Norman Yakeleya

Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you, Mr. Dolynny, for bringing this motion to the floor for discussion. It speaks to a modernization and improvement of the justice that we have specific to the communities that I represent. This modernization bill here is 33 years old. The new way of thinking is to look at a motion that Mr. Dolynny has brought to the floor here. Either the commission works with the Minister and the commission works with the executive director who’s a lawyer or a person with significant management and financial experience. I think that’s the way to go.

I think that the Department...

Thank you, Madam Chair. The Minister’s presentation, page 2, he talked about the elimination of regional committees. I want to ask the Minister, in light of this elimination of the regional committees, what type of mechanisms are in place that would ensure that the regional concerns and voices of matters of importance to the people in the communities that they would be heard with this new commission?

Mr. Speaker, I give notice that on Monday, November 5, 2012, I will move the following motion: I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, that this Legislative Assembly strongly urges the Government of the Northwest Territories to include sufficient new funding, of at minimum $2 million, in the Health and Social Services 2013-14 Main Estimates for the department to substantially enhance addictions and mental health services;

And further, that these funds be added to the department’s base for future years and be directed at program delivery to address service gaps...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yesterday the Minister of ITI had an exchange on the Sahtu oil and gas exploration and the amount of hundreds of millions of dollars that are going to be spent in the Sahtu in the next couple of years. In Fort Good Hope, they actually closed off the bid there and Shell Canada won. I think it’s just over $90 million worth of exploration.

I want to ask the Minister, in regard to the Mackenzie Valley Highway, we’re going to do this in steps and, certainly, we in the Sahtu support the Inuvik-Tuk highway to go through. We’re also looking forward to some support to build a...

When the Minister provides the information, I want to ask the Minister if he would take it to his colleagues and maybe they could designate the trappers into the government customers pricing so the trappers can pay the $1.61 per litre rather than the non-government customers paying $1.76. I ask if they would consider categorizing the trappers into that item where government customers are only paying $1.61.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Minister of Public Works and Services on petroleum products. I have talked about the trappers and the increase in fuel costs to do the trapping. I want to ask the Minister why the prices are so high in the Sahtu. Other smaller communities just had a 10 cent increase, I think, in Tulita. The trappers are asking why the prices are so high again this year.

I’ve always supported the take the youth trapping. As I said, a young lad in Colville Lake, when we asked the young kids what they want to be and some were saying nurses and doctors and teachers, this young guy spoke up and said I want to be a trapper. That tells you that trapping is alive and well in the Northwest Territories, especially in our small communities. It’s an honourable position.

I want to ask the Minister, through the Take a Kid Trapping program, is that like an apprenticeship program where kids can apply for an apprenticeship to learn under the professors in the university of...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’ll be supporting this motion. Hopefully this motion will give some strength to the powers that be in this House in that they go down to Ottawa on every chance and talk to the people in Ottawa as to why we need to have northern rescue operations in the Northwest Territories.

We have a vast region. My colleague talked about Nunavut being served from Halifax, the Northwest Territories from Trenton, and the Yukon from BC and Vancouver. We need to get together with the other provinces and look at a northern operation that will serve the northern territories. So hopefully...

Can the Minister make a good case argument to the federal government that this $500 million can be tied to the development, and possibly look at the Sahtu as being zoned or designated as a special economic area that the federal government can release this $500 million?

Mr. Speaker, I want to ask the Minister of ITI a question. Yesterday he talked about oil and gas exploration in the Sahtu that potentially could happen in the Good Hope, Tulita and Norman Wells area. What is his department doing with regard to dealing with the potential impact of the recent interest of the exploration in that area?