Robert Hawkins

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. First off I’ll say I’m glad to see two energy statements in regards to the concerns by the Ministers read into the record today, because that will be very important later. Although I have to tell you, Mr. Speaker, I’m not old enough to have experienced the telex, Morse code, or other things like that…

---Laughter

…like Mr. Braden has. I can tell you my TV, cell phone and Internet generation has seen significant climate changes and concerns that we see today. My Member’s statement today, then, Mr. Speaker, as you’ve probably guessed, is about core funding for the Arctic...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. First off I’ll say I’m glad to see two energy statements in regards to the concerns by the Ministers read into the record today, because that will be very important later. Although I have to tell you, Mr. Speaker, I’m not old enough to have experienced the telex, Morse code, or other things like that…

---Laughter

…like Mr. Braden has. I can tell you my TV, cell phone and Internet generation has seen significant climate changes and concerns that we see today. My Member’s statement today, then, Mr. Speaker, as you’ve probably guessed, is about core funding for the Arctic...

Thank you, Madam Chair. I will be voting with the motion to delete that amount. What concerns me on this is it seems like a lot of money for investigation to a problem that I am not sure is our fault. The bottom line is if we have assumed an asset through whatever process, did we assume the liability with that knowingly? If we did, I guess we are on the hook for this money. On the hook, I should say, for the cleanup. As far as I am concerned, I don’t think that’s been satisfied at this stage to say that it should be our fault. I think this should be taken back through proper channels to our...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am glad to hear that the Minister is talking to YACCS through correspondence, as he pointed out. I am glad he mentioned business plans are coming forward to address forced growth problems. So going back to the $500,000 gap, Mr. Speaker, and the Minister is well versed in this so we don’t have to go into too much detail, can the Minister lay out some of the plans to meet wage parity in this upcoming business plan? What is the mandate he is giving his department to address this problem? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In my Member’s statement today, I talked about the government’s obvious undervalue of service agencies by not allowing these organizations like YACCS to pay their employees fair marketing competitive market wages, Mr. Speaker. My questions are directed to the Minister of Health and Social Services. What is the Minister prepared to do to assist YACCS and other organizations like them to ensure that they are able to offer competitive and attractive salaries and compensation packages to hire and keep trained staff in order to continue the high quality of essential...

Thank you, colleagues, and thank you, Minister Miltenberger. I can see you wanting to nay this. Mr. Speaker, the truth is, we have to start honing up to our responsibility. The concern is out there; we have no options. I expect nothing less than swift action from this Minister of Health and Social Services, because the continued survival of YACCS and other NGOs just like them are the backbone of our social infrastructure.

Mr. Speaker, in closing here, this is something that has been a serious concern of mine, but I have to tell you it’s been a serious concern of those directly affected for...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. It’s given me a lot to think about. If you treat it as a renovation over the long term, it sounds like a different approach. I was concerned that we were initially going to spend $3.5 million, have to throw it away and in three years we would have to walk away from our investment. I think that’s where the concern really comes from and I am sure Members on this side of the House would see it that way if we would completely have to walk away from $3.5 million, because I don’t know how anyone on this side of the House can spend $3.5 million for three years and walk away...

Mr. Chairman, I just have a question. How much money would be required to approve this in order to create a full renovation plan that would satisfy the needs of the fire marshal? Would it require, for example, $100,000 plan in order to satisfy the fire marshal on an interim basis while a strategy comes forward to renovate the whole facility? As I clearly heard here, $12 million would buy us a smaller facility, $10 to $12 million would buy us full reno on this building. Money has to be spent to tear down the siding, ripping down the insulation anyway, so it’s like we would breathe new life into...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I appreciate the stand the Minister has made, but I’d still like to know what the cost would be to tear that building down and has there been a full environmental assessment of that building, recognizing that it’s probably full of asbestos and lead paint and who knows what else? To add to that question I’d asked earlier, what class of estimate was this $3.5 million pegged at? Was it a class A, class B, class C, or even a class D? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I know this is not an easy decision and it really does impact the community. It’s a very important building, it’s a community building. I know the building extremely well and I realize the importance of it. I was there in Fort Simpson not that long ago and I got to walk through it again and see the day care and the important infrastructure that it provides to the community and you can definitely realize how critical it is to the community. I shouldn’t just say Fort Simpson, I should call it the community at large.

The trouble is, are we giving value to the community? I...