Wendy Bisaro

We need to not only be fair but be seen to be fair. Cabinet must develop a policy and criteria for that policy. In order to qualify for funding, organizations must meet that criteria. Right now, in the absence of any policy and criteria, decisions to fund or not to fund are highly subjective and politically influenced. That is not fair to our hard working NGOs, nor is it fair to our residents who benefit from the NGO’s hard work.

I will have questions for the Premier at a later time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I move that we report progress.

---Carried

Thanks to the Minister. I’m glad to hear the Minister say he’s going to work with the Members, so I look forward to see the results of this committee and what they’re proposing. My question about timing is a little more long term. I realize they may or may not meet while they prepare the results of this meeting held just last month.

Can the Minister tell me what the intention is of the department for his committee on an ongoing basis? Will they meet twice a year, will they meet four times a year, will they meet every two years, et cetera?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have some questions today for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. It has been a bit of an issue for me over my time here to try to advance the issue of minimum wage. So my questions to the Minister are in regard to the latest action, I guess, on the part of the government on minimum wage.

In the spring, in March and May, we had some talk about minimum wage and how to have a considered and constant increase to minimum wage. The Minister talked about establishing a minimum wage committee. My understanding is that that was done in the spring. So I’d like to...

Thanks to the Premier, but I don’t feel that we’re going to have something which Members and/or the public is going to agree with. The Premier said that this is not going to happen again. Well, I have to say that one organization gets lucky and everybody else, too bad, it’s not ever going to happen again.

I need to know from the Premier… He mentioned a number of funds that we give to non-government organizations. What I heard was that these are organizations providing government services. The example that I referenced is an organization that is not providing any government services; it’s not...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want to follow up on my Member’s statement. I have some questions for the Premier today about the lack of a policy for infrastructure contributions to a non-government organization. I mentioned in my statement, the Standing Committee on Social Programs has tried unsuccessfully, several times, to get the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment to take on this task and to bring it forward and we have been rebuffed at least twice. Committee believes really strongly, as I do, that we need a policy.

I would like to first ask the Premier whether or not the Premier and...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Over two years ago, as Members reviewed the 2012-13 capital budget, we debated a $1 million infrastructure contribution to an NGO. As part of the capital budget, Cabinet had proposed this considerable contribution to the Children First Society in Inuvik for a new early childhood care centre. I opposed that project, not because I did not see value in the project, and not because I disagreed with the intent of the building. No, I opposed approving the funding because it was a one-of-a-kind budget item and there was no government policy to guide how this type of...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. We would like to consider Bill 12, An Act to Amend the Education Act, then Bill 22, Bill 26 and Bill 27, if we have time. Sorry, and Committee Report 8-17(4).

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have to say to the Minister I heard the same words from the Minister about, well, we need to do this and we’re going to do this. I heard that many months ago. So I’m not very pleased that we are going to be “starting over again from zero.”

I’d like to ask the Minister how he is going to ensure that the money that is required for specific students gets to those students that need it most? Thank you.

Thanks to the Minister and I absolutely agree with the Minister that this needs to be looked at, but we were told that this was going to be looked at some months ago. The fact that it’s rolled into the Education Renewal Initiative confuses me and makes me somewhat apprehensive. The Minister is tabling that Education Renewal Initiative document this afternoon. So I don’t understand how we can roll the inclusive schooling evaluation into a document that’s about to tabled. Can the Minister explain that? Thank you.