David Ramsay

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The last report that I’ve got from the South Slave and Hay River was that the airport was open today, flights were operating out of the Hay River Airport today, and that’s a real testament to the staff – Kelly O’Connor, the airport manager, and the staff at the Hay River Airport – that have worked long, hard hours dealing with the snow.

On the highway front, we’ve had every piece of equipment in the area. We’ve called in the Buffalo River camp to assist as well. We’ve had off-hour crews called in. So we’ve had every piece of equipment out on the roads, working the best...

We don’t have plans for the Merv Hardie once it comes out of the river at Fort Providence. With the Louis Cardinal we just put new engines into the Louis Cardinal three years ago. We’re working on plans to extend the ice roads in the Beaufort-Delta near the Member’s communities and really the big point is, and I have to say, the Merv Hardie does cost more to operate. So what we intend to do is mothball it. It will be there if we need it. We don’t have any intentions on selling it or disposing of it in any other way. We’re going to have it as a backup, and as I mentioned in response to Member...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We have a harvesters Disaster Compensation Program that’s allotted $15,000 on an annual basis. It has a maximum of $4,500 per applicant. I understand the Member’s concern, and I had the opportunity to visit the community of Nahanni Butte with the Premier and the Member just after the flood had occurred. Certainly, the residents of Nahanni Butte need the government’s assistance. If there are, as the Member indicated, a few people that have concerns, that’s something that we’re willing to sit down with the Member and the community to discuss how we can get them assistance...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Just to clarify – and I thank the Member for his question – was it to replace the Louis Cardinal? Was that the question?

Processes like the EA take some time. I know the economy right now in the Beaufort-Delta isn’t what folks need it to be. We need jobs, we need opportunities there. I believe this project is going to help us deliver on growing the economy in the Beaufort-Delta. Should the project be approved in February-March, we will be able to hopefully move on a couple of sections that are shovel ready, both out of Inuvik and out of Tuk. Hopefully the project itself would commence construction in the fall of next year. That would be the fall of 2013.

Mr. Chair, in the short term I believe we are ready. In the long term, and that is when we look at the development, commercialization, production perhaps going on in the Sahtu, that we are going to be looking at things like the Mackenzie Valley Highway, fibre optic link, the Mackenzie Gas Project, the possibility of another oil pipeline south of Norman Wells. These are all things that are going to be a part of the equation when it comes to the development in the Sahtu.

Certainly, we need to find more money. The Department of Transportation is not alone. When I say that, I was recently at the...

Mr. Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to congratulate the Department of Transportation for receiving the Silver Award for Innovation from the Institute of Public Administrators of Canada.

Every year the institute recognizes world-class innovators for improving public service in Canada. This year the Department of Transportation is nationally recognized as one of these innovators. This prestigious award acknowledges the hard work of many individuals and provides an opportunity to share the influence of their good ideas with the rest of Canada.

Mr. Speaker, the award recognizes the department’s...

I appreciate the Member’s concern about the runway length in a community like Deline. As he’s referenced, the runway in Deline is almost 4,000 feet. I know when I was on the Regular Members’ side, the Member had brought this concern up a number of times in committee and in the House. Since I became Minister a year ago, I haven’t received a formal proposal from the airline or the community. I’d be more than happy to try to work, like we did in Fort Good Hope, to try to come up with a solution if an extension is required in Deline, to try to find a way to work toward that. But, again, I haven’t...

It would be 27 total. Six would be paved and the remainder would be gravelled, 21 gravelled.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I’m not sure why the Member wouldn’t have the project substantiation on the runway stabilization. I’ll go to Mr. Neudorf to provide an explanation on how that money is going to be spent.