Tom Beaulieu

I’m seeing a drop there. For the $8.5 million, does it look like this year for 2010-2011 ending March 31, 2011, if the entire $8.5 million will be spent on home repairs?

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Committee wishes to continue with Tabled Document 133-16(5), NWT Main Estimates, 2011-12, and deal with the Housing Corporation.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Again, that’s positive. I think that’s in the right direction. There seems to be some good planning, I guess, going on for future needs and I’m talking about trades, although I’m ultimately trying to get some apprenticeships. Will the Minister commit to developing an overall plan for trades and apprenticeships, for both, to address the total needs of all trades requirements in the NWT including government and private industry? Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I’m trying to get the appropriate department, I guess, to start looking at employment rates. It’s very difficult to kind of place this issue, like the Minister responded, on one department. I’m also trying to find some sort of champion, I guess, from Cabinet to be able to lead something like this. Again, I want to ask the Minister if he knows, if the Minister or the department knows what industry needs for the demand of trades personnel are in the Northwest Territories. Thank you.

Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. [English translation not provided.]

Mr. Speaker, today I would like to speak about the Apprenticeship Program and its impact on small communities. In our small communities we have to bring trades personnel in to do work on our units and on our buildings. This is due to the lack of trades personnel at the community level.

Mr. Speaker, this is not to say we have no tradespeople at all, we do have a few, but much more is needed. For now, every tradesperson in a small community should have an apprentice working with them. In a community such as Fort Resolution and Lutselk’e...

Does that include the CMHC programs? I’m wondering if those are aside from the overall reduction. I’m wondering if the CMHC money comes separately, as far as CMHC repair programs go, as indicated in this book.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I am just not sure if this is exactly the same question that Mr. Bromley asked, but I wanted to have a little more information on the reduction of CARE and CMHC repair programs. I recognize that maybe the CMHC repair programs are just simply not getting the money from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. Overall, I notice that the CARE has gone from about $2 million to almost $4 million to over $8 million and back down to under about $5.6 million. I just want an explanation as to why the repair budget for homeownership was taken down that much.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I too will be supporting the motion. I think it’s very important. I have stood up in the House many, many times to talk about the low employment rates in the communities. The GNWT has responded to provide an employment program that’s gone into our base that will continue on. A program such as that could support this program, and these programs could work together and be very positive for the economy in the small communities. Obviously I support it.

I think also not only the employment but all the positive aspects that result from people being employed, people being...

Staying with the needs survey, I’m wondering if the Minister is looking at the need incidences, and by that I’m referring to affordability, adequacy and suitability. I’m assuming that we address suitability by adding bedrooms. By adding bedrooms I mean adding units. I’m assuming we address adequacy by fixing houses. I’m assuming we fix affordability by providing affordable housing. So I’m wondering if the needs survey document or this corporation is using its own needs survey document to ensure that they’re addressing suitability issues with the appropriate resources and adequacy issues with...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I think my biggest concern now for the future of social housing is the CMHC declining fund. To me, it doesn’t appear as though the federal government... Basically from their position on their stance seems to be that they are into providing short-term stimulus-type money or short-term affordable housing strategy types of money because they seem to get a better bang for that buck than they would to continue long-term investment in housing. It is long-term investment in housing, I think, is something that has been in place. It was agreed to some time ago that the federal...