Tom Beaulieu

Could the Minister advise me if there are any plans for renovation, retrofit or replacement of the schools in Fort Resolution, Deninu Ku’e School or Lutselk’e?

Mr. Speaker, can the Minister tell me if my communities of Fort Resolution and Lutselk’e would be impacted by the addition of special constables?

Mahsi Cho, Mr. Speaker. Today I talked about the RCMP Special Constable program. I would like to follow up my statements with questions for the Minister of Justice. Can the Minister of Justice tell me: what is the status of his discussions, if any, at the most recent federal/provincial/territorial Justice Ministers meeting with respect to aboriginal policing and special constables work?

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I move to report progress.

Motion carried.

Mr. Speaker, can the Minister advise this House exactly when the next needs survey will be completed? When can we advise communities of the results of the next needs survey?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. [English translation not provided.]

Today I’d like to talk about housing policies, the changes needed to housing policies and how the window for accessing housing policies is too narrow for non-market communities.

All too often my constituents fail to meet criteria for housing programs. The NWT Housing Corporation is trying to make people eligible for programs as opposed to making programs that fit the people. We have empty units now that are being sold on the open market. The NWT Housing Corporation has failed my constituents by putting houses in place for people in need...

Could I get a quick explanation of what the process is to determine lease versus build?

Mr. Speaker, I’m glad the Minister is prepared to review this policy. The high price of gas is having an immediate impact on our harvesters. We have mineral exploration resource development, hydro expansion, tourism; even global warming has an impact on wildlife. My Tu Nedhe riding is being hit from all sides. I would like to ask the Minister if he will commit during the review to help develop a traditional harvester strategy for Tu Nedhe communities.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. On October 8 I talked about the importance of traditional foods and how the high cost of living is impacting the practice of harvesting traditional foods. I would like to follow up my statement today with questions for the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment.

Mr. Speaker, can the Minister tell this House what programs, if any, this department currently has in place to assist subsistence hunters, not trappers, with traditional harvesting activities?

Mr. Speaker, can the Minister advise this House if he’s willing to look at an allocation model that is based on percentage of need, and not on the number of people who need housing, community by community — in effect, allocating to communities most in need?