EdinburghNLP/nunavut-hansard-plusplus huggingface dataset:
I also have the option to send it back to NIRB after a review of this consultation that is going on right now.
That is an option that I do have.
Question 375 – 3(2): Appointment of New Fire Marshal (Schell)
The May 2010 edition of the Nunavut Gazette indicates that the government has appointed an individual to the position of Fire Marshal.
This appointment is for one year and I believe it is Ed Zebedee.
Can the minister indicate if the department will be undertaking a job completion to fill this position on a permanent basis or is it one of the positions that has been identified as being frozen in order to address the Nunavut Housing Trust shortfall?
He is correct that Mr. Zebedee will be in that position until we can fill the position indeterminately.
I recognize that it is unlikely that a minister will provide any clarification regarding why the previous fire marshal was let go and I recognize that there is always more than one side to the story.
However, the public perception is that the government simply didn’t like what the previous fire marshal was saying.
How will the department be able to track qualified individuals to apply for this important position given that it appears that fire marshals who raise concerns get fired?
I would like to be very clear on this answer, Mr. Speaker, that it was the individual who was released from his responsibilities and the media that have said that he was fired for those reasons.
The government has, at no time, said that those were the reasons of his removal, Mr. Speaker.
I would just like to assure them that we encourage qualified individuals to apply for the fire marshal and any other position, and that they will have the full support of the government.
There are a lot of positions in the government that undertake health and safety inspections of buildings, equipment, and other facilities.
What assurances can the minister offer us today that inspectors who do their job won’t be fired simply because they identify problems?
Hon. Lorne Kusugak: I thank the member for the question.
I would just like to reassure the member that no individual has been fired for doing their job adequately, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Schell: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I recognize that the government may have legitimate concerns surrounding the manner in which the previous fire marshal exercised his powers.
Is the minister considering to making an amendment to the Fire [Prevention] Act and if so, when will he introduce it?
Hon. Lorne Kusugak: Could I ask the member to clarify his question, Mr. Speaker?
Speaker: Thank you, Minister. Clarify your question, please, Mr. Schell.
What I was basically saying is that obviously, the government probably had legitimate reasons for the dismissal of the fire marshal and maybe part of it is part of the Fire Prevention Act.
I’m just asking if he is deciding on changing the Fire Prevention Act and if so, when.
Hon. Lorne Kusugak: Mr. Speaker, the individual he says was removed for doing his job, Mr. Speaker, again, we didn’t release anybody for doing their job adequately.
Mr. Speaker, the Fire Prevention Act, the way it is right now, seems to be quite fair and clear and is being followed to the letter of the law, Mr. Speaker.
I don’t foresee any immediate changes needed.
Question 376 – 3(2): Nursing Program Students (Okalik)
Mr. Okalik (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to pose a question to the Minister of Health and Social Services.
I was ecstatic with him when he identified the students who are graduating from the Nursing Program.
It seems like there are quite a few constituents who have graduated from this program.
We heard that there are five who will graduate and become registered nurses.
However, I want to ask a question to the minister. How many students were there, how many do we have, and how many do we expect to graduate next year? Does he know how many possible students may apply to the Nursing Program in the upcoming school year?
I believe it was during our winter session as well as our fall session, the students started the program. They just completed a four-year program.
As I stated this winter, there were 15 or16 students.
However, as we all know, not all of the students who undertake a course graduate or pass their courses and that’s the same case here.
What I want to say, Mr. Speaker, is that once I have updated that information, I will be able to inform the member on how many students will be applying and I will provide an update because some of the students who have started this fall have quit.
That is the only information I can provide at this time.
I was quite ecstatic that quite a number of them will be working here in Iqaluit as well as in Nunavut.
However, we also hear about the challenges that graduates face in trying to work here in Nunavut when there are so many opportunities outside Nunavut even though they would benefit our territory more.
My next question is regarding the fact that we encouraged the minister to look at trying to have pre-employment agreements with the nursing students so that they can come and work here in Nunavut.
I would like to know what the status of that is with the minister.
The question is very clear.
The issue is quite complex and challenging because again, in Canada, our people can work and be educated anywhere. They have the freedom to move. Quite a number of students go south for education and many have agreements with the college and the Department of Education.
It is the freedom of all Canadians to work wherever they wish and we cannot break that human right.
We have not completed the particular process that he was speaking about, but as we saw today with the graduates who have completed their four-year course, it seems like they will be taking up positions now.
The Chief Nursing Officer, Fred Monpetit, was also in the Gallery.
It is quite obvious that he will be taking those graduates to work in Nunavut as nurses.
It is desirable for the students to want to work voluntarily, but I will be speaking with them. We haven’t completed this initiative at the Department of Education.
We are looking at providing grants to some of these nurses to ensure that they have some commitment to continue working in Nunavut, but we still haven’t reached that stage quite yet.
We will have to prioritize that as we continue to have a lot of emergencies.
Your second supplementary, Mr. Okalik. Thank you, Mr. Okalik.
Question 377 – 3(2): Plans for Old Health Centre in Pangnirtung (Komoartok)
I wish to pose a question to the Minister of Community Government and Services, (interpretation ends) the Hon. Lorne Kusugak.
(interpretation) In our community of Pangnirtung, we talked and heard about the community health centre that has been completed for the past 16 months and it will finally be open shortly, perhaps at the end of June.
We will finally be able to use that health centre and we look forward to using that centre.
My question that has been raised by the hamlet is: what is going to happen with the old health centre?
It still has people working in it. The community wishes to continue to use that facility because again, we are very short on office space and other community uses.
In particular, the Pangnirtung Housing Association is operating in a housing unit.
If we could use the health centre, we could allow other organizations in the community to use it. There are quite a number of organizations, such as the suicide prevention group, the mental health group, and youth and elders’ groups, and Pujualussait that are always looking for space.
So if we could utilize this old health centre and move them all into one facility, then they would all be able to work together.
Therefore, we would like to see this health centre continue to be available to the community. It is still in good condition. The sewage and other infrastructure are still working.
I’m wondering whether or not this health centre could be given to the community instead of being destroyed. We would like to see better usage of that facility.
My question to the Minister of CGS is if that is possible.
I also thank the member for raising that question.
I share your joy that Pangnirtung will finally be able to use that new health centre and that question is a very good question.
In the past, whenever there was a new facility constructed by the government, the old facility used to be given away. However, we have to inspect a building to see if it is still useable.
We have to follow the laws that relate certain facilities. For example, if the Department of Health is no longer going to use the facility, we then have to consult other government departments to see if they could use that facility.
A feasibility study needs to be conducted within our government prior to speaking with hamlets and other local organizations.
There are certain legal requirements that we have to follow when we’re talking about a school, a health centre, or a prior government facility.
It outlines the process that we have to follow.
We will look into that process and we will provide an update, Mr. Speaker.
Speaker (interpretation): Thank you, Minister. Your first supplementary, Mr. Komoartok.
Mr. Komoartok (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I also thank the minister for that excellent response.
I would like to know how long that process will take. Would it be some time during this year? I know that without some fixed date, it will be put off interminably.
Can the minister announce when he will be able to update the community of Pangnirtung?
Hon. Lorne Kusugak (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I also thank the member for posing that question.
I will keep you updated and I will also work with your mayor as to how the process will develop.
What I can state is that it will be dealt with this month. I’m not sure how speedily the process will move, but I will keep the member informed either through correspondence or via telephone.
Speaker (interpretation): Thank you, Minister. Thank you, Mr. Komoartok.
Question 378 – 3(2): Artificial Ice Plant Study for Arenas (Ningeongan)
I would like to pose a question to the Minister of Community and Government Services.
It is in regard to the study that was done on the natural ice arenas in Arviat and Coral Harbour this past winter.
They looked at putting in artificial ice cost-effectively during the study.
I would like to ask the minister what the status of this project is now.
Hon. Lorne Kusugak (interpretation): I’m very happy the member raised the question about this issue.
During our winter session, we announced a study as to how best we could install artificial ice in the communities at the earliest possible stage.
It was unfortunate that some of the delegates that we invited were unable to attend this past spring. We wanted to discuss the various ice-making techniques that could be used in the north.
I can tell the member that we will be using an ice-making process called the Thermal Siphon System that will allow the ice to form faster. It is not artificial ice but it ensures that the ground remains frozen for a lot longer wherever they are placing the ice surface.
That is what we will try to use in Nunavut, Mr. Speaker.
I would like to raise another question to the minister. There was a study that was supposed to be done in Arviat and Coral Harbour.
Did that study proceed?
Hon. Lorne Kusugak (interpretation): Yes, that study has commenced and it is ongoing. However, with respect to the two communities, we will not be putting in those thermal units this summer. It is unfortunate that the two recipients of the pilot project will not get this first, but Sanikiluaq and Igloolik will have those thermal units installed.
So this is just the way it was planned out based on the availability of the equipment and the fact that these two communities will have an easier time phasing into that process, Mr. Speaker.
With regard to these two communities that were part of the pilot project, it seemed like they were just given false expectations. Once the pilot project had commenced, they expected that they were going to be the recipients of this new system.
My question to the minister is: when will they be able to get these units?
Hon. Lorne Kusugak (interpretation): I regret for raising false expectations. As it is usually the case, there are a lot of expectations whenever there is a pilot project. Unfortunately, there are certain challenges that crop up and there is always reasoning that causes us to make changes.
The reason why we have changed the two communities is because they were better prepared. Our plan is to include these two communities in the next phase and they are on the priority list for the project.
Question 379 – 3(2): Labour Cost of Nunavut Housing Trust (Elliott)
My questions are directed towards the Minister responsible for the Nunavut Housing Corporation.
For the last couple of days, we have been getting briefings from himself and also the Minister of Finance. I found it hard wrapping what questions I want to ask by putting them into four.
I would like to start by asking the minister… . One of the things that he stated was that 72 percent of the costs in terms of the overrun and the overspending are due to labour.
Did the money in terms of dollars that were spent on labour, did that stay in the communities?
It gives it a spin as if jobs are going into the community and money is staying in the community.
Did the money actually go into the communities?
If memory serves me correct and I want to say for sure, but I’m pretty sure that just about all of the contracts that were left to build the units under the trust were all labour only contracts. It is my understanding that pretty much all of them went to either a local, or a northern, or Inuit owned contracting company, except for in communities where they were being delivered by the local housing organization.
Whoever the contractor was, there were strict requirements for Inuit employment on there. I know that on average, the 60 percent target for Inuit employment was met throughout the trust.
As far as the exact numbers, I’m not sure, but I know on average across the territory, 60 percent of Inuit labour was met.
Where the specific contractors, whether the other 40 percent across the board were local hires or tradespeople that were brought in from outside, I can’t answer that.
Would you be willing to commit to providing a breakdown of where those dollars went in terms of the people who were hired?
My understanding at least from what I hear from different sources and checking into it and asking people is there were sort of two portions to it.
There were the trainers and the people who were supervising, who were qualified with a red seal, who were making a higher dollar value than the apprentices and people who were in the communities.
Obviously, the apprentices were all Inuit employees in the communities, but on top of that, there were also flights into the community and out of the community. There was also sometimes rent and also food and per diems paid for.
To me, when you are looking at labour costs, if you count everything as labour costs, the pendulum swings towards a higher amount of money going out of our communities.
Would you commit to providing us with a list of labour costs?
I would be more than happy to do that. Again, my understanding is that the labour costs, as the member points out, in some cases where they had the skilled tradespeople that were required to provide the training and supervision to the apprentices were there and they were utilized locally. If that wasn’t available locally, there may have been a requirement to find those individuals and bring them from outside the community and in some cases, outside of Nunavut.
Also, I think as he pointed out, tradespeople, it doesn’t matter what trade you’re in, there is a certain amount that they make.
As far as apprentices go, it is my understanding that it is kind of graduated. If you are a first year, you get a certain percentage of whatever the tradesperson earns and it changes each year as their training goes on at different levels.
I will tell the members though that the cost of transportation and accommodations relating to individuals that had to be brought in to be able to provide that training would have been included in the labour component.
If someone is staying in local commercial accommodations, there is an example of where it may not show as a labour amount but those dollars actually went to a local business in the community.
I will confer with the member afterwards if he so wishes to be able to clearly make sure that I understand exactly what he would like to have me commit to provide him and commit to providing that to him.
I guess the other thing is that when you are talking about $60 million, it’s kind of hard to wrap your head around it, but when they are saying again that overspending has happened over a matter of four years, I could see it maybe the first year, I could see the second year, but when you get into third and fourth years, you just wonder how that happens.
But then when you are saying that it is labour costs that are actually the reason for it, it makes you think, “Well, did these people or the contractors not get paid for four years?”
It is my understanding that when you pay an employee, you have Revenue Canada, you have to apply, you have to put in, and you have to get T4s.
So were you not issuing or were the contractors not issuing T4s on an annual basis for these people?
Speaker: Thank you, Mr. Elliott. Minister Tootoo.
I can’t speak for the individual contractors that were in the private sector.
I would assume that our LHOs that were doing the delivery are following Canada Revenue Agency guidelines and issuing T4 slips to the people who were working for them.
I think in the labour portion of a contract, some of these projects and I think what has taken so long for it to catch up is some of them have taken longer than expected to complete for a variety of different reasons. You don’t get the final labour costs until after the project is completed.
An evaluation of the requirements under the NNI, if there were NNI bonuses paid out as a result of that; you don’t find out all of that kind of stuff until after projects are completed to be able to get that final number of the amount that was paid out for labour.
I still am a little confused and I guess I need to think through and probably read the Hansard tomorrow to totally understand what you’re saying.
Looking ahead, it causes me some more concern because you’re saying in one instance, “Well, NNI paybacks,” or however you worded it. They’re not hidden costs, but because projects aren’t done and as we know, not all of the houses are built at this time, are you saying that the $60 million is as of now and because the labour is not done and the houses are not totally finished, it’s actually going to be higher than $60 million?
No, that’s not what I’m saying. I think the corporation, like I said, has now been able to look at something that wasn’t being done in the past that led to this situation where the reporting that was done on the trust was expenditure reporting for that fiscal year. It didn’t take into account previous expenditures, or forecasted expenditures, or forecasted completion costs on the projects as well.
We are confident with the numbers that we have now. I believe most of the contracts for the labour component of this final season of delivery have been closed, so we know what our contractual obligations are as far as labour goes in regard to that and the corporation is taking steps.
Any change orders or any changes on that are flowing through our directorate office for approval. The monitoring of all of the contracts are being done on a regular basis, it wasn’t before, and ensuring that all of the district staff know that they have a budgeted amount for certain projects and those budgets are being monitored on a regular basis.
Speaker: Thank you, Minister. Oral Questions. Member Nattilik, Ms. Ugyuk.
Question 380 – 3(2): Inuit Artefact Repatriation from Norway (Ugyuk)
Ms. Ugyuk (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is directed to the Minister of Culture, Language, Elders and Youth.
When I was first elected, I went to Gjoa Haven and the mayor, Joanie Hadlari, asked for a visit this summer because archaeologists from Norway will be returning artefacts to Gjoa Haven.
I was wondering if the minister would be able to attend this meeting while they’re repatriating the artefacts. They will be raising a flag and also a plaque that acknowledges the repatriation.
So I would like to ask the minister if he would be able to attend this event in the summer.
Hon. Louis Tapardjuk (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I also thank the member.
I am extremely grateful to be invited. Once we have received a letter outlining what the event is about, whether they have invited departments, I do know for a fact that the Department of CLEY generally has limited funds to deal with a lot of these events.
I would be very happy to attend if I was invited, but I would prefer a letter inviting me to attend and then I would be able to respond.
So I would prefer to have a letter invitation because without that paperwork, I cannot confirm or deny my attendance.
What I can tell the member is that I will be expecting a letter of invitation from the member asking me to attend to this event.
I would be extremely happy to attend or to at least outline my plans in that regard.
Yes, you will receive a letter inviting you to attend to this event. I believe it will be a celebration in Gjoa Haven.
I did not hear a question, but I’ll leave it at your discretion to respond. Minister Tapardjuk.
I also thank our newest member.
With regard to these types of events, it is always very exciting to be invited and to represent the Government of Nunavut. Further, it is quite obvious that this will be a big event for the community.
There are also a lot of ships that want to search for the Franklin Expedition. There is a lot of research going on and so the benefits are not just for Nunavut. There are a lot of the outside world and even outside of Canada where nations are looking at that particular area.
So I would be glad to attend this event and I’ll look forward to receiving that letter invitation. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Committee Report on Bills 009 – 3(2): Bill 27, An Act to Amend the Workers’ Compensation Act (Okalik)
I wish to report that Bill 27, An Act to Amend the Workers’ Compensation Act, has been reviewed by the Standing Committee on Legislation and that the bill is ready for consideration in Committee of the Whole.
Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to waive Rule 68(6) and have Bill 27 immediately moved into Committee of the Whole.
The member is seeking unanimous consent to waive Rule 68(6) to have Bill 27 immediately moved into Committee of the Whole.
Bill 27 has been referred to the Committee of the Whole.
(interpretation ends) Item 12. Reports of Committees on the Review of Bills.
Item 13. Tabling of Documents. Mr. Elliott.
Tabled Document 162 – 3(2): Designating a Ministerial Portfolio to Support Persons with Disabilities (Elliott)
As I mentioned in my Member’s Statement earlier today, I wish to table a copy of the NWT’s Action Plan for Persons with Disabilities.
I encourage the Premier to give full consideration to models and best practices from other jurisdictions and to appoint one of her ministers with specific responsibilities as a champion for Nunavut’s persons with disabilities.
Tabling of Documents. Mr. Ningeongan.
Tabled Document 163 – 3(2): Additional Support for a New Senior School in Coral Harbour (Ningeongan)
I wish to table some information provided to me by the principal and staff of Sakku School in Coral Harbour.
Listed here are many reasons why a new senior school for Coral Harbour is needed in order to be able to properly deliver a full and comprehensive educational program.
I encourage the minister and his officials to consider this additional information over the coming months and before the next capital plan is brought forward.
Speaker: Thank you, Mr. Ningeongan. Tabling of Documents. Mr. Curley.
Tabled Document 164 – 3(2): Department of Health and Social Services’ Response to Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated’s Report on the Recruitment and Retention of Inuit Nurses in Nunavut (Curley)