Wendy Bisaro

Mr. Chair, thanks to the Minister for the response. I do appreciate it. I think other Members also appreciate the information we have gotten from the corporation. We have had updates quite regularly and that has been very helpful.

I guess my thinking of a plan is the Minister said in his remarks that this budget has a million dollars in it to offset declining CMHC funding for 2013-14. What I would like to see as opposed to the initiatives that the corporation has planned, because I know that they are there, I would like to see the dollars that are associated with these initiatives that will say...

With regard to the Energy Plan, I too have concerns. We have been putting money into NT Energy Corporation as a corporation. The government has been putting money into NT Energy Corporation for quite some time. I appreciate that the department wants to focus on hydro and hydro initiatives but I’m quite concerned that we’ve been giving up money, so to speak, and not seeing anything for it. We haven’t had any results since I don’t know when it was. How many years ago now? There was a plan to have a transmission line go from south of the lake up to the mines and that now has been put aside and we...

That’s good. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thanks, Mr. Chair. Just one more question, I guess. Also, by way of explanation, I’m not suggesting that we should close down these subsidiaries. I recognize they are businesses which are operating and they are providing an economic source within many of our communities. But if they are a business which is in operation within a community, I struggle to understand why we need so many staff at BDIC to monitor, so to speak, these organizations. I think I will pursue, with the Minister, a meeting with BDIC and see which committee it needs to go to and when. That’s all. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I’m not sure I really understood the Minister’s answer. Reaching out. I guess I appreciate that. When the Minister said external, I wonder if he could expand on what he meant by “external” in his last answer.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I just have one question here. It is under the mobile and computer equipment line item. There is $425,000 in 2012-13 and nothing in 2013-14, so what are we not doing? Thank you.

Thanks to Mr. Vician for the explanation. I appreciate the descriptions, but I have to say that I fail to understand why we could not administer both of these programs from one place, why we need to have staff in two places basically providing funds to businesses within the NWT, albeit the criteria are slightly different. I feel that there’s some economy that can be had here, and I would seriously encourage the department to look at reducing the staff between both ITI and BDIC, not by kicking people out of a job but through attrition, because there’s always an opportunity to reduce our...

Thanks to the Minister for his response, though I would have to infer from that response that, no, our current formula does not recognize that we have some students who have much higher needs than others and, therefore, the board requires much more funding. I’m pleased to hear the Minister state that there’s going to be a review. I think part of the educational review initiative or renewal initiative, I guess it’s called, is going to include looking at the Inclusive Schooling Policy and, I think, also the funding.

I’d like to know from the Minister, when that review is being done, will it...

Thanks to the Minister. So to the question of when an evaluation might be done with some kind of an update back to Members. Thank you.

Thanks to the Minister for that. I guess in looking at this page, there’s $3.754 million that this government gives to the BDIC, and if the Minister does not have any opportunity to have more input than just having a chat with the board, I’m a little concerned about that. I would think that if we are funding the organization, we should be able to have a bit more input and direction given to the board about what they do with the money that we’re giving them.

So in regard to the $3.7 million for ‘13-14 that is scheduled to be given to BDIC, I’d like to know how much of that is admin, how much of...