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YELLOWKNIFE, NORTHWEST TERRITORIES
Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly
4th SessionDay 3615th Assembly
HANSARD
Friday, February 24, 2006
Pages 1329 - 1368
The Honourable Paul Delorey, Speaker
Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories
Members of the Legislative Assembly
Speaker
Hon. Paul Delorey
(Hay River North)
Hon. Brendan Bell
(Yellowknife South)
Minister of Justice
Minister of Industry, Tourism
and Investment
Mr. Bill Braden
(Great Slave)
Hon. Charles Dent
(Frame Lake)
Government House Leader
Minister of Education, Culture and Employment
Minister responsible for the
Status of Women
Minister responsible for the
Workers' Compensation Board
Mrs. Jane Groenewegen
(Hay River South)
Hon. Joe Handley
(Weledeh)
Premier
Minister of the Executive
Minister of Aboriginal Affairs
Minister responsible for Intergovernmental Affairs
Minister responsible for the
Intergovernmental Forum
Mr. Robert Hawkins
(Yellowknife Centre)
Hon. David Krutko
(Mackenzie-Delta)
Minister responsible for the
NWT Housing Corporation
Minister responsible for the
NWT Power Corporation
Mr. Jackson Lafferty
(Monfwi)
Ms. Sandy Lee
(Range Lake)
Hon. Michael McLeod
(Deh Cho)
Minister of Transportation
Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs
Minister responsible for the
Public Utilities Board
Minister responsible for Youth
Mr. Robert McLeod
(Inuvik Twin Lakes)
Mr. Kevin Menicoche
(Nahendeh)
Hon. J. Michael Miltenberger
(Thebacha)
Minister of Health and Social Services
Minister of Environment and Natural Resources
Minister responsible for Persons with Disabilities
Minister responsible for Seniors
Mr. Calvin Pokiak
(Nunakput)
Mr. David Ramsay
(Kam Lake)
Hon. Floyd Roland
(Inuvik Boot Lake)
Deputy Premier
Minister of Finance
Minister responsible for the Financial Management Board Secretariat
Minister of Public Works and Services
Mr. Robert Villeneuve
(Tu Nedhe)
Mr. Norman Yakeleya
(Sahtu)
Officers
Clerk of the Legislative Assembly
Mr. Tim Mercer
Deputy ClerkClerk of CommitteesAssistant ClerkLaw Clerks
Mr. Doug SchauerteMr. Andrew StewartMr. Darrin OuelletteMr. Glen Boyd
Ms. Kelly Payne
Box 1320
Yellowknife, Northwest Territories
Tel: (867) 669-2200 Fax: (867) 920-4735 Toll-Free: 1-800-661-0784
http://www.assembly.gov.nt.ca
Published under the authority of the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PRAYER1329
MINISTERS' STATEMENTS1329
81-15(4) - Implementation of New Digital Drivers' Licences1329
82-15(4) - Human Resource Services Amalgamation Update1329
MEMBERS' STATEMENTS1330
Mr. Pokiak on Recognition of the Mangilaluk School Boys Basketball Team's Participation at
Cager Basketball Tournament 1330
Mr. Robert McLeod on Northern Leadership Must be United on Resource Revenue Sharing Issues1330
Mr. Menicoche on Appreciation for Dedicated Health Care Staff in the NWT1331
Mr. Braden on Progress on NWT Action Plan for Persons with Disabilities1331
Hon. Michael McLeod on Recognition of Laurie-Anne Fabien, Page at the Legislative Assembly1331
Mr. Villeneuve on Funding Levels for Community Justice Committees1332
Mr. Hawkins on Recommendations of the Final Report on the Liquor Act Review1332
Mr. Lafferty on Elders' Senior Facility in Behchoko1333
Mrs. Groenewegen on Maximizing the Benefits of Northern Strategy Funding for Communities1333
Mr. Ramsay on the Perpetual Planning Department of Health and Social Services1334
Mr. Yakeleya on Addictions and Mental Wellness Needs in the NWT1334
Ms. Lee on WCB Assessment Rates and Franchises in the NWT1334
RECOGNITION OF VISITORS IN THE GALLERY1335
ORAL QUESTIONS1335
WRITTEN QUESTIONS1345
REPORTS OF STANDING AND SPECIAL COMMITTEES1346
REPORTS OF COMMITTEES ON THE REVIEW OF BILLS1366
TABLING OF DOCUMENTS1348
CONSIDERATION IN COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE OF BILLS AND OTHER MATTERS1348
REPORT OF COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE1366
ORDERS OF THE DAY1366
ii
YELLOWKNIFE, NORTHWEST TERRITORIES
Friday, February 24, 2006
Members Present
Honourable Brendan Bell, Mr. Braden, Honourable Paul Delorey, Honourable Charles Dent, Mrs. Groenewegen, Mr. Hawkins, Honourable David Krutko, Mr. Lafferty, Ms. Lee, Honourable Michael McLeod, Mr. McLeod, Mr. Menicoche, Honourable Michael Miltenberger, Mr. Pokiak, Mr. Ramsay, Honourable Floyd Roland, Mr. Villeneuve, Mr. Yakeleya
February 24, 2006NORTHWEST TERRITORIES HANSARDPage 1351
ITEM 1: PRAYER
---Prayer
SPEAKER (Hon. Paul Delorey): Good morning, colleagues. Welcome back to the House. Orders of the day. Ministers statements. The honourable Minister for Transportation, Mr. McLeod.
ITEM 2: MINISTERS STATEMENTSMinisters Statement 81-15(4): Implementation Of New Digital Drivers' Licences
HON. MICHAEL MCLEOD: Mr. Speaker, since the events of September 11, 2001, the Department of Transportation and all North American jurisdictions have participated with the Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators and the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators to development new national standards with respect to drivers' licences and identification cards.
Mr. Speaker, the current NWT drivers licence was developed 15 years ago and does not meet the current standards for document security. I am pleased to advise that the Department of Transportation will be introducing a new secure digital drivers licence this year. We are working with Canadian Bank Note, a world-renowned company, to develop an NWT digital drivers licence. This licence will be fully compliant with the new national standards and will feature the latest advancements in security measures.
We are developing a plan to introduce this licence in a seamless and effective manner. It is our intent to ensure everyone needing a licence is given the opportunity to obtain one, even prior to the expiry of old licences. The routine of obtaining a new licence will change in that a temporary licence will be issued and then the new one will be sent in the mail. Written reminders of licence renewal dates will also be sent to drivers in the mail, in advance of licence expiry. We will be visiting every issuing agency to ensure the proper training and equipment is made available. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
---Applause
MR. SPEAKER: Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Ministers statements. The honourable Minister responsible for Financial Management Board, Mr. Roland.
Ministers Statement 82-15(4): Human Resource Services Amalgamation Update
HON. FLOYD ROLAND: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to provide an update on the amalgamation of human resource services.
The decision to amalgamate human resource services into regional service centres was made in August 2004. The actual implementation commenced in May 2005 and continues today as office relocations, recruitment and training proceed. We anticipate that it will be at least another year before implementation activities are completed and we have the staff, organization, business processes and systems operating at the level of efficiency and effectiveness we need. This time frame for full transition was anticipated and is much more ambitious than what other jurisdictions have indicated as their experience with the establishment of service centres.
The amalgamation of human resource services has resulted in the creation of seven full service centres in all regions. Service centres are located in Inuvik. Norman Wells, Behchoko, Fort Simpson, Yellowknife, Hay River and Fort Smith. These service centres are supported by two corporate units, employee relations and corporate human resources. Services that were provided to employees from Yellowknife are now available from the regional service centres in each region.
There were many reasons why we amalgamated human resource functions:
1. to improve consistency and fairness of staffing processes;
2. to improve the quality of service being provided to existing staff;
3. to improve our human resource planning and recruitment and retention strategies in light of national and international labour shortages;
4. to increase our efforts in achieving a representative public service; and
5. to improve our ability to effectively respond to rapid changes driven by globalization, resource development, self-government and technological change.
We knew at the outset that addressing these issues would not be easy and we expected that the change process would be difficult and it would take time to achieve the efficient and effective level of service employees and the public expect.
Staff have worked very hard and faced many challenges and after nine months in operation, we believe we are starting to see progress in the quality and consistency of the human resource services we are providing in following government-wide policies and procedures. Human resources staff are collaborating with managers to meet each departments organizational need while maintai