Robert Hawkins

The next question of course is: What have they produced to date? I appreciate the Minister has just pointed out that they have not met, but this Aboriginal strategy must have produced something since its inception.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Today I’d like to raise the issue of the Aboriginal Employment Strategy. That framework was worked on and certainly developed in the last government about three years ago. Like the analogy of fireworks, it came out with a big bang, there was a bit of a fizzle and some oohs and ahs and it sort of disappeared. The question really is: What has happened to the Aboriginal Employment Strategy that was once heralded as a new opportunity to tap into a human resource such as the Aboriginal people that has not been promoted often enough? Thank you.

There is no page for hotel tax.

Thank you, Madam Chair. There is just one of the items that haven't been mentioned as I listened to my colleagues. I won’t spend a lot of time repeating the other items already mentioned, but there were some pretty good ones.

The issue that I noticed had been missed – and if it had been spoken on, I apologize for that description – is hotel tax. We all know it goes through this department. The Hotel Association has been working quite diligently to bring this initiative to the forefront. The fact is the hotel tax, if implemented properly through our Municipal and Community Affairs in partnership...

Thank you. That was a good segue into my next question, which is I’m under the understanding that the advisory committee hasn’t met for almost a year. So if it’s finally back on track or the wheels of this machinery are moving along, what have they actually produced in the last, I’ll call it the term or the inception of the Aboriginal strategy and how much money has been invested to develop what we’re about to hear from the Minister?

Has the Minister or anyone from the department been talking to the City of Yellowknife as a potential partner in this particular initiative? They may not be a cash partner, but they may be able to work in partnership such as the library I mentioned the other day. It’s a project in the not-too-distant future. The City of Yellowknife has always wished to advance that particular one. I can’t speak for them specifically, but that’s the type of partnership I’m talking about. Now, there may be private corporations, but how much investment has the department done on advancing other types of...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The other day in the House during Committee of the Whole, the Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment talked about potential partnerships and things working behind the scenes for the stand-alone Aurora College. I’d like to hear, maybe on the record today, what partners is he working in particular with on this particular project and when can we actually see some real advance on this particular issue. Thank you.

I appreciate that canned answer because it really structures part of the problem. The thing is, the rental office is really meant to be something simple. Somebody can go in, they have a dispute, it’s ruled on one way or the other whether they like it or not. It’s about follow-up and commitment on these particular orders.

We have a situation where the appearance of the order is not complied with and they continue to have trouble with that. That brings us to the question. The rental office has no follow-up power and enforcement power. Why do we need to send people to court? Why don’t we review...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to recognize two constituents in the gallery today as mentioned earlier, Lorraine Phaneuf and Annemieke Mulders, both with the Status of Women. This time, too, Mr. Speaker, I’d like to use this opportunity to recognize the Hay River Grade 6 class. I’ve not seen a better behaved or better dressed group of students in a long time. I think that should be recognized. Lastly, I too would like to acknowledge my colleague Daryl Dolynny’s family who are here for the graduation of his son, Tanner Dolynny. By the way, he’s valedictorian this weekend, so congratulations.

What type of summary information can the Minister actually provide to me, so I can provide to my constituents, on what is actually happening with this project? I mean, every time we bring this particular issue up, to me, all they hear is the discussions that are happening. When I go back to them it doesn’t seem to be a satisfying answer. Will the Minister commit to putting some type of profile onto this project to bring it to fruition, what’s being done and some of what the objectives are and would he be able to do it in a timely way?