David Krutko

Thank you, Mr. Minister. Next on my list I have the Member for Great Slave, Mr. Abernethy.

Acting Deputy Minister Ms. Alexander.

Corporate Human Resources, Active Positions, information item.

Department of Human Resources, Corporate Human Resources, Active Positions, information item, (page 2-71) approved.

Thank you, Mr. Minister. Welcome witnesses. We are on page 2-59, Human Resource Strategy and Policy, and also we have received additional information from the Minister, which I believe has been circulated. Any general comments in regard to page 2-59? Mr. Abernethy.

Minister McLeod.

In regard to the layoffs themselves, the numbers I came up with…. There are about 60 individuals who are going to be laid off in the two areas that I mentioned, in Justice and in Transportation. There are a few forestry jobs, but most of those are contract positions. I’d just like to know if you have the actual number of aboriginal employees who are going to be eliminated under these job cuts.

Also, how much would that decrease our affirmative action numbers in the workforce? You mentioned the majority of people are not P1 positions, yet 60 people in the public workforce is a lot of people in...

Most jurisdictions in Canada, the provinces and whatnot, have a housing strategy. Part of that strategy looks at seniors’ housing, family homes, retirement homes, disabled housing, homeless shelters. They look at every type of housing that’s out there. So I’d like to ask the Minister: would his department take on a strategic plan to look at the holistic process for housing from the time you’re born until the time you pass away — 80 to 90 years of housing that people go through? I think it’s about time this government took on that initiative. I think we won’t have these problems in our...

Mr. Speaker, as government our public infrastructure is aging; we have to replace it. I think this is probably a good time to build that concept into reality, build it into our business plan, build it into our housing strategies and initiatives. I’d like to ask the Minister: exactly how soon can we see some of these initiatives put in place, knowing we are expending money already to basically do upgrades on public housing units by way of retrofits? Will you consider looking at those retrofit dollars, at those facilities for renovating, to see if we can implement some of these projects in...

I, too, would like to recognize Mr. Norm Snowshoe and Bobby-Jo Greenland, formerly from Aklavik and Fort McPherson, who are now living in Inuvik.

Mr. Speaker, the government must do everything it can to ensure the protection of those among us who have disabilities, by way of mobility, wheelchair bound, from accessing public facilities to accessing public housing. The government must do everything it can to improve the quality of life of these individuals, as they are the ones that we are here to protect.

Mr. Speaker, I watched a young man struggling to push his wheelchair down the street in Fort McPherson by way of the mud and the gravel, thinking “That’s a challenge.” After talking to his dad, I found out this individual had nowhere to...