Robert Hawkins

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In May of 2001, the Premier of the day then tasked a steering committee to develop a partnership that would work on the issue of disabilities to promote inclusion of persons throughout the Northwest Territories through their disabilities. With that task force, they devolved through their Disability Steering Committee, they developed a partnership that identified five key areas, and I suspect my good colleague to my left, Ms. Bisaro, will be referring to them as well.

Under education: ensuring the…(inaudible)…free lifelong learning opportunities that maximize the...

I guess I go to the Minister and, hopefully, maybe if he doesn’t want to answer, maybe the other Minister will answer it, or somebody will take responsibility for it, which is: Who can confirm or commit to the House that there will be a competitive process in this particular initiative?

Thank you very much. Sorry to compare the two projects, but of course the Inuvik-Tuk Highway had a hard number, as well, and we’re having a hard time swallowing that one too. So I fully agree and think it’s fair that if we change the scope midway through where circumstances beyond control gives us the chance, but again, those are things we’ll have to deal with, or somebody will have to deal with as time goes on.

The only thing I want to say is I want to reiterate the two comments I made at the very beginning of the statement, which were the new building, I’m very glad with that process. It’s...

Thank you. Anything new almost sounded exactly as what’s been said before. So, I guess there’s really nothing new per se.

What is the change to our complement of the staffing levels that we will experience in the new facility? Could the Minister, maybe not this present second per se, give me the exact number, but what’s the ballpark number we’re working with at Stanton and what is the ballpark staffing complement number we’ll need for the updated facility? Thank you.

Territorial-wide, territorial-wide, the growth in five years in seniors is going to be at 150 percent. All the beds that have been created today and all the beds they think that they’re going to create tomorrow still won’t meet that demand. The Minister can say we’re going to shuffle seniors around the room, around the territory to solve the problem. It is not meeting the challenge.

Will the Minister just be honest in this House to say are they going to make an agreement with Avens and when, because they cannot wait any longer. I can’t wait any longer. The seniors can’t wait any longer. As I...

It couldn’t be said better than by the Canadian Medical Association president, Cindy Forbes. She talks about the growing rate of seniors. She also references the cost, where it costs $1,000 a day, on average, in Canada to hospitalize and hold seniors. Whereas if you find partners like Avens, it comes at a fraction of that price. She estimates average cost in Canada at fifty. Now, I know these are southern costs, but the ratio is the point, not the actual dollar number. Why is the government not realizing that?

My next question is: When will this government be willing to finally step up and...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. They’ve been recognized a few times, but I certainly wouldn’t mind underscoring it just one more time at least a little further. I’d like to recognize Deputy Minister Arsenault. I’ve gotten to know him over the last few years. I really admire his hard work. He’s had a great relationship with the Northwest Territories and I’m very thankful that we have someone in the Yukon who understands our problems as we learn about theirs. I couldn’t think of a better team to take on the challenges in Ottawa than our good folks in the gallery here today, so thank you for your...

I hear the Minister but I worry he’s not hearing me. The issue is it’s not about Avens and if the government decides to contract directly with Avens for services for the extended care level 5 beds. Albeit it’s not as if it’s a competitive market in the city where we’ve got 50 seniors’ agencies scrambling at the door saying we want a chance. We really have one. Sorry; two. I should say it this way. You have Avens and you have the Government of the Northwest Territories. You have one or the other who wants to take on the challenge.

That isn’t the issue, and I want to be very clear, but the...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I’m not going to belabour this section very long. I just need to clarify a particular thing under the extended care 18-bed facility being anticipated to be here in Yellowknife. One of the particular issues that has arisen is the competitiveness of these opportunities.

Can I get the Minister’s commitment to this House that it will be a competitive tender process whether is it developed through a partnership with Avens or it’s developed as a government project or some other way? The point is, I want to ensure that this extended care facility is an open and competitive...

It was reported on CBC North, and I thought it was an interesting comment, and not just a plug for CBC North on at six o’clock with Randy Henderson – Randy can thank me later; I’m waiting for his Tweet – that said, in all seriousness, the Ontario Auditor General had pointed out performance problems with the contractor as basically the lead of this initiative. I mean, in essence it really talked about probably cost creep, although I haven’t had a chance to read the report, I certainly will be looking towards it later on. In essence, the performance of these two hospitals that were built in...