EdinburghNLP/nunavut-hansard-plusplus huggingface dataset:
Mr. Speaker, the area assigned for a proposed study on the conversation area is… I do have that Memorandum of Understanding and I would be pleased to table that document, no problem.
Question 394 – 3(2): Situation Facing the Nunavut Housing Corporation (Schell)
Has the former President of the Housing Corporation ever brought to your attention of a possible shortfall of the $200 million trust fund?
Formally, the former president, to my knowledge as I can recollect, I was not informed that there would be a severe shortage in the Nunavut Housing Trust. I think there was some anticipation that there would be a shortage, but they thought, I could only assume now, that it would be manageable.
I think we know, if you go back to the earlier years of it, the one with the marshalling issue that they had in the past that was about an eight million dollar situation that had to get rectified, the additional costs there.
I think there was an idea that there would be a bit of an overage as a result of that, but it’s something that the corporation would be able to handle internally.
I don’t think anyone had any idea that it would be the magnitude of what it is right now.
At the first Regular Caucus meeting over a year ago, I asked the former President of the Housing Corporation the costs of the shortfall on the first sealift.
The answer was $8.5 million.
Don’t you think that was a first sign of a problem that it should have been looked at, at that time?
Hon. Hunter Tootoo: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As late as last spring before the standing committee, the past administration had informed members, and it’s the same information that they told me, that everything was going to be on target and things were alright.
So I am sure that the information that was provided to me and also to the standing committee in front of the Auditor General was that things were fairly much on track.
Given that, I guess one could only speculate as to the reasons. They knew there were some areas that were over and some that were coming in under. One could just speculate the fact that maybe they thought, like I said, in the end, things would balance out.
Speaker: Thank you, Minister. Your second supplementary, Mr. Schell.
Mr. Schell: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Has the former President of the Housing Corporation ever informed you that as far back as four years ago, a senior employee emailed him and stated that if they don’t get proper accounting and management people in, the Housing Trust would become a disaster?
I don’t believe that was brought to my attention, but if the member has information like that, as I have encouraged him in the past, that if there are any issues that he has, to bring forward for me to look into to, I believe I would have no problem doing that.
If he has information like that, I would be more than happy to ask him if he would mind sharing it with me so that I could follow up with it.
Speaker: Thank you, Minister. Your final supplementary, Mr. Schell.
And that same employee had also emailed the past president wondering why they were using containers to ship materials to the different communities. He basically said that the Housing Corporation had tried containers back in the 70s and they didn’t work, and he was wondering why they were trying to reinvent the wheel.
So my question is: it’s quite obvious that this year, you are not using containers, so obviously, somebody finally must have gotten the message.
I didn’t hear a question, but point taken, Mr. Schell.
Oral Questions. Member for Baker Lake, Mr. Aupaluktuq.
Question 395 – 3(2): Transparency in Municipal Governance (Aupaluktuq)
Mr. Aupaluktuq: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are for the Hon. Minister, Lorne Kusugak, for Community and Government Services.
Since the creation of Nunavut, a majority of Baker Lake residents are more open and coming forward, and want more access to information and public records for accountability and scrutiny. Residents of Baker Lake want more access to information on local matters on housing, municipality, history of local relations with other businesses, and all contracts procured in Baker Lake since the creation of Nunavut.
I am pleased and honoured to represent Baker Lake as it is my duty to ask these questions in the House. These are very important questions that affect the residents of Baker Lake.
Mr. Speaker, my question to the hon. minister is: under section 144 of the Hamlets Act and the Cities, Towns and Villages Act, municipalities are required to submit copies of their audited financial statements to the minister no later than 120 days after the end of the fiscal year.
Can the minister confirm whether or not the Municipality of Baker Lake has been in compliance with this section of the law?
Speaker: Thank you, Mr. Aupaluktuq. Minister of Community and Government Services, Hon. Lorne Kusugak.
Hon. Lorne Kusugak (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to thank the member for posing those questions.
I don’t have the information in front of me at this time in regard to the audited financial statements.
I will get back to the member once I have the information. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Aupaluktuq: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, Mr. Kusugak. I look forward to that information.
I am sure that the residents of Baker Lake would love that information as well. I just want to re-ask the question and basically make a statement here as well before I go to my question. As we are all aware, financial statements and auditors’ reports should be made available to the public upon request.
I wanted to ask the minister: can the minister indicate whether members of the public can also request copies of these items from the Department of CGS as well as the whole department of the Legislative Assembly to hold transparency? My question again is: can the minister indicate whether the members of the public in Baker Lake can also request copies of these items from his department?
Speaker: Thank you, Mr. Aupaluktuq. Minister Kusugak.
Hon. Lorne Kusugak (interpretation): Can you rephrase your question and ask me what type of information you are requesting from my department, Mr. Speaker?
The minister is requesting for clarification on your question.
Mr. Aupaluktuq: Thank you.
Specifically, what I was asking for is that currently, under section 144.1 of the Hamlets Act and the Cities, Towns and Villages Act, municipalities are required to provide copies of their financial statements and auditors’ reports to members of the public upon request.
My question to the minister was if these copies that I’m requesting could be made available to the public and to the people of Baker Lake.
Individuals from Baker Lake or any member of the public can make those requests to the hamlet or my department.
The audited financial statements should be made available to the public.
If there are requests, they should go through and not be turned down, Mr. Speaker.
I had asked that question basically knowing the fact that all public documents and financial statements should be accessible to the public, but I had to ask that formally in the House and it was nice to see the hon. minister implementing that in the House by his statements.
My next question, Mr. Speaker, is at present, municipalities are not covered by the territorial access to information and protection of privacy.
In its most recent response to our standing committee’s recommendations on this issue, which was tabled in the Legislative Assembly before the standing committee’s recommendations on this issue, which was tabled on March 22 of this year, the Government of Nunavut states and I quote, “The GN agrees that municipalities should, in some way, be accountable under access to information and privacy protection legislation.
Further consultation regarding their inclusion under the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act is required and the GN intends to include all stakeholders who may be affected by these changes, including the Nunavut Association of Municipalities.”
Can the minister update us today on the status of the government’s consultations on this important issue?
In regard to access to information, it applies to all government departments and it is still being implemented.
I can tell the member that I think part of his question should be directed to the municipalities or members of the Nunavut Association of Municipalities. I believe his question was on the status of the government’s consultations on this issue.
We are working together with the hamlet councils and the Nunavut Association of Municipalities while this is under review as to whether this would be applied.
Thank you very much for that clear response. (interpretation ends) My final supplementary question, Mr. Speaker, to the hon. minister is each year, the minister tables annual reports to the Legislative Assembly concerning the government’s contracting and procurement activities.
Can the minister indicate if he would be willing to table annual reports on the contracts entered into by municipalities or amend the Cities, Towns and Villages Act to require municipalities to provide this information to their own residents?
Hon. Lorne Kusugak (interpretation): We can review this issue and determine the impact it may have and how we can deal with this issue with relation to the communities.
My department officials and I will review this and how we can provide the information to the member.
Oral Questions. Member for Nanulik, Mr. Ningeongan.
Question 396 – 3(2): Casual Staffing Action Process (Ningeongan)
Mr. Speaker, it has come to my attention that there are significant problems with the casual staffing action process.
In many cases, GN staff are filling out new casual staffing action requests or extensions to existing casual staffing action positions, submitting them to the administration and getting no response.
Mr. Speaker, the ability to use casual staffing for short-term, local hires is extremely important for the delivery of local programs.
Unnecessary delays in the processing of paperwork have a negative impact on program delivery.
It is also extremely frustrating for those who are willing and able to work but cannot until the paperwork is finalized.
Can the minister inform this House if he is aware of these problems with the casual staffing action process and can he indicate what steps are being taken to address them?
I thank the member for bringing out those very valid concerns.
I am not aware of specific incidents and the situation that the member is outlining.
However, I am very open to listen to those specifics and receive them from him and get back to him.
In regard to casual hiring, it is our goal at Human Resources to enhance our system so that the hiring practice could be done better as outlined in the Auditor General’s report also.
So we are working on this. I think there are better ways that we can do things.
He outlined how important casual staffing is and the fact that we do need to have these people in place in short term to deliver services.
At this point in time, I think that we all have talked about casual staffing in the past and how we are trying to reduce the casual staffing situation we have and the status of it.
I am pleased to say that we are making progress in that regard.
Speaker: Thank you, Minister. (interpretation) Your first supplementary, Mr. Ningeongan.
Problems with the casual staffing action process are not limited to my constituency. These problems seem to occur across Nunavut with alarming regularity.
The government’s most recent employment statistics from December 2009 show that the government employed almost 700 casuals, with over 60 percent of all casuals hired by the Department of Health and Social Services.
I recognize that on occasion, the casual staffing action process is open to abuse with repeated extensions taking the place of filling positions on a full-time, indeterminate basis.
However, as we know, filling a full-time position can also take a long time.
What support is provided to GN staff who need to use the casual staffing action process to keep positions filled?
Again, I thank the member for outlining that concern.
It is very important to the government that we try and fulfill our obligations and hire permanent staff as much as we can.
However, the member outlines a very good case that we do have a need and there is a need for casual hires to provide services in the interim of doing that.
Again I will say, as outlined in the Auditor General’s report, we are striving to reduce our hiring times for both permanent and casual staffing.
I will say to the member that there are new statistics out as of March 31 of this year that we have reduced our casual hiring by 11 percent, so it’s good news.
Given the situation, will the minister commit to looking into the administration of the casual staffing action process and ensuring that the GN staff in the communities get a timely response to their applications?
Hon. Daniel Shewchuk: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thanks for that point raised again.
Yes, I will commit to that and I would like to hear if there are any specific cases that the member has that he can give me information on.
Question 397 – 3(2): Problems with Compensation Claims (Okalik)
I would like to direct my question to the Minister responsible for the Workers’ Safety and Compensation Commission.
We know that all businesses have to ensure that any injured worker who is injured on the job and is unable to work has the right to make an application through the Workers’ Safety and Compensation Commission.
There are no legal recourse and no other process to pursue.
If they make an application through their organization and do not get a response, I would like to ask the minister where they could turn to. What other options do they have?
I know that this is a complaint that we have heard on more than one occasion from the public and from workers who were injured.
If there is an injured worker, the injury has to be reported right away by the employer. The employer has to send a written report immediately and if possible, get a doctor’s certificate that documents the injury of that worker.
If there is an injury in the workplace, it is the responsibility of the injured worker’s employer to fill out forms provided by WSCC and send them out.
All employers have to be registered with the WSCC.
There is a requirement for employers to make a report immediately upon an injury occurring and send it out to the WSCC. I will be able to give you the information on where you can direct your appeals to because I don’t have it in front of me at this time.
I can assure the member that employers already know who to send their reports to.
When different offices are not properly managed, we normally know which minister and officials to approach to determine the reasons.
However, at times, an injured worker is denied by WSCC despite having complied with medical paperwork requirements, such as having a doctor’s certificate. When their claim is denied, then they have to file an appeal and this process is a long-drawn-out process. Some of them have not received any responses.
Being caught in the middle, they do not know who to turn to.
When these injured individuals have complied with all of the requirements but have not been approved, they have no other recourse to send their appeal to.
That is my question to the minister: how can we ensure that the information is provided so that these injured workers can exercise their rights?
I would like to thank the member for posing that question as the reasoning is sound.
Next week, the board of governors is having their meeting here in Iqaluit and they wrote us to find out the type of information the people of Nunavut would be interested in hearing.
I haven’t responded to their letter, but I will be drafting a reply.
If the claims weren’t taken care of properly, I would like to be informed of the incidences. If a claimant has not had their paperwork completed and if we get a written request, it would make it easier.
Again I would like to say that it is the responsibility of the employer of the injured worker to make sure that they file the report, get the doctor’s certificate, and so on.
There are some complications, such as an investigation, that hold up the process.
Those who are not in that situation but whose applications have been completed can be informed by their employer. I am referring to the individuals who have not had their paperwork completed.
If at all possible, if there are any outstanding cases, I would like to get that information even if it is outside of the House and I would appreciate that.
Mr. Okalik (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to thank the minister.
Possibly, after the meeting, it seems obvious that there is a need for improvement on the application and appeals process of WSCC.
We have to make sure that we make improvements because injured employees who are awaiting the result of their appeal suffer from lost wages and unpaid bills as a result of this slow process. It is a serious issue requiring improvement and it would be good to have any remedy fully reported to the public.
Thank you for those questions. I will make sure that the information is better.
We do have to get the information out to the communities to make sure that injured workers are taken care of properly.
I can even add that the WSCC has continued reviewing the Safety Regulations.
It is my understanding that the board of governors will meet jointly with the minister next week.
I have been told that the Department of Justice will shortly complete their review and we will be able to table it in the House.
Question 398 – 3(2): Which Federal Department has Lead on Proposed Seismic Testing in Lancaster Sound (Elliott)
In regard to the Lancaster Sound National Marine Conservation Area, my question is: can the minister confirm which federal department is directly responsible for this project? Is it Parks Canada or NRCan?
I believe that the agreement is signed between the Government of Nunavut and the Government of Canada under Environment Canada and Parks Canada and the Qikiqtani Inuit Association.
It has also been stated over the last couple of days, as we have continued to ask questions about the seismic testing and the new Lancaster Sound National Marine Conservation Area, that the federal government needs to do this work to assess what’s under the waters and find out what’s there to actually come up with an inventory of what’s in the park.
My next question is: if that’s the case, then why is it NRCan that’s putting in the research proposal to do this and not Parks Canada or Environment Canada?
NRCan is the proponent for this project.
However, I think the member outlines something that’s important. It has been outlined by the community visit there.
There may have been a lack of consultation between the two departments, Environment Canada and Natural Resources Canada.
However, this information, as stated before, is important information to maybe move on with the study, and we have to remember it’s just a study that’s going on for the marine mammal conservation area, whether that information will be used to either form an area or designate boundaries in that area. It’s important and could be important information.
I know a lot of concerns have been brought up in Arctic Bay and Resolute Bay as well.
Through letters, Grise Fiord has many concerns with the proposed seismic testing that’s going on.
I know due to weather, they were not able to be consulted but should be consulted soon.
The concern is the communities were actually happy when we heard that Lancaster Sound was going to be turned into a national marine conservation area and they are a little worried with the seismic testing and the possibility of oil and gas exploration.
In the steps for establishing a new national marine conservation area, it says that in identifying representative marine areas, one of the key things that they look for are geologic features, such as cliffs, beaches, islands on the coast, basins, troughs, and shelves of the seabed.
Nowhere in the description of actually coming up with and establishing a marine conservation area does it say anything about doing seismic testing for oil and gas and other minerals in the area.
Why is the scope of this project changing?
I thank the member for outlining his concerns again.
In the Memorandum of Understanding and our agreement that the three entities have signed, there is a provision that does outline the scope of this study to include economic development and economic benefits to communities.
So that is part of it.
I think that we wouldn’t be prudent, and I’ll use that word, if us, as the Government of Nunavut, didn’t know what the economic benefits that area could be to, in fact, assist the community, the residents who live in that area, or for them to have an understanding and know what is in that area.
So I think it’s important that this information could be used in several ways.
Mr. Elliott: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think the minister has actually pointed out exactly what the people in my communities are worried about.
If I was listening correctly to what he was saying, it sounds like the economic opportunities outweigh the environmental opportunities. In terms of preserving the wildlife there, we are going to end up with oil and gas exploration there.
Could the minister confirm that?
Speaker: Thank you, Mr. Elliott. Minister Shewchuk.
I think that the member is reading a lot into it.
I think that because you know something, you know the potential that is there, and what you have is an inventory, it doesn’t mean that you are going to move in that direction. I think that communities would be very actively and heavily involved in that. I think we are a long ways from that point, Mr. Speaker.
Speaker: Thank you, Minister. Oral Questions. Member for Pangnirtung, Mr. Komoartok.
Question 399 – 3(2): Status of Decentralized GN Positions in Pangnirtung (Komoartok)
As I stated in my Member’s Statement, I will ask questions with respect to decentralized positions transferred to Iqaluit, currently amounting to six positions.
The government has not provided any information as to whether this is the case. We are aware of the three positions as they were communicated to our community previously.
Are there any other positions that have been moved back to Iqaluit?
The reason for my question is because the government’s executive was responsible for dealing with these issues, so I am directing my question to the Premier of Nunavut, Eva Aariak.
He did not clarify in detail which decentralized positions he was referring to as having been moved to Iqaluit.
Could the member clarify to me if these positions pertain to the Department of Health and Social Services? If so, he can direct that question to Minister Curley.
Can you clarify your question, Mr. Komoartok.
I thank the Premier for requesting a clarification.
The three positions that were transferred were with the Department of Health’s Medical Travel Branch and communicated to us back in March.
I believe there are three positions with the Department of Education that may have been transferred here to Iqaluit.
I am not looking for a response from the individual departments but from the EIA department.
They took on the lead during that time, so I would like to get a response from them, Mr. Speaker.
That information the member is requesting is not immediately available, so we will look into it and get back to the member.
Your question has been taken as notice and she will get back to you. (interpretation ends) Oral Questions.
Question 400 – 3(2): Condition of Boarding Home in Churchill, Manitoba (Ningark)
Yesterday, an individual called me from my community of Kugaaruk and told me that their children were sent to Churchill, Manitoba for dental work.
I thank the Department of Health and Social Services for doing that.
However, I was told at lunchtime today that the patient escort and the five-year-old child receiving dental care stayed at a hotel.
Mr. Speaker, the room had no light fixtures, the washroom had no doors, and the tub was dirty.
They came from Kugaaruk.
I would like to ask the minister if that’s an actual fact. Through the good offices of your department, can you find out if that was indeed the case and to inform Kugaaruk residents about it?