Jane Groenewegen

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions today are for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. I sense he’s been feeling left out lately.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'd like to speak to this point of privilege in the House today. I've been here for a little bit longer than some of the Members on this side of the House and I think I've pretty well seen it all when it comes to different forms of intimidation, threats, I think since I've been here. I take it very seriously, because I think since I've been here I've had my business threatened, I've had my family threatened, I've been threatened. As a matter of fact, there was even an RCMP inquiry had to made into a threat that was made, that somebody actually...

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. The motion is in order. To the motion. It’s not debatable. I mean, it’s not debatable, forget about to the motion. All those in favour of the motion? All those opposed? The motion is carried.

---Carried

I will now rise and report progress. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I will be supporting the motion. I think this is an extremely unfortunate circumstance we find ourselves in today. However, as I said in an earlier presentation today, I think we have to uphold a high standard and I will also say that nobody who is elected to the Assembly has a God given or superior right to sit in that Cabinet. This is a choice that is made. It is a responsibility bestowed, it is an honour placed on Members who are equals to oversee departments and responsibilities on our behalf and there is no dishonour on sitting on this side of the...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister tell me whether all income support workers in the NWT are now trained to do rent calculations, and how are communities without permanent income support workers, how is the rent being calculated in those communities? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

In my Member’s statement, I outlined the run around that our constituents must go through in attempting to pay their rent for social housing. Mr. Speaker, we want them to pay their rent, but the number of hoops that we are putting them through I think would be a discouragement to anybody paying their rent. Can the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment inform this Assembly what he intends to do to reduce the apparent bottleneck in income support offices and speed up the transmittal of rental calculation information to local housing authorities? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I’m going to outline the convoluted process that our constituents who live in social housing must go through when attempting to pay their rent. These are the actual experiences of one of my able-bodied constituents in Hay River and does not take into account the additional struggles that are faced by the elderly, handicapped, or those who do not live close to the downtown core.

Mr. Speaker, first you have to go to Northland Utilities and pay your power bill, as proof must be submitted at the time your rent is calculated. Then you have to walk over to...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, your committee would like to report progress. Mr. Speaker, I move that the report of Committee of the Whole be concurred with. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I will call Committee of the Whole to order. What is the wish of the committee today? Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the NWT Housing Corporation has a role as a Crown corporation under the GNWT to provide housing and housing programs to northern residents in need. Their degree of accountability to this Assembly is different because their budget comes from various sources, only a portion of which is voted by this government. As such, the line-by-line level of information in accompanying scrutiny by committee or Members is different and far less than the regular line departments of this government.

In years past there was a board of directors to provide governance to the NWT...