Michael Miltenberger

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As Minister, I always maintain in this portfolio the ultimate responsibility and I can’t give that up, but I am working very closely with the Joint Leadership Council. In fact, we spent most of the day last week meeting with the folks at Stanton to talk about our relationship and how we’re going to better move forward collectively and provide the governance oversight that’s required to do that job effectively when you consider the size of Stanton and that it’s a territorial resource with an $80 million budget and 500 staff. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, we will continue to provide full access to all those children that are deemed to be in need of the service at the Territorial Treatment Centre and that has never been an issue. We will put the resources necessary to continue to do that. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to take a moment to acknowledge the contributions that persons with disabilities provide to our communities. This year, Disability Awareness Week is recognized in the NWT from May 28th until June 3rd. The theme for this year is Living, Working and Educating Together - Include People with Disabilities.

Disability can affect all of us directly or indirectly at any point in our lives. The onus of responsibility is upon us all to include people with disabilities in every aspect of life. The important message that comes with this is that we focus on people's...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, work is underway as we meet in this House. Business plans, both on the O and M side and the capital side are being worked on. There will be formal review by committee members in the coming months and formally, as well, in the fall. Over the next three or four months the work on the business plans is going to continue and it will go through the normal process of committee review and discussion, as well as initial review by Cabinet. So that process is going to unfold here over the next three or four months. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, let me restate once again for the record that Yellowknife is not losing access to any service. It will be available across the lake in Hay River the same as services in Yellowknife are available to all people who have to fly into Yellowknife from wherever they may live. It’s a very simple situation. There is no loss of service to the people of Yellowknife. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I’ve had a number of discussions with the Minister for Public Works and Services, and we’ve made sure that the lines of communication are operating as they should be and we’ve rectified whatever missteps there may have been and we are carrying on. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Joint Leadership Council already has that within their mandate. In the terms of reference we agreed to, as I just indicated in the last two responses, to formalize that process and that’s how we intend to move forward, that it’s comprised of all the board chairs and they are at the table and doing an effective job, in my opinion. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, none of this was done on a whim and as elected politicians and officials, the Ministers and MLAs, we deal with politics and political decisions all the time. In this case, we made, in my opinion, a careful good decision. The option to renovate is still there, but it behoves me as Minister to get the information to see in fact whether there is the ability to construct new for the same price to extend the life and have a facility that would be there for 20 or 30 years longer than the renovated facility. Dene K’onia still is there and the potential...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As Minister, I always maintain in this portfolio the ultimate responsibility and I can’t give that up, but I am working very closely with the Joint Leadership Council. In fact, we spent most of the day last week meeting with the folks at Stanton to talk about our relationship and how we’re going to better move forward collectively and provide the governance oversight that’s required to do that job effectively when you consider the size of Stanton and that it’s a territorial resource with an $80 million budget and 500 staff. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I hear the Member’s comments and I can appreciate and comprehend what he is telling me. I also have a position here that we’re moving on and we’re not abandoning anybody, we’re not denying anybody a service. I can appreciate how it feels when the concern people have when they see things they think move out of their communities, but this service is not going to be lost. It’s still going to be available a very short distance away. Thank you.