Sandy Lee

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, if he and this government operates under that policy, how does the government have credibility and justification to force all of the northern multi-national corporations in their obligations to hire northern, buy northern and do things northern? How can the Minister and the government have any credibility in insisting that when they don’t even practice their own principle? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of RWED in his capacity as the Minister responsible for the BIP. I would like to know if the Minister and the Cabinet have decided whether or not to waive the BIP with respect to 22 additional mobile homes under the market housing initiative. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I’m saying to the Minister that he is not meeting that objective he just stated. Mr. Speaker, this is not addressing the lack of housing in communities. Fourteen of 22 units are sitting empty in Tulita, Fort Good Hope, Fort Liard, Lutselk’e, Fort Resolution, and they have to be sold on the general market. So I want to know if that is a policy now, that the NWT Housing Corporation is officially now the middleman to be a dealer for mobile homes down south to go to communities. Is that what the government’s policy is now? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, further to my Member’s statement, my questions are to the Minister responsible for the NWT Housing Corporation. In anticipation of his answers, let me just state that challenging the government on these policies does not speak to anything about us not caring about social housing. I just wanted to say that. I believe that it’s an accepted premise here that we all want to work to increase housing in the North and meet some of the housing needs. My issue with the Minister is the way in which this market housing initiative was brought up and how it was...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thank you, colleagues, for giving me the opportunity to speak. I’d like to rise and speak in favour of the motion. Mr. Speaker, I think there is a lot in this motion and it reflects the frustration on the part of the Members in terms of the government’s inability to meet the needs of housing in the North. It also speaks to the desire on the part of the Members to improve the situation as much as we can.

Mr. Speaker, I think there is a need to review the mandate and the work of the Housing Corporation in light of the fact that there are so many needs there and that we...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, on what basis does he suggest that there are no businesses in the Territories who could provide homes? There is no manufacturing mobile home factory, but there are lots of businesses in the North that could provide housing to the North. Is it not his responsibility to look for business opportunities and promote growth and promote opportunities? On what basis does he conclude that?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would suggest to the Minister, that if you call Mr. Les Rocher in Yellowknife, he would say that there is a lot of value added in doing business in the North and that it is not fair for the government to apply BIP just in 15 percent of the projects and not to larger centres. I think he would tell him that he doesn’t appreciate the government competing with him in the whole selling of the mobile home business. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as the Minister responsible for economic development, for fair business practice, for fairness of all in Cabinet, how can he justify the government continuing to waive their own policy in spending $2.5 million? How can he justify that, Mr. Speaker?

Mr. Speaker, I think the Minister should realize the fact that three teachers are sharing a mobile home in Fort Good Hope says that the costs were not brought down. Why else would they have to share the unit, Mr. Speaker? It does not address the problem of lack of housing and it seems that this government applies BIP to communities, but not to businesses in Yellowknife. That’s another topic that I’m going to address at another time. Mr. Speaker, the point is, this is not addressing what the government intended to do and the Minister is not willing to consider any other suggestions and look...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, if the Minister is stating because of the needs of housing in the North that the government wants to provide housing by way of purchasing mobile homes and that is the government policy, let’s have a debate on that. This is a total backdoor way of breaking all the rules, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I want to remind the Minister and the government that this policy was extraordinary. It waived the BIP and it undertook having mobile homes instead of building stick-built homes. The government had an onus to meet that this was going to work, and so far it hasn...