Bob Bromley

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. Minister Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I’m just wondering what the Aboriginal Intergovernmental Meetings Fund of $350,000, it looks like it’s been there for a long time. Surely this doesn’t need specific funding here. This must be just part of our way of doing business here. I’m wondering if the Minister, to be frank, I’m getting a lot of concerns about this so-called consultation unit, if this is essentially what it’s about, from other Aboriginal people who have other priorities. I’m just wondering whether this is there for the foreseeable future or if we can expect that these partners will just be a...

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Committee, we’re on page 2-13, Department of Executive, activity summary, directorate, operations expenditure summary, $869,000.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Mr. Stewart.

I didn’t understand any of that. I wonder if I could get a more plain language explanation there. Territorial Power Subsidy Program. I guess I want to know what are in those statements. How do we decide what to pay out? They’re identical numbers here between the two fiscal years. I guess I need to understand that more.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Just before we go to 7-10, on 7-9 I am just wondering are the savings that are gathered through the energy-efficient technologies we are using, do they turn into revenues at all? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I want to start off by saying that I appreciate this department’s achievement in keeping their budget on track. Having said that, I disagree with the Minister’s Department of Transportation going up 6 percent when the government’s only going up 3 percent, especially given the proven track record of Public Works and Services achieving reductions in costs and actually saving this government money. That is where we want to be investing, and aggressively. We know full well what’s happening to the cost of fuel and it looks like we’re on an accelerated rise again here. The...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have been urging the Minister to get going on this, because I know that it’s an ephemeral opportunity that’s going to walk out the door on us. I appreciate the Minister going after this. I have to ask why this is so hard. Why are we dilly-dallying about when the long-term cost benefits are so clear here? Why aren’t we working these opportunities aggressively when they show up on our doorstep?

Thanks for that comment from the Minister. I’ve been in touch with the Minister recently on the case of a trained physician in our community, a doctor who only needs this government’s help to give us a physician for the future. Briefly, she is asking only for this government to arrange an internship here for her. She says she’ll intern in any specialty so that she can qualify and live here with her family, all of whom are committed to the NWT. Today I learned that she has contacted Memorial University with regard to this program and they were very enthusiastic to move her to the front-line of...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just want to note that these things and a lot of other common-place green behaviours sound to me like the least we should be doing in our departments and not really voluntary. The Human Resources department and Public Works and Services are best positioned to make these standard practices. Why are we leaving it up to employees to separately devise and implement the most basic practices of green office management? Can we get this in place as a standard that must be achieved?