Wendy Bisaro

Thanks to the Minister for that explanation. It doesn’t really help me much. It’s going to be an awfully long time before we get any money back, but I guess I have to assume that eventually we will get back our $13 million.

I mentioned in my statement that one of the bullets on a presentation that we received some time last year was that there needs to be the GNWT to backstop this project for construction. I’d like to ask the Minister to explain what that means. Are we providing a financial guarantee to the Taltson Expansion Project? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As we consider the difficulties encountered by the Deh Cho Bridge Project and the resulting financial implications for this government, my mind cannot help but jump to another large project that this government is involved in. Of course, I speak of the Taltson Hydro Expansion Project. I, too, will weigh in on this subject today.

We MLAs have had quite a few briefings and updates on the Taltson project over the last two years that I’ve been here. As I cleaned up my office last week I found a few of those update documents. Interesting reading, they were. As mentioned by Mr...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I am in support of this motion. We’ve talked a lot about this particular project, certainly in the last day and a half. The impacts of the recent events regarding this particular project are many, and they are far-reaching, and I think they are well known to all of us.

I’d like to thank my colleagues for bringing this motion forward. I have spoken earlier about the need for an audit of the Deh Cho Bridge Project, and I think this goes a bit beyond that. We’re formally asking the Auditor General to do that for us. I think everyone in the House knows that...

That’s kind of a damning statistic, if one has to wait a year to get into general surgery. I know that actually our wait times in the NWT are probably better than in some of the provinces in the South.

To the Minister, I understand that we have a policy that if we have a specialist in the NWT -- this is what my constituent ran into -- we have orthopaedic surgeons within the NWT and even though it’s a year or 18 months to wait for surgery or a particular injury in this case, if we have a specialist here, our patients cannot be referred to the South. So I’d like to ask the Minister whether or not...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are addressed to the Minister of Health and Social Services. I hope the Minister has recovered from my apparent attack yesterday and is willing to give me some answers on wait times, which was actually my intent yesterday.

I know that we have significant wait times for specialist doctors, but I would like to know from the Minister whether or not we have identified standards for wait times both in Canada and in the NWT.

One last question, I guess. I understand that we currently have a Deh Cho Bridge Fund and I mentioned in my remarks that I think we ought to keep the project costs for this particular project separate from the costs of sort of regular Department of Transportation costs. I wonder if the Minister of Transportation could advise whether or not that is something he would consider and if he would commit to do that. Thank you.

Thanks for that. My next question has to do with I believe a stated commitment by at least one or both Ministers to ensure that, I think I heard in remarks earlier today that we will ensure that future governments will not be able to enter into large projects or agreements on large projects towards the end of any Assembly’s term. I just wondered if either the Premier or, I guess the Premier, could advise how he intends to make sure that that doesn’t happen. Thank you.

I still didn’t hear a number for O and M costs, but I’ll just choose to carry on.

I have another question and it was mentioned, I believe, by the Minister earlier in reference to the fact that this is, was, a P3 project. Quite some time ago I believe Members saw a draft of a P3 policy and I was just wondering whether or not that policy is anywhere on our radar going into the future. For any projects of a similar nature, are we going to have a P3 policy which has been approved by this House? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. As stated by Mr. Bromley, at the risk of repeating things I feel that I must make my comments known in terms of this particular supp and how I feel about the bridge.

I stated last month in a statement that I was very disappointed that the supp we had to approve last month was simply confirmation of my doubts about the viability of the whole bridge project. I’ve had concerns since I was first elected to this Assembly. Those concerns, unfortunately, were validated. That was very disappointing, very depressing, I think I stated at the time.

Like Mr. Abernethy, I am...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I think NWT residents are, by and large, a patient lot. It’s not unusual for me to be contacted by a constituent, and with their first breath be advised that they’re not in the habit of contacting an MLA but that they are doing so because they have been pushed far beyond their normal level of patience and understanding. So when this situation occurs, when an individual does contact us and tells us it’s not their normal behaviour, I believe they deserve a reply, and quickly.

But such was not the case for one of my constituents, a constituent who e-mailed a...