Floyd Roland

Mr. Chairman, as the government of the Northwest Territories, while not in the 16th Assembly, we know from past experience in the last government that when systems fail, they can cause havoc in how we do business and how things are carried out. This FIS system is a very old platform. We’ve been nursing it along to keep it functional, but we’re running out of people who actually have experience with the program that’s written, and we’re having to do this now for the integrity of our mainframe.

Mr. Speaker, let’s not mix the words of one response with another. We know instructions have been given to departments to meet their targets. Instructions have not been given to departments — let’s separate that now; instructions have not been given to departments — to begin reductions April 1. We have not made that decision at this level. We haven’t brought those forward as part of a business plan as of yet. Until we get that level of approval, we can’t be going out and giving that direction to the public service.

What does happen as a normal course of business, for example, Mr. Speaker, is...

Mr. Speaker, in responding to the Member’s question, he also stated in his Member’s statement about the planning and timing. For the record, let’s put it on this table the fact that in a consensus-style government, I have agreed with Members that we would make a budget happen by May–June. That reduces the amount of time we can go back and forth. So that is problematic in the way of trying to do business in a new fashion.

As to the specific area of the department the deputy minister is reviewing, it is the process we are following. Because, for example, Mr. Speaker, as a government we’re working...

Mr. Chairman, the work that we’re undergoing for the 16th Assembly — looking at dealing with the fiscal environment we’re in, knowing we need to cap the growth, reduce our overall expenditures, and try to find dollars for reinvestment — is going to cause us to look long and hard and deep at how we do business. That work is starting. Again, we’ll be working with Members and coming up with recommendations that we can bring forward to a budget process.

I did receive that letter. I am reviewing what we may be able to do. Our work is in this forum. I have had contact with the president of the UNW and will continue to have contact with him as we develop our plan.

At this point I haven't responded to that letter. Once we come up with a better plan and details of that and Members have looked at that, I can sit down and provide a briefing to their executive.

The capital infrastructure piece is one, yes, that we agree needs to be seriously looked at and to make some adjustments, possibly a complete revamping. For example, instead of doing a combined O&M and capital infrastructure project, is it more effective if we separate the two so that contractors have enough advance time to bid on a program, to get materials sent up and delivered into those communities in a time frame that allows for summer construction, not winter construction? That review needs to happen.

We’ve got together the Cabinet Infrastructure Committee and we’ve got the correspondence...

I move, seconded by the Hon. Member from Deh Cho, that Bill 1, Interim Appropriation Act, 2008-2009, be read for the first time.

Mr. Speaker, as the Members are aware, we’ve been trying to finalize a schedule of getting the upcoming budget in place and how much of the change we can incorporate in our first year. So the time line’s in front of us.

Much of that work would flow into the ’09-’10 business plan process, so we’re going to see what work may be able to be carried forward. But the refocusing piece, and the amount of work that’s required, would take us more time than the typical approach we take to business planning. I would say much of this type of work would flow through into the ’09-’10 business plan process.

Mr. Speaker, the work that was done previously, in fact, was chaired by Minister Miltenberger. It just so happens that in this government, the 16th Assembly, he is the lead on the refocusing-government portion of our initiatives. This area would be falling under that activity.

Mr. Speaker, we would have to look at all the boards and agencies, not just health authorities but education authorities, the relationship we have with them, and the LHOs as well, looking at where there may be potential overlaps. That work is to be done, and the lead Minister, again, is Minister Miltenberger. They’ve...

Mr. Speaker, in a sense there are a number of partners involved in this. We are back stoppers, in a sense, as was pointed out by Members of this Assembly, on this project. Information that we would do, we would share with all parties involved. They haven’t requested this, and I can’t see why we would go to them for their evaluation of our work.

From the FMBS side, we have been monitoring the fiscal impacts of this project and ensuring that we’ve covered off areas of risk points for the G.N.W.T.