Michael Nadli

I would like to thank the Minister for his reply. Here in the NWT, we promote the day of natural resource development. If that happens, we are quite fortunate especially if you are a neighbouring community, you have access to jobs that are fairly limited, and business opportunities, to ensure that the community grows. Plus, we also have the expectation that we are trying to balance economic and social impacts. Is the Minister aware of any effort being made to help the people of Enterprise benefit from the proposed pellet mill especially in terms of jobs and other economic opportunities?

Mahsi. Mr. Speaker. Small communities sometimes are drive-by communities. We drive by, and we see a small community, and we just drive by. One particular community is Enterprise, located within my riding. It is in the Deh Cho riding, but it also has access to the jurisdiction of the South Slave district offices. However, my questions today are for the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs. Can the Minister explain how Enterprise is involved in discussions at a territorial level about initiatives and activities that have an impact on the community? Mahsi.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, Enterprise is the first Northwest Territories community on the Mackenzie Highway north of the Alberta border. Built when the highway was first extended into the NWT to capture highway trade, Enterprise is home to just over a hundred people at the junction of Highways No. 1 and No. 2, 43 kilometres south of Hay River. Enterprise is too often overlooked because of its size. The mayor recently shared some concerns with me that the community is under-represented and goes unnoticed, especially its Aboriginal population. Mr. Speaker, according to census data, almost...

Yes, thank you. Again, Mr. Chair, I’m just trying to… Maybe… I don’t know if the Minister or his officials would have access to just a total figure amount for in one year how much money is expended in terms of medevacs out of small communities into Yellowknife. Thank you.

Perhaps this is my last question. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I was just seeking to understand whether… You know, we purport in one instance to recognize 11 official languages, including Aboriginal languages. Now we finally recognize the Dene font. Am I missing something here? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. My question is in relation to that same page, but it affects just the recent recognition of the need for Dene fonts in terms of parents registering their children with their traditional First Nation names. I wanted to understand: what is the cost in terms of implementing the formal recognition of Dene fonts and its use in the vital statistics. Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. The other question that I have is the riding that I represent, of course, has four communities. Two could be categorized in a South Slave district for regional administration purposes. One of them, of course, is the Hay River Reserve and Enterprise, and then you have Kakisa and Fort Providence. How do communities ultimately decide which authority they’re going to work with and is it the prerogative of communities to make their own decisions, or is it the Minister and department that decide which communities should work with what authority? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Would the Minister agree to meet with the mayor of Enterprise and visit the community the next time he is in the area on official business to explain his explanation that they are full partners in terms of any initiatives that are perhaps in their neighbouring community? Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. This will likely be my last question. There’s several strategies that are developed, including the conservation network initiatives, there’s the Boreal initiative. How integral will the Land Use and Sustainability Framework play in terms of ensuring that there’s consistencies with plans across the NWT? Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I just wanted to understand. Earlier I did mention the term Protected Area Strategy initiative and where it fits within the government at this point. I understand it’s been changed into conservation network initiative, so if I can get some explanation in terms of whether they’ve changed gears in terms of how the approach will be taken in terms of engaging and collaborating with communities.