Tom Beaulieu

I would just make a comment, not to the Minister of Housing but probably to the Minister of Human Resources. If this continues to be an issue, offer this benefit to people provided they are prepared to go into non-market communities. I could never understand how this was an issue. If it is considered a subsidy by people in non-market communities, or anywhere for that matter, then offer that to them provided they are prepared to work in a non-market community where this type of subsidy viewed as a subsidy is being offered. Thank you. That is just a comment.

On the housing for staff, I guess I should just talk about my scenario. In both communities they have capable contractors or capable contractors can be brought into the community to build housing for staff. Would this budget be available for not only leveraging or financing, but also for providing equity to individuals? The problem with building staff housing is that your capital carrying costs are so high in non-market communities that is not feasible unless the staff is prepared to pay a large amount of rent per month. Usually these are rented to teachers who only need to rent 10 months of...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Just quickly. I will be supporting the motion. I think that if the laptops could make work easier for some of the Members in the House, doing Member’s statements on the laptop or whatever; it is to do some work in here as they wish to do. I have no problem with that. I am not sure that it would be disruptive. It may. I support it because it is for this session only. I think that if, like I said, it can make people’s work easier, than I am in favour of that. Thank you.

I’d like to thank the Minister for that response. I recognize that we’re just going through the budget process now; however, I’m interested in seeing if the Minister can commit to adding more money that’s targeted directly to the communities in the area of environmental monitoring.

Mr. Speaker, today in my Member’s statement I spoke of the need to have environmental monitoring in the Tu Nedhe area around Lutselk’e and Fort Resolution. I have questions for the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources. I would like to ask him if he could tell me if ENR has allocated any money in the area of environmental monitoring that could be transferred directly to the communities. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Again, I don’t have a whole lot to add to it. I think the majority of what had to be said here has been said. I think this will also help the government, because allowing more people into homeownership does create a bit of a market. A better private market we have in all of our communities, the better off we all are.

As people know in the Housing Corporation, communities with markets have much lower needs, on a percentage basis, than non-market communities. Some of the communities where there is absolutely no market, the needs are very high to extremely high. If this...

Mr. Speaker, today I would like to talk about the need to deliver environmental monitoring programs for residents of Fort Resolution and Lutselk’e. Mr. Speaker, Lutselk’e is a small, isolated community located on the East Arm of the Great Slave Lake. It is right in the heart of the proposed new national park and sees a lot of resource exploration. Fort Resolution is situated on the south shore of the Great Slave Lake near the mouths of the Slave and Taltson rivers, both of which have been impacted by hydro and tar sands projects and is a close neighbour to the former lead/zinc mine in Pine...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I move that this committee strongly recommends that the Housing Corporation take immediate and comprehensive action to assess all housing association programs with a view to increasing the income thresholds that are used to determine client access to the various housing programs; and further, that the Housing Corporation establish reasonable income thresholds that better reflect the current state of the northern economy particularly the high cost of living in small communities and that the programs be designed to address affordability, suitability and adequacy of...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I seek unanimous consent to return to item 20.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. This is something I was going to ask later on but I can’t really find a better place. I suppose this might be on the debt repayment; that might be the spot to do it. As we all know, we are dealing with a declining fund from CMHC. I’m wondering if the Housing Corporation has developed a strategy on how they’re going to address the issue of the loss of O and M dollars as the loan gets paid off. Are you going to reduce the amount of public housing? Are you going to take money from capital and put it into O and M or ask this Assembly for more money to continue to...