EdinburghNLP/nunavut-hansard-plusplus huggingface dataset:
I really had to look for it. When I couldn’t find it, I asked.
To date, Pond Inlet does not know that. And why didn’t he at least in his opening remarks state exactly what had happened?
Hon. Ed. Picco: Mr. Chairman, again, I wasn’t at the meeting in June.
It is my understanding from two of the people who were at the meeting that that information was conveyed at that time.
What I will do now is make sure that there is written correspondence with that fact come forward. The member was just elected to the House, and I’ve already in the last few weeks met with the Standing Committee on Education of course, and my budget has gone before all members. All members had a chance to see the budget.
So they have seen it. So I apologize to Mr. Arvaluk if he’s just seeing it for the first time today.
Nothing has changed in the budget.
What we’re talking about here is the cash flowing of projects.
If the capital budget last year, for example, was $100 million, this year it’s only $80 million, and every department had to take less money within their budget framework.
And because of that, you can’t deliver the same amount of programs or projects. I think Mr. Simailak did a good job of explaining that fiscal situation to everyone in the House a couple of days ago.
So that’s just the constraints we’re under. We’re still going to move forward on the Pond Inlet facility. It is in the capital budget.
It is slated for 2010 construction. The meeting did occur in the June. And again, it was a site planning meeting to make sure that we had the proper lot facility.
I wasn’t at the meeting, but the people that were at the meeting are with me, and their recollection of the meeting is that information was conveyed. So I have to ascertain that from their memories.
When I look back at the proposed capital budget on page 111-7 in Mr. Arvaluk’s main estimates, as he had just indicated, you will see the new replacement CLC, the $260,000 allocated for 2006-07, and he will also see that $3,150,000 is budgeted for 2010-11 for that facility.
So that has been the timeframe that has been allocated.
So hopefully that helps clarify and answer the member’s question.
This is my last point. I would like to see some documentation, at least some correspondence from the June meeting in Pond Inlet.
Yes, I was not a member of this House; however, I was a member of the hamlet.
As a member of the hamlet, I understood that we had to find a bigger lot quickly because the material was going to arrive this summer.
That was the information that was conveyed to us. Sitting on the hamlet, I was expecting to see, as a new member, a budget for that.
So there was some miscommunication or unclear communication between, not the MLAs, but with the government and the hamlet, on that one.
I would like to see some documentation from that June meeting and maybe another meeting with the hamlet to explain to them what really happened.
I understand where the member is coming from and again, I’ve just had a chance to talk to some of the members that were actually participating in that meeting.
The SAO had set up the meeting in June on behalf and for the Department of Education, with explanations on the Community Learning Centre Plan.
It was our understanding that the hamlet was aware of the project and so on.
It was seen that when the meeting began, some of the members of the committee were not informed of the purpose of our education team’s meeting in the community with the hamlet that evening, which sometimes happens; there’s some logistic issues involved, but it was pretty clear that the site selection needed to happen with a lot, and there was no communication that the material was coming in on the next ship.
The member is correct; we will be able to get that correspondence for him to clarify exactly what occurred at the meeting.
So I appreciate the member’s reviewing the issue, and maybe at the end of the break, we will have an opportunity with the two members that are sitting with me to speak to the member and just to clarify that.
Thank you. We will go back to our list here.
I have asked, on repeated cases, about the Qikiqtarjuaq school, Inuksuit School.
At that time when we were dealing with capital estimates, a motion was tabled and approved that the school in Qikiqtarjuaq would be moved forward.
In our review of the capital estimates, there haven’t been any changes; it’s still at 2010-11.
I would like to ask the minister to tell me why this school was not moved forward when there was a motion tabled and passed in this House prior to this meeting.
As I stated in my opening comments concerning those projects, it’s similar to what we’re dealing with in Sanikiluaq, as well as in Pond Inlet.
Last year, the motion went through the House, as the member stated, in debate of the capital budget in Committee of the Whole – it was a Committee of the Whole Motion and we take that seriously.
I then took the capital plan, we reviewed the capital plan where we had the dollar values available and so on, and attempted to move the project further up in the capital plan based on the motion, but also based on need because we know that the school is old.
I’ve had an opportunity to Cabinet, we had a retreat in Qikiqtarjuaq a couple years ago and we actually had a chance to go through it. So we are all aware of the issue there.
We actually moved the plan up, however, that was several months ago now, and the fiscal situation of the government changed, so we had to look at the amount of dollar values that were available in the capital plan, and we moved forward on the budget of projects that had already been signed off where construction was continuing and so on.
There was no money to be able to move the project up in the capital plan because I couldn’t cash flow it, because of the fiscal situation in the government, similar to what we see in Sanikiluaq.
What I have said is that once the budget is complete and we’re further into the next fiscal year, which will be in January or February, to go back to the capital plan again to see if there’s an opportunity with slippage from other projects or something to see if there’s a way we can facilitate the Committee Motion request.
So that’s what has occurred, Mr. Chairman; we’re in a monetary situation where we have less money in the capital budget than we did a year ago and we’re not able to cash flow that project.
Hon. Paul Okalik (interpretation): It’s six o’clock; I would like to report progress and there are other commitments that we had made.
We can always have another meeting tomorrow.
Item 20: Report of the Committee of the Whole  Speaker (interpretation): Thank you.
Item 20. (interpretation ends) Report of the Committee of the Whole. Mr. Evyagotailak.
Mr. Evyagotailak: Mr. Speaker, your committee has been considering Bill 26 and the capital estimates, and would like to report progress.
Speaker (interpretation): Thank you. There’s a motion on the floor.
Thank you, Mr. Premier. The motion is in order.
Thank you. The motion is carried.
(interpretation ends) Item 21.
Clerk (Mr. Quirke): Orders of the Day for the November 24:
Item Prayer
Speaker (interpretation): Thank you. This House stands adjourned until tomorrow November 24 starting at ten o’clock in the morning.
>>House adjourned at 18:04
Friday, November 24, 2006
Pages 2356 – 2407
Opening Prayer 2356
Ministers’ Statements 2356
Members’ Statements 2358
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery 2363
Oral Questions 2364
Tabling of Documents 2382
First Reading of Bills 2383
Second Reading of Bills 2385
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters 2387
Report of the Committee of the Whole 2405
Orders of the Day 2405
Friday, November 24, 2006 2356
123 – 2(3): Minister Brown Absent from House (Picco) 2356
124 – 2(3): 25th Anniversary of the Association des Francophones du Nunavut (Tapardjuk) 2356
125 – 2(3): Qulliq Energy Corporation Annual Report (Picco) 2357
312 – 2(3): High School Graduates (Mapsalak) 2358
313 – 2(3): Nunavut Public Housing Rent Scale (Arreak) 2358
314 – 2(3): Congratulations to Youth Parliament Participant Mick Appaqaq (Kattuk) 2359
315 – 2(3): High Arctic in Need of Arenas (Barnabas) 2359
316 – 2(3): Support for a Kugluktuk Elders’ Care Facility (Evyagotailak) 2360
317 –2(3): Charitable Donations Highest Nunavummiut (Tootoo) 2361
318 – 2(3): Qikiqtaani General Hospital Tour (Picco) 2362
319 – 2(3): Cosmetology Course at Killinik High School (Peterson) 2362
352– 2(3): Arenas for the High Arctic (Barnabas) 2364
353 – 2(3): Budget Deficit (Tootoo) 2366
354 – 2(3): Hiring Weekend RCMP Dispatch for the Communities (Mapsalak) 2368
355 – 2(3): Housing Allocation to the Communities (Peterson) 2370
356 – 2(3): School Safety Plans (Kattuk) 2372
357 – 2(3): Nunavut Government Deficit Concern (Tootoo) 2373
358 – 2(3): Update on Status of Obtaining Passports (Barnabas) 2376
359 – 2(3): Hiring Freeze (Peterson) 2379
360 – 2(3): Deadline Given to Hiring Freeze (Tootoo) 2381
168 – 2(3): Federal/Provincial/Territorial Ministers Responsible for Francophone Affairs – Ottawa, Ontario, October 12-13, 2006 (Tapardjuk) 2382
169 – 2(3): Nunavut Human Rights Tribunal – Annual Report to March 31, 2006 (Okalik) 2383
170 – 2(3): QEC Annual Report – March 31, 2006 (Picco) 2383
Bill 23 – Supplementary Appropriation (Operations & Maintenance) Act #4, 2005-06 – First Reading 2383
Bill 24 – Supplementary Appropriation (Operations & Maintenance) Act #2, 2006-07 – First Reading 2384
Bill 25 – Supplementary Appropriation (Capital) Act #2, 2006-07 – First Reading 2384
Bill 27 – An Act to Amend the Pharmacy Act – First Reading 2385
Bill 27 – An Act to Amend the Pharmacy Act – Second Reading 2385
Bill 23 – Supplementary Appropriation (Operations & Maintenance) Act #4, 2005-06 – Second Reading 2386
Bill 24 – Supplementary Appropriation (Operations & Maintenance) Act #2, 2006-07 – Second Reading 2386
Bill 25 – Supplementary Appropriation (Capital) Act #2, 2006-07 – Second Reading 2386
Bill 26 – Appropriation (Capital) Act, 2007-08 – Review in Committee – Education 2387
Honourable Leona Aglukkaq, Honourable Olayuk Akesuk, Mr. James Arreak, Mr. James Arvaluk, Mr. Levi Barnabas, Mr. Joe Allen Evyagotailak, Mr. Peter Kattuk, Honourable Peter Kilabuk, Mr. Steve Mapsalak, Honourable Patterk Netser, Honourable Paul Okalik, Mr. Keith Peterson, Honourable Edward Picco, Honourable David Simailak, Honourable Louis Tapardjuk, Mr. Hunter Tootoo.
I would like to ask that Mr. Simailak lead us in a prayer.
Speaker (interpretation): Thank you, Premier and members.
Minister responsible for Education. Mr. Picco.
Minister’s Statement 123 – 2(3): Minister Brown Absent from House (Picco))
Hon: Ed Picco: Thank you, Mr. Speaker and good morning.
I’d like to take this opportunity to advise the members that Minister Levinia Brown will be absent from the house today, November 24, 2006.
Mr. Speaker (interpretation): Thank you Minister.
Minister’s Statement 124 – 2(3): 25th Anniversary of the Association des Francophones du Nunavut (Tapardjuk)
I would like to stand today in this House to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Association de Francophones du Nunavut.
Since its foundation in 1981 the Francophone Association has been an example of perseverance and determination for all Nunavummiut.
Their convictions based on respect of rights for their culture and language has influenced positively the development of this community.
For the last 25 years the association, the Francophone Association has provided the necessary leadership in building a vibrant and dynamic francophonie in our territory.
Mr. Speaker and members, please join me in commemorating this event and wishing a long life to the Francophone Association in Nunavut.
Minister’s Statement 125 – 2(3): Qulliq Energy Corporation Annual Report (Picco)
I am very pleased to inform members that I’ll be tabling the Qulliq Energy Corporation Annual Report for the year ending March 31 for the year 2006.
This is the fifth audited financial statements of the corporation since its inception on April 1, 2001.
Mr. Speaker, I’d like to announce that the Qulliq Energy Corporation has continued to turn its financial direction around while demonstrating fiscal control, efficiency and enhanced its business standards. This is a great accomplishment.
The results show that Qulliq Energy Corporation has managed to turn a modest operational profit based on tighter financial management, administration, improved energy efficiency and a base rate adjustment during the spring of 2005.
Mr. Speaker, while we are not in a position to generate the rates of return that would secure healthy innovations and efficiency upgrading for our plant and equipment, we can for the first time anticipate that achievement in the next year.
Mr. Speaker, the corporation shows sustained or improved performance in costs per kilowatt hour, plant efficiencies, Inuit employment, return on investment, and is clearly moving towards replacement diesel generation consistent with Pinasuaqtavut.
Qulliq Energy Corporation is working in four key ways to stabilize prices and produce cleaner forms of energy in Nunavut. We are improving plant efficiency, investing in residual heat projects, raising awareness of energy efficiency and exploring new ways to generate electricity. Each of these efforts is outlined in the annual report.
For the past year, the corporation has been looking at hydroelectric generation potential around Iqaluit. As the financial situation solidifies, we anticipate that this work continues and Qulliq Energy Corporation move towards the capacity to undertake additional alternative generation projects.
Finally, Mr. Speaker, we are confident that these changes demonstrate Qulliq Energy Corporation’s commitment to strengthening the financial structure and the corporation’s ability to maintain a reliable power generation system that manages Nunavut’s energy needs today and in the future.
Member’s Statement 312 – 2(3): High School Graduates (Mapsalak)
Last summer in August…I rise today in this House because last August there were two graduates and I’d like to congratulate them and also their parents.
The two graduates are: Joe Angotinguar Jr. a Rankin resident who is going to school in Naujaat, and Amy Kaludjak.
I am very proud of them that they completed their schooling and hopefully they will go on to higher education.
At the time the minister wasn’t able to attend, but I expect that this school year the graduates will be higher and I encourage the minister to attend the graduation.
Member’s Statement 313 – 2(3): Nunavut Public Housing Rent Scale (Arreak)
Mr. Arreak: Thank you, Mr Speaker.
I rise today Mr. Speaker, on the issue of Nunavut’s Public Housing Rent Scale.
As you will recall, the rent scale was reviewed and a new rent scale was implemented during the First Assembly.
Mr. Speaker, my constituents are concerned that, as it stands, the rent scale continues to be a disincentive to work. It is also challenging for Nunavummiut who have seasonal employment because rent can fluctuate.
Mr. Speaker, my colleague from Quttiktuq has often raised the issue of the calculation of rent and the fact that employee benefits are included as income for the purposes of determining rent. I would like to add my concerns to his on this issue. I question how fair it is that benefits of employment such as vacation travel assistance are included as income for the purpose of calculating rent.
Mr. Speaker, the new rent scale was introduced in 2003.
Now, more than three years later, I think it is time for the Nunavut Housing Corporation to review the rent scale to ensure that it is working as intended and to make the results of the review public by tabling them in the House.
Later today I will be tabling a petition from Clyde River requesting that the Nunavut Public Rent Scale be reviewed. There are 169 signatures on this petition.
Speaker (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Arreak. Members’ Statements.
Member’s Statement 314 – 2(3): Congratulations to Youth Parliament Participant Mick Appaqaq (Kattuk)
I will be patient this morning. I rise today to say how proud I was of Mick Appaqaq from my community of Sanikiluaq who participated the first Nunavut Youth Parliament organized by this Legislative Assembly.
I was very impressed with Mick’s members’ statements on the importance of our culture. He is concerned that the youth today are losing their language. They are forgetting who they are and where they come from.
He felt that it is important that youth receive cultural education and he feels that we can all help to bring back our culture if only we pass our skills on to our children and grandchildren.
Mr. Speaker, in following his advice I encourage all Nunavummiut to speak more Inuktitut to their children, take them out on the land to camps, or take them fishing, go berry picking, and please tell them stories of our past.
Just as Mick is proud to be an Inuk I too am very proud to be an Inuk.
Members’ Statements. Member for Quttiktuq, Mr. Barnabas.
Member’s Statement 315 – 2(3): High Arctic in Need of Arenas (Barnabas)
I rise today in regards to my two constituent communities that don’t have arenas. In the Capital Plan we don’t see anything for those two communities.
The young people are involved during Arctic Winter Games trials, but they can only participate in a limited number of sports, especially for Grise Fiord and Resolute Bay.
They only play the indoor games because that’s the only place where they can practice. We are happy that they do get medals, but we should expand their participation so that the High Arctic young people can also participate in skating, or playing in the arena. We are forever asking for them to get arenas because that would expand their participation, especially for the High Arctic.
For example, it stays dark all winter long and it’ll be dark all day long and the only place the young people can go to for leisure is the very small gyms.
It gets quite windy and if they want to play hockey they have to use an outdoor rink and they have to remove the snow.
There is some wildlife; there are polar bears and other different wild animals that might be dangerous to the children who are playing outside. For that reason my two constituent communities need arenas.
So you’ll know, the Youth Member also indicated the same thing when that person was here.
Member’s Statement 316 – 2(3): Support for a Kugluktuk Elders’ Care Facility (Evyagotailak)
It’s a beautiful morning.
(interpretation ends) I rise today in support of the establishment of an Elders’ care facility in the community of Kugluktuk.
I have been lobbying the government on this issue for some time. I have asked questions. I have submitted documents such as the proposal from the Kugluktuk Elders’ Committee.
I have spoken on this issue in the House a number of times.
In recent months I have been made aware of two more cases where Kugluktuk elders were receiving care away from home, outside of Nunavut, and far from family and friends.
We were raised to respect our elders, to listen to our elders, and to learn from our elders.
How can we ask the youth of today to gain valuable knowledge from their elders when those important people are taken away to live out of their lives, far from home with little or no contact with their families?
Many of us know how important our traditional food is to our well-being, for both body and soul.
Our elders need and crave these foods.
Sadly this type of food is often not available in Fort Smith, or Winnipeg or even Yellowknife.
In Kugluktuk, however, there is lots of country food in the area, just waiting to be harvested.
Our elders need to be close to that food.
According to the most recent population statistics, there are nearly 100 people who are the age of 65 living in the community of Kugluktuk.
This represents over seven percent of the entire community, a higher population than almost all other communities in Nunavut.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask unanimous consent to finish my statement.
And again I say: a higher population than almost all other communities in Nunavut.
If priorities were truly based on needs, Mr. Speaker, I believe this would be another strong argument for the establishment of an elders’ care facility in Kugluktuk.
Member’s Statement 317 –2(3): Charitable Donations Highest Nunavummiut (Tootoo)
On Tuesday I shared with members the success of the first Annual Invitational Golf Classic that raised money for the Habitat for Humanity Iqaluit chapter.
I would like to rise today to thank all Nunavummiut for their contributions to numerous worthy causes through their charitable donations.
I have been proud to have been able to rise in this House every year when Canada-wide statistics are released on charitable donations.
I am again proud to say that 2005 was the fifth consecutive year that Nunavut led the provinces and territories in terms of median donations.
Mr. Speaker, it’s important to note that these statistics only take into account donations for which official tax receipts were provided. I know that Nunavummiut make donations every day without requesting a tax receipt.
Also it’s important to point out and note that the while Nunavut has the highest median donation, it has the smallest percentage of people claiming the donation.
And I believe that this discrepancy speaks clearly to the income gap in our territory. A small percentage of our population has the means to make generous donations although the remainder of our population struggles to make ends meet.
As my former colleague from Baker Lake would say, “It’s no secret that the key to getting a good job is to secure good education.”
Given Nunavut’s low graduation rate, low literacy skills and poor numeracy skills, it is clear that we are failing our children.
Mr. Speaker, it’s time to invest in educating our youth and encouraging them to graduate from high school and go on to post secondary studies.
It is time to speak out against the heartless and shortsighted federal cuts to literacy programs.
Mr. Speaker, I look forward to the day when Nunavut has both the highest median charitable donations and highest percentage of people making donations in our country.
Speaker: Thank you, Mr. Tootoo. (interpretation) Members’ Statements.
Member’s Statement 318 – 2(3): Qikiqtaani General Hospital Tour (Picco)
Yesterday members had an opportunity to tour and visit the construction site of the Qikiqtaani General Hospital.
I want to take this opportunity to thank the Honourable Leona Aglukkaq for the kind invitation to all the members to tour the facility.
This is a facility is a state of the art complex with patients’ services being integrated within the design and function of the hospital. The open concept on two floors allows for natural lighting throughout the building.
It is replacing a building designed and built over 40 years ago for our community and our region with a combined population of less than 6,000 people.
Today our population in Iqaluit alone is well over or almost 7,000 people.
Mr. Speaker, the hospital project has been in various stages of development for almost 18 years.
It will be an exciting and momentous day for the people, the patients, the staff and elected officials when the new Qikiqtaani General Hospital opens in the New Year.
And also thank and appreciate.
Member’s Statement 319 – 2(3): Cosmetology Course at Killinik High School (Peterson)
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to inform the House about an exciting initiative underway in Killiniq High School in Cambridge Bay this week.
Mr. Speaker, Inuksuk Enterprises which is one of our community’s great corporate citizens, approached the new principal for the idea of a 15-hour cosmetology course that allows students to earn credit towards eventual graduation.
Mr. Speaker, the Principal agreed and there are now 16 to 20 students ranging in ages from 14 to 18, learning all there is to know about the field of aesthetics.
They are learning about skin care, hygiene, pedicures, manicures, facial preparation care, and make up application.
Mr. Speaker, also there are two boys on this course, so it’s interesting; they’re taking an interest in that stuff.