Michael McLeod

Thank you, Madam Speaker. In my Member’s statement I spoke of the transition home in Inuvik having to constantly fight for funding. I would like to ask the Minister of Health and Social Services if he could inform me as to why the Transition House does not receive the full funding allocated by his department to the Inuvik Health and Social Services Board. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, I cannot speak for the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, however, my information tells me that there has been some analysis done in that area. I believe there was a helicopter survey done and there has been some assessment already conducted in the area of damages to the cabins. I believe there is a trapper's compensation program that can be accessed through this program. I will take that request to the appropriate Ministers and have them respond accordingly. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, I guess I should first of all commend the community of Fort Good Hope for all of their efforts and their ability to work together during this real tense time this spring, when we were experiencing some severe flooding in that community. I would also like to commend the MLA for that riding for all of his good work in keeping the communications line open during that difficult time.

Madam Speaker, we are, as the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs, working with a number of other departments within this government to ensure that there is a smooth...

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I apologize to the Member if any complaints that have come forward have not been responded to, and I would certainly like to speak with the Member to see where those complaints are coming from and who it was addressed to. We make every effort to respond to all issues that are brought forward, be it from headquarters or the region. We will contact our staff to see if any complaints have come forward that we haven’t dealt with. As to when we will start spending money on Highway No. 7, Madam Speaker, I am pleased to inform the House that we started spending money on...

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Recently I met with workers at the Inuvik Transition House, which is a women's shelter in Inuvik. I have to tell you, Madam Speaker, I was very disappointed at how this government and its agencies treat an organization like the Inuvik Transition House which provides a valuable service to the community. Every year the Transition House must fight with the Inuvik Regional Health and Social Services Authority to negotiate a contract and secure funding for the next year. Every year the delays and frustrations surrounding the renewal of the contract cause stress and...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. If the Minister comes across this information, he said he would share it with me, so I am looking forward to seeing that because that is news to me. I was of the understanding that it had not gone out yet. There is no question there.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question today is for the Minister of Health and Social Services. Could you inform this House as to the status of the RFP contract that provides security for the Inuvik Regional Hospital? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I think I can certainly relate to the concern that the Member is raising. We intend to send our frontline workers to do the assessments in the communities, to verify the titles, to explain the process to the leadership. However, I think it would warrant a follow-up by myself and some of my staff and maybe members of the Department of Finance to go in also and talk about the different options that are causing some roadblocks or some concern to the aboriginal governments in the communities, and maybe look at different options that might be out there on how to...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, 30 years ago, Thomas Berger put a 10-year moratorium on the pipeline in order to allow land claims to be settled and to allow northern communities to prepare for the construction. Twenty years have passed since that moratorium ended and most of us, like northern businesses, have been busy preparing and trying to build capacity in order to capitalize on the pipeline.

Unfortunately, some of us, even 20 years later, are still not ready, Mr. Speaker. For instance, one group is holding the future of the pipeline hostage while they try to negotiate their land...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the main street chipsealing program has been an initiative of this government for the past couple of years now. It was initially budgeted at $1 million. As a part of the reductions required by this government, we reduced it somewhat. This year the program will be carried out in two communities. The communities of Fort McPherson and Tuktoyaktuk I believe are the two communities that the work will be happening in.

The Sahtu has communities that are identified as a part of this schedule. We are only able to carry out the chipsealing program in the...