Floyd Roland

Thank you, Madam Chair. The government, through its other work as Cabinet as a whole, can direct and gather that information. Each department would have information on its costs. There have been exercises done as well in the past on areas of potential savings and costs. So there has been work done in that area, and that information could be pulled together again to give the most current state in expenditures. Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chair. At one time we were much more involved in a lot of the areas with other departments. Again, as stated, user pay/user saves. There were a lot of areas that were returned to departments and they could choose how to do it. This is one area where there is a fair bit of technical expertise developed, and it was felt that it would remain in house in one department instead of splitting it up, and departments not having the ability and the resources to go to sort of a multi-faceted team that has experience in a number of different kinds of facilities. So the technical...

Thank you, Madam Chair. To my right is the deputy minister, Bruce Rattray, and to my left is the director of petroleum product services, Mr. Mike Aumond.

Thank you, Madam Chair. The role Public Works and Services gets involved in is at the department level. When a client department, if it is Health and Social Services or Education, Culture and Employment become involved, we would work with them and provide the technical expertise in project management and design, and work with them to see what the requirements are in helping to establish the estimates that would be used and placed in the main estimates document as well. So there are a number of areas that we are involved with them, but it is mainly with departments and then as a contract is...

Thank you, Madam Chair. I am pleased to present the Department of Public Works and Services main estimates for the fiscal year 2004-05.

The estimates propose a department operations and maintenance budget for 2004-2005 of $44.6 million and a capital acquisition plan of $2.9 million. This is a one percent increase over the 2003-2004 main estimates.

These resources will be used to provide critical support services to departments and communities including:

Operations and maintenance of infrastructure;

Technical support in the provision of community drinking water;

Management of capital...

Thank you, Madam Chair. There are four communities that we are directly involved with in the facilities maintenance end. We also do have some involvement in the other communities depending on the level of assistance required from communities. Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Again with that, the idea of the training to occur was we've taken an individual who was working within the system and through other efforts of trying to staff up the higher level position, we weren't successful, and we felt that with this individual we could take that person and have them come in for training, and have the position that they are being trained for work out of here in Yellowknife. But again working with the individual who has not relocated to Yellowknife, but is coming on a regular basis for that training, being trained by an individual here in...

Thank you, Madam Chair. We don’t have a flat rate, it is per minute, but we do have a discounted rate, which gives us a deal on the tariff.

Thank you, Madam Chair. With pulling the position in for training here in headquarters we have not let any duties go or delayed any other work that is occurring, so we're functioning at the level prior to that. That was one of the reasons of having to bring that position in to headquarters to receive some of the training to move up to the next level. Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I will give an opportunity for Mr. Rattray to get on record here and he can give you some detail.