David Krutko

Thank you, Mr. Chair. We keep hearing discussions about a proposal that was out there. I’ll clarify for the record. The proposal was for a lease-purchase facility in Inuvik; the idea was to lease to the government for 25, 30 years and buy it out for $1. That was the proposal that was put out in the request for proposal.

But after the request for proposal was sent and reviewed, it came back that there were some financial implications because of Revenue Canada and the way they calculated the revenues from that lease. There was an implication where you had to pay the calculated amount of the lease...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. In regard to this department, what role does ITI play in our communities? One of the main roles is dealing with our economic development positions in our communities and trying to assist small businesses.

I know there’s a new program out there called SEED, but I think it’s important that…. We have to do more. We talk about tourism and whatnot. But what we’re seeing is that we have to be able to also develop the economies of our small communities. We can have healthy and vibrant people, but without having a social and economic base for these people to be able to generate...

Again, that is exactly my point. They are already coming from existing space, and that space will be vacated. There’s so much extra space out there, and we’re being told that this won’t have any implications to existing space that’s already there. There will be an implication in regard to this decision.

In regard to ourselves and the individuals who have made investments in the retail market and also to the amount of vacant space, with the economic situation we find ourselves in today dealing with banks, we must also realize that someone has to pay for the roughly 10 per cent vacant office space. Somebody’s got to cover the O&M costs of those facilities that are vacant. I think the cost is going to be a burden to those businesses that have made that investment. It’s crucial to realize that for any facility this government has a policy in regard to market disruption. In order to do justice to...

Mr. Chair, it would be good if the Minister could keep the Members on this side of the House and the committees informed in regard to how those expenditures are being made and who’s getting on the list and who isn’t. I think it’s important. Climate change affects people differently, especially where we have communities dealing with permafrost, shoreline erosion and the importance of gravel in those areas where we don’t have gravel.

I’d like to ask: has the department looked at what other initiatives are being contemplated? You talked about climate change, and you talked about different types...

Mr. Chair, can the Minister tell me: where does the Financial Management Board Secretariat presently work in Inuvik?

Well, if he’s committed to moving on this project, that’s what I want to hear.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I’d like to ask the Minister of Transportation if he can give me an update in regard to the Building Canada Fund and how community projects can be added to that fund. I know of previous commitments from previous Ministers to looking at the Aklavik access road to the gravel source. I know there was a meeting last week. I’m wondering about the possibility of getting an update on what the status of that is. What type of a timeframe are we looking at to basically develop a proposal, submit it and see if we can access the funds from the Building Canada Fund to do that project...

Mr. Chairman, it worries me, hearing from the Minister of Public Works and Services about all the concerns in regard to security, accessibility, the health of the buildings and whatnot. Just on those arguments alone it tells me that departments are going to be finding excuses to move out of these leases. Yet you supposedly assure us that will not happen. We’ve already seen it happen in regard to the Department of Environment by moving out of a facility out to Shell Lake, converting the buildings out there into office space. I bet you a dollar to a doughnut that the Department of Environment...

I know that within the last two years there were plans in place to move this project ahead and do it in different phases, that you were going to do a certain aspect of construction in regard to the mechanical side of the building, another phase looking at the shop and whatnot, so that you can still functionally use the facility.

But at some point you’re going to have to look at an alternative space. That plan was already in place. It was already contemplated to move on that. There was a lot of planning and research in regard to how we were going to construct this facility in different phases...