Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Again, I'll repeat myself from what I said last night. As an Inuvialuit beneficiary living in my home town of Tuktoyaktuk, 17 miles away from Tuktoyaktuk is Kittegaryumiut. We lost 3,000 people in the pandemic in the 1920s. I think that, when COVID-19 first came out, we didn't know what we were doing. Everybody was in a panic. Everybody tried to do their best. Our government tried to do their best. Now, we have to do our best in regard to the safety of the people of the Northwest Territories, and for me, the money, 8 million bucks, one life saved is worth it. I don't...

With our new regional energy project going to get underway, M18, IRC, we will have many heavy loads on the ITH. Wear and tear from tractor-trailers, 18-wheelers coming with LNG into Inuvik to service community. Having no budget and funding in place to get that road ready prior to that happening, that needs to be done. We could to studies, it's studied. We had the former Minister there in the community herself come and do the road, so we've seen some potholes and lost -- you see it's low and the grade is level with the highway. I think there are certain places, and it's probably between $5...

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Today, my question is for the Minister of Infrastructure in regard to the Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk Highway. Would the Minister commit to meeting with the mayor and the Tuktoyaktuk Community Corporation chair to come up with a plan to address the concerns in the letter that was sent to the Minister's office? Thank you, Madam Speaker.

It's more important to get the work done than to meet arbitrary funding deadlines. How does MACA expect the Hamlet of Paulatuk to pay back the funding and still update the sewage lagoon? Is there a way that we could do a letter of intent to say that we could do the work? Then, we could work with the gas tax or whatever funding that is available to them. Is that possible?

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Today, I brought up in my Member's statement regarding MACA and clawing back funding for the Paulatuk sewage lagoon. I am just wondering if the Minister of MACA would be able to give an extension. The extension was given to January, and you know that in our riding it is freeze-up, frozen solid, can't do anything. Would the Minister be willing to extend the project for the community of Paulatuk until August? Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Last week, MACA wrote to the Hamlet of Paulatuk, telling them they have to pay back $53,000 in clean waste-water funding for improvements to Paulatuk's sewage lagoon. MACA says they gave the hamlet two extensions; there is no way to extend the project deadline. MACA says the only option is to cancel the project and for Paulatuk to pay back the monies. The hamlet started the work this summer. They cannot get the work done by January 31st due to freeze-up, Madam Speaker. MACA did give a deadline for construction to end in the middle of winter.

Paulatuk could not start...

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Is it okay if I blame COVID-19 for the extension, please and thank you? I just want to make sure that the Minister commits to the community of Paulatuk and to the people of Nunakput that she would come to our community and do a community tour here soon, but I need a commitment from her to say that she will work for the people of Paulatuk on this issue. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

If the requirements, federal funding requirements, are the barrier here, did MACA give any consideration in finding an innovative way to get around it, working with the community to make sure that all the expenditures are done, notification given to the community, other than just saying, "Your funding is pulled"? Is there a way that we could talk to our federal counterparts, the Minister, to extend this? Because it's $53,000, and that is a lot of money for the community of Paulatuk, clawing back on water and the sewer program.

Thank you, Madam Speaker.

The committee discussed what rules were needed for Members' and Ministers' statements during remote sittings. For Ministers statements, the committee felt that, as these were well circulated on government websites and social media, in the event a Minister was unable to conclude a statement due to lost connection, no special provisions were required.

As Members do not have the same level of support to make the public aware of a statement, the committee felt a new rule was needed for Members' statements. The committee decided that a Member participating remotely can file...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. We could look back and say this wasn't rolled out properly, but at the end of the day, it happened so fast. It shut down our territory. It shut down, global. It was global. I didn't agree with it at the start, but when I think about it, I have to be here to represent my people as the MLA for Nunakput. I am going to support this in regards to priority one, safety of the people of the Northwest Territories.

When you look back, like this past week, I asked in the House, our community bubbles, we need to be supporting. The funding that we're getting, I hope they can really...