’s a Search and Rescue, the funds are limited to Cambridge Bay, but there’s other people involved, there’s the RCMP involved, I think Cambridge Bay, Adlair Aviation provides a air support and that could be quite costly.
I think they provide at their own expense, but those are expenses over and above what the government might provide us.
Probably in another region, you have other groups that provide support.