Jackson Lafferty

Mahsi. Mr. Speaker, we can certainly take that into consideration, working with the development corporation at the community level, along with the Housing Corporation and our department. Mahsi.

Mr. Speaker, that is what we’re doing with the communities. We are having the Housing Corporation assist with the development corporations to build units in the communities. With us, there are no ties, as we are the third party. We are assisting the communities in pursuing the building of these units for professionals in the communities, specifically for teachers, social workers and nurses in the communities as well. That’s what we’re doing as a department — our department, working with another department — to identify a solution in a community.

Yes, our department will continue to work closely with the communities. Specifically dealing with the housing issues, we have to continue hiring teachers in the communities, and we will continue working with the communities on that issue.

Mahsi, Mr. Chairman. I have Blair Barbour, Administrative Policy Advisor, Department of Education, Culture and Employment; and Lana Birch, Legislative Counsel, Department of Justice.

The work is still continuing. As the Member indicated, we are still at the planning stages. The design development is scheduled for March 2008. That’s in the works. Site grading, drainage and ball-field work will continue in the spring and summer of 2008. So there is work scheduled for this summer and fall. The site work is scheduled to be complete in the summer of 2008.

The Member indicated it had something to do with an announcement. No, it doesn’t. The announcement of the $135 million that he referred to…. These two projects have been on the books. We are continuing with the project. Both...

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the Member’s question on this specific area.

I did manage to talk to my department to try to get more information on what really took place in Inuvik. I did get some feedback on the incident that had taken place. The Member was asking how many were used during 2006-2007. I’m willing to share…. We did have 12 incidents in the community of Inuvik during September 2006 to November 2007 — fifteen months.

Mr. Chairman, I don’t have the specific detailed information on the escapees, I guess you could call them, but I can certainly provide that information at a later time. Mahsi.

Mahsi. Mr. Speaker, like I said, there is a review undertaken right now. The communities want to have some input into this review.

On the trades sector, the programs that are being delivered, the trade apprenticeship programs, the management programs and distance programs are out there. We want to find out what’s working. What kind of programs are we delivering successfully? We are getting input from the students and program staff about how to deliver effective programs to our communities. We are listening to people out there in the community. We serve 33 communities, and we are certainly...

Mr. Chair, it is the outdoor spiritual and recreation program area that’s been highlighted here. It has been discussed, as has the need to have this area for this summer as the start of the project.

The specific area has been requested by the NSCC, the coordinator of the facility. A primary needs assessment has clearly identified the need for outdoors programs to address the spiritual, physical and recreational needs of the offenders. The intent of the program is to provide an expansion to these traditional recreation programs. 

Currently, we do not have a facility — an area — specifically for...

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Yes, indeed, safety, effectiveness and efficiency are our top priorities as a government and, more specifically, the trades programs that we offer in the communities.

We do have campuses that deliver various programs in the communities — Inuvik, Fort Smith, Yellowknife — and in other smaller campuses at the community level. We do provide pilot programs as well, all leading towards certification or diploma programs, and also towards a teacher education program. We are very proud of the programs that we deliver on all campuses.

With regard to a review, there is one currently...