Norman Yakeleya

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my question is to the Premier, Premier Handley. I'd like to ask Premier Handley in terms of the territorial vision or the territorial next step in terms…For example, if we get the devolution agreement and if we get resource revenue sharing by the time this government finishes its term here, I'd like to ask the Premier what's the vision, what's the next step once we get devolution, once we get the resource revenue sharing, what's the vision? Where is the Premier leading us, Mr. Speaker?

Mr. Chair, I just wanted to ask the Minister about his comments here in terms of the housing that he’s planning to put into the communities. Even 118 units, even if we don’t receive any type of favourable response from the federal government, we have 118 units, as you mentioned. That’s quite a few units. How is it going to work with the communities in terms of putting these units into the community in terms of the lot development, power poles and any other infrastructure that has to go to get a lot ready for these units? Right now they’re sort of rushing the lots to get into the...

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, the other one is that the Minister indicated almost $5 million going to emergency and other repair programs and various programs for seniors and disabled preventive maintenance programs and senior citizens home repairs. So I want to ask the Minister, in terms of some of these seniors’ English being a second language, how is it being communicated to them for their eligibility or the requirements for these type of programs? Or even the disabled. I know it sometimes gets tossed over to the Department of Health because they have to fund certain programs....

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, the Minister’s comments, I want to ask a few questions. I think the basic presumption or thing that the people in our communities are looking for is that homes be built in the whole Northwest Territories. The Minister is right and the Members are right. We seem to be always in a crisis mode in the North in terms of homes, how much get built in the regions and in the communities. I am very curious in terms of the number of homes being built in the North and maybe specifically in the Sahtu because, in the last couple of years I have been here, past...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Minister of Health and Social Services.

Can the Minister provide a list of numbers of 2004-2005 agency nurses in the North and what is projected for 2006-2007?

Can the Minister provide a breakdown of agency nurses in the region in the year of 2004-2005?

Can the Minister provide the average stay in the role of nurses in the regions?

Can the Minister provide an outline of reducing the role of agency nurses in the regions?

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. When can the Northwest Territories, along with two powerful Premiers on this committee, Alberta and Quebec, when would this council make the national energy strategy known to the other Premiers so that they can go forward to the federal government and, like Mr. Williams said, hopefully we can have all 13 areas in Canada, or provinces in Canada, all 13 be like Alberta. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise today to honour one of our constituents in the Sahtu region from Tulita. Her name is Stella Bayha-Yallee. She has 25 years of service as a housing manager in Tulita. I wanted to say that to the House, that she is one of the longest-serving members of the local housing authorities in the Northwest Territories. In light of all the stress, heartaches and bellyaches, she hung in there and stayed with us. She is a valuable member to the community, but also, more importantly, a valuable member to the Housing Corporation in terms of changes that we are going...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. The $4.8 million to fund emergency and other repair programs and various seniors' programs, under this concept here, is a certain amount allocated out of this solely for Senior Citizens’ Home Repair Program? I know the Minister indicated earlier that he said it is application based. It is pretty general. Everybody could fill out their application under the emergency and it would eat up on the other programs. In this funding or the different programs he has outlined, do they have a certain amount of money that is dedicated solely for that purpose? I wanted to ask...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, I wanted to ask the Minister again in terms of the coordination efforts by Housing with other departments in terms of developing the lots for the communities for these units to be in the communities. Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, these programs are application based, so some of these elders would need some good quality time to sit down and take the application in English and translate it into Slavey and then have it again translated back to English. I hope that these liaison people who are in the communities would have that type of support from the local district offices in the regions, and then also from headquarters, that these programs need to be filled out properly by the elders and they have to know how these programs run and that there’s only so much money allocated per...