Indigenous and Northern Affairs Committee on Dec. 3rd, 2012

[Blake Richards, Conservative, Wild Rose, AB]

That's excellent, because I have a couple of further questions and wanted to make sure there was going to be time.

You focused quite a bit in your response on the waste water parts, and that's certainly appreciated. One of the key priorities of our government, though, has been addressing safe drinking water and making sure that all first nations communities have safe drinking water.

Could you elaborate a bit on that particular aspect of it, on how this $136 million will help to contribute towards what our government is doing to ensure that there's safe drinking water in those communities?

[John Duncan, Conservative, Vancouver Island North, BC]

Yes, certainly.

I think we made some very nice progress here. The percentage of first nation systems that have operators certified to the level of the drinking water systems has increased from 51% to 60%. One of the difficulties is that you train operators in these systems and they are poached, because they're in demand, by other institutions, organizations, municipalities, and so on. In any case, we're on the right track.

The proportion certified on waste water systems—and I know you want to talk about drinking water—has increased from 42% of operators to 54%. During the time since the national assessment, the percentage of high-risk water systems has decreased by 8.1%, and the percentage of high-risk waste water systems has decreased by 2.1%. In all cases, we're heading in the right direction.

We'll make more dramatic results with operator training. That's where much of the risk is, so we're going to be focused on that. We have all the systems and training programs and circuit riders in place now. We just need to get the certification process taken care of, at which time we'll start to see risk ratings really improve.

[Blake Richards, Conservative, Wild Rose, AB]

Thank you.

Can you tell me when our government expects to have finished our work of bringing first nations water and waste water systems up to standard?

[John Duncan, Conservative, Vancouver Island North, BC]

That's a very good question.

From 2006 to 2014 we will have invested more than $3 billion in this project. We need Bill S-8. This is why we introduced Bill S-8, the Safe Drinking Water for First Nations Act. As we build capacity in first nations and as we continue to improve everywhere, we need national standards, or regionally sensitive standards but national legislation, to deal with all this.

We will get to a steady state on required investment at some point. I'm not sure when that will be. We'll obviously need another pretty comprehensive assessment at some point.

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

Thank you, Minister.

We'll turn now to Mr. Genest-Jourdain for five minutes.

[Jonathan Genest-Jourdain, NDP, Manicouagan, QC]

Monsieur le ministre, how much of the requested allocation of $46 million will be directed to the development of systems and supports and how much will be directed to support the construction and renovation of schools on reserves?

Also, what percentage of the total capital spending needed for school facilities construction is represented by this amount in the estimates?

Finally, how many first nations communities are awaiting construction of new schools, and how many first nation schools are identified as requiring major repairs?

[John Duncan, Conservative, Vancouver Island North, BC]

You always ask the most complicated questions.

I thought I had broken the $46 million down in my introductory remarks. You're talking about money that was going to school infrastructure in the amount of about $25 million, and then about $20 million to education readiness, of which $15 million was for the student success program and $5 million was for partnerships.

It is an accounting balancing act when you get into school infrastructure. Up until now, anyway, we've been on a cash basis when building schools. We're on a cash basis for every phase leading up to construction—the design and so on—and you don't spend all of a school's component in one fiscal year, so I can't answer your question as to how much is for construction, how much is for design, and how much is for the other phases.

Perhaps the deputy has an answer.

[Michael Wernick]

I think we would have to follow up in writing, Mr. Chair. Sometimes they are renovations—expanding a gym, making sure the washrooms are retrofitted in a building that's acquired, generally making the building serviceable—and sometimes they are new build projects.

We have more than 80 school projects under way across the country right now. I'd be happy to provide a list. They range from the very large new builds in northern Ontario that the minister mentioned to the simple retrofitting of washrooms to make sure that a school can be expanded.

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

Go ahead, Mr. Genest-Jourdain.

[Jonathan Genest-Jourdain, NDP, Manicouagan, QC]

How much time do I have left, Mr. Chair?

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

There's about two minutes remaining for questions.

[Jonathan Genest-Jourdain, NDP, Manicouagan, QC]

Mr. Minister, since we are now reviewing your department's expenditures in relation to the supplementary estimates (B), would you be ready to provide the Parliamentary Budget Officer with the details of the cuts in your department?

[John Duncan, Conservative, Vancouver Island North, BC]

We have provided a lot of information to the Parliamentary Budget Officer. As far as I know, we've responded to his questions. I have a list somewhere here of all of the material we provided to him. It's very comprehensive.

[Michael Wernick]

If it is helpful, Mr. Chairman, we posted on the website, as most departments did, all of the financial information.

[Jonathan Genest-Jourdain, NDP, Manicouagan, QC]

I am sorry, but I have to interrupt you.

I am going to move a motion asking the following: “That the Committee call on the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development to commit to providing the PBO with the information requested on the cuts in his department”.

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

Thank you.

It's fine to table it with the committee, but that motion doesn't coincide with the subject material that's at hand, because, of course, those would be reflected in the main estimates, not in the supplementary estimates.

We'll take this into consideration, and 48 hours' notice will be required for it.

Go ahead, Ms. Crowder.

[Jean Crowder, NDP, Nanaimo—Cowichan, BC]

As a point of order, Mr. Chair, I think it actually is directly related to the supplementary estimates because of the spending review.

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

That's not a point of order, but for clarification, that isn't actually composed—

[Jean Crowder, NDP, Nanaimo—Cowichan, BC]

I think it's a point of order, because he was saying that you're dealing with it here—

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

It doesn't fall under supplementary estimates (B). If you can provide to me which estimate it would fall under, we could have a discussion.

This effort has been undertaken in other committees by members of the New Democratic Party. This is the same ruling as every single other committee has been given, so I think there is precedent with regard to this, and clarification has been brought to the members of the New Democratic Party with regard to it.

Your time is up, Mr. Genest-Jourdain. We'll turn to our next questioner.

Go ahead, Mr. Wilks.

[David Wilks, Conservative, Kootenay—Columbia, BC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Minister, for being here today.

I have three questions for you with regard to your opening remarks, which I'd like you to elaborate a little more on; then we'll move from there.

The first is with regard to the $125.6 million allocated in supplementary estimates (B) for the continued implementation of the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement. As you're aware, St. Eugene Mission is within my area. You were out there this summer and saw that this former residential school has been changed into a hotel and casino, which is quite impressive.

Could you speak to the supplementary estimates (B) and the $125.6 million?

[John Duncan, Conservative, Vancouver Island North, BC]

Okay.

We're all aware, but need to be reminded, that the implementation plan for the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement began on September 19, 2007. We have just passed the five-year mark. We have been diligently fulfilling our commitments and obligations under the court-ordered settlement agreement. That includes the common experience payment, the independent assessment process, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, the commemoration, and the measures to support healing.

In September of this year we allocated $725.6 million over four years for the continued implementation of the settlement agreement. That was to cover my department, Health Canada, and the RCMP. My department was allocated $125.6 million for 2012-13 to address the unanticipated complexity of the common experience payment, the higher volume of the independent assessment process, and some other commitments. Those include processing requests and appeals to the National Administration Committee and to the courts, enabling the Indian Residential School Adjudication Secretariat and the department to continue processing independent assessment claims and supporting our legal obligation to disclose all relevant documents to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

[David Wilks, Conservative, Kootenay—Columbia, BC]

Thank you very much, Minister.

Further to that, one of the things you mentioned just after the Indian residential school settlement was $124 million with regard to the independent assessment process and the alternative dispute resolution. I wonder if you could expand upon that a little further.

[John Duncan, Conservative, Vancouver Island North, BC]

Do you mean the process?

[David Wilks, Conservative, Kootenay—Columbia, BC]

Yes.