Charles Dent

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, it is common to have people from all regions, especially as we have reduced the numbers of facilities across the Territories. I guess the only point is that, on occasion, Members have made the point that we need to provide services close to home, as Mr. Villeneuve was doing. If we are going to follow that, then we have to take a look at what’s closest to home for people from Inuvik as well.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In fact, with the positions that we have in this year’s budget and what was in last year’s budget, we are only going to be six positions short of what the RCMP asked for. I told the standing committee, when I appeared in front of them, that it was my intention to put the request forward as part of the business plan for next year, to follow through on delivering those RCMP officers in the next budget. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. When Mr. Villeneuve was asking about services to his communities, he was referring to inmates from the South Slave region. I was referring to the number of inmates in the facility from the South Slave region. That, in the past couple of weeks, has been one or two. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My understanding is that we’re not talking about adding. Even if we were talking about adding positions in the North Slave Correctional Centre, it is not in the remand part of the facility. I’m not aware that there have been any concerns about staffing in that area, and my understanding is that the vacancy in beds could be filled up without there having to be an increase in the numbers of staff. At this point, the two are not the same. If we’re talking about an increase in staff in the facility as it stands, it would be the same as an increase in the overall staffing...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I don’t have any money in the budget to do that. I have given up, in this budget, the $400,000. The bottom line, Mr. Speaker, is in the budget that’s before the House, we have reduced the expenditures by $400,000 and have said in order to achieve this reduction, we have to close the South Mackenzie Correctional Centre remand unit. Mr. Speaker, we will function this year with $400,000 less. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In terms of better, I don’t know if it’s a question of it being a better setting. The issue is really one of having two facilities when we can accommodate the prisoners with one. That’s where the savings are. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The magnitude of the numbers is, I am sure, relatively close to what the exact numbers are going to be. Whether we are saving, $300,000, $400,000 or $500,000, there is a significant savings to close this facility. So even if my numbers were wrong, they are not wrong by that amount. The amount of money that’s in this year’s budget, Mr. Speaker, is $400,000 less than what it would take to keep that section of the South Mackenzie Correctional Centre open. That’s what the department has given up. So whether the department is exactly right in the numbers that have been...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. What we are saying is that we think that the transportation of people on remand can be accommodated for very close to that number. Again I am saying it is plus or minus. If we have a few more or a few less, it will change. Yes, based on historical data, that number is pretty close to what is expected. Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chair. This would be one of the areas that some of the money might come from. It doesn’t come from just one area. The GNWT commitment to fund ASEP is in a couple of different places. So this is as good a place as any to talk about that program. The Member is right; we’re hoping that over the course of the ASEP program that there will be 800 people trained. They won’t all be miners, but they will be trained for jobs that are related to the industry.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. We will get that information to the Member. It’s certainly not many. I think it’s less than 50 since the inception of the appeals committee.