Kate Reid

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are for the Minister of Justice. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister explain what mechanisms are in place to address repair and maintenance of tenant units? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, since the election period last fall, I have heard multiple concerns from constituents in my riding with respect to the upkeep of rental units. The recent Northern Housing Report 2023 released by CMHC provides an analysis on market housing in Yellowknife. Rental rates have gone up and 28 percent of families in the city are unable to afford secure, affordable, rental housing.

Mr. Speaker, 18.2 percent of renters in Yellowknife are in core housing need. This means that they are living in units that are unaffordable, unsuitable, or inadequate. I have seen...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. That's okay.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I guess I I'll rephrase what I guess I'm trying to seek which is I do understand that it is for contracts that are based for the full fiscal year, but I'm curious as to whether that contract amount has increased from the previous fiscal year. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Based on his previous answer, I don't think the Minister will commit to what I'm asking but I will ask all the same. Could the Minister commit to provide an interdepartmental response to address tenant concerns with respect to environmental health in tenant units? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thank you to the Minister for that. And, yes, I do realize that the NWT rental office has that capacity but they also, in their annual report, state that the office receives many inquiries from tenants regarding landlord obligations to repair but have little follow through. So my question is can the Minister review the tenant complaint process under the rental office to remove any challenges that tenants face to address landlord obligations to repair? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I would wish to recognize a few different folks. Two of the pages here today are from my riding. That would be Ms. Jack Penny and Hamza Abouhagar, pardon my pronunciation. Thank you for being with us here today.

And also, I would like to recognize my past coworker from environment and climate change, Ms. Tasha Alexie who is here today to hear about the annual report. Thank you for joining us.

Certainly. Thank you, Mr. Chair. So just for clarification, I wanted to say thank you to the Minister, I understand that contract dollars are being represented in these interim estimates as for a full year, which is fine and dandy. I'm just curious if that contract amount for fire suppression, such as aviation contracts, has increased for this year compared to the last? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I was wondering if, similar to my colleague from Yellowknife North's question around ECE, if the dollars for wildlife and forest management are based on previous contracts for fire suppression, aviation contracts, that sort of thing, from the previous year or if there are increases? Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, although I'm sure she's tired of repeating herself, can the Minister of Finance please briefly explain to the House why the GNWT's carbon tax legislative regime is the better option for Northerners? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.