Human Resources Committee on March 7th, 2017

[Marie-Christine Vanier]

Thank you.

[Dan Ruimy, Liberal, Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge, BC]

Thank you very much.

Typically, how long are the funding cycles?

[Marie-Christine Vanier]

It was one year.

[Linda Roy Makiuk]

Yearly. They're all yearly.

[Dan Ruimy, Liberal, Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge, BC]

Oh, just yearly?

[Marie-Christine Vanier]

Yes. That's part of the problem because we cannot buy all the material to build a house years before, and we have to wait for the ice levels to go down for the sealift.

Materials are delivered by boat, but the ice has to melt for that to happen. Only then can construction begin.

If we were able to plan longer-term agreements, savings could be made. We could actually buy the materials in advance and start building earlier, without having to wait for the materials to arrive in late June or in July. That would also make it possible to start building.

Permafrost thaw is a problem. Ground warming is very obvious in the great north. When the budget is confirmed only one year in advance, we don't have enough time to build the pads, solidify them during the winter and then begin construction. As a result, after being built on pads, homes shift around. The inside structure of the home gets a bit broken down, and that requires renovations and necessarily implies costs.

[Dan Ruimy, Liberal, Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge, BC]

Thank you.

Is there a lot of home ownership over there?

[Marie-Christine Vanier]

I think there are about a hundred home owners. In my opinion, that program will grow. People are interested in home ownership. We are waiting to see whether the program will be ongoing. What's more, people know that it is one of the most generous programs in North America. Requests are made, but people don't always qualify. We just resolved an issue related to

the leasing of space with northern villages.

[Dan Ruimy, Liberal, Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge, BC]

You mentioned that homes were overfilled with too many people living in them. Do you see home ownership as a way of contributing to solving the poverty cycle in the north?

[Marie-Christine Vanier]

Yes, that is a related approach that will help reduce overcrowding.

[Dan Ruimy, Liberal, Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge, BC]

I'll move to economic development. I'm not sure if you can answer this question. What opportunities are there? It's wonderful if we can figure out the housing piece, but are there opportunities for sustainability through economic development? Can the federal government present ways of improving economic development there?

[Marie-Christine Vanier]

That's a good question.

[Dan Ruimy, Liberal, Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge, BC]

I like to ask good questions.

[Marie-Christine Vanier]

The Province of Quebec is working on the Plan Nord actually, and, of course, there are opportunities. But what are they? I don't really know. I'm more concerned about housing.

[Dan Ruimy, Liberal, Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge, BC]

I'll come to economic development. It is an important question for me because of the issue of sustainability. Everybody deserves to be able to have that good life, but it has to be sustainable.

What types of programs are currently out there? You mentioned the Quebec government. Could you expand a bit more on what its doing to increase economic development and how can we play a role in that?

[Marie-Christine Vanier]

That is a very good question I cannot answer right now. However, I could send you the answer.

[Dan Ruimy, Liberal, Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge, BC]

Last question. You have seniors housing. Are the houses that are being built now for multi-generational families? Or how much input do you actually have into what is being built to suit the needs of your population?

[Marie-Christine Vanier]

In fact this is done through a survey of the population, a survey on housing. We are going to do one this year, and we have hired a company. This survey will allow us to see where the overcrowding situations are, and how we can meet the needs of the population with the greatest needs. This survey, which is really important, is done every two years. It is, in a way, a snapshot of the population and its needs.

[Dan Ruimy, Liberal, Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge, BC]

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bryan May]

Thank you very much.

[Marie-Christine Vanier]

However, homes for the elderly are built and funded by the Kativik Municipal Housing Bureau.

[Dan Ruimy, Liberal, Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge, BC]

Thank you very much.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bryan May]

For six minutes we'll hear from MP Zimmer, please.

[Bob Zimmer, Conservative, Prince George—Peace River—Northern Rockies, BC]

Thanks. Again, we regret not making it up there. I remember looking forward to seeing what northern Quebec looked like in the winter. I'm from northern B.C., so I have an image of what it looks like, but it would be nice to see Quebec. Nevertheless, here we are.

I have a question that goes back to the original way of life of the Inuit people. Sometimes we think we have the right solution for people, but one that's not necessarily our own. I am of Germanic descent, and my mom is Scottish and Irish. We have our backgrounds, and you have your background. I often wonder whether the solution for you is the current model of housing, given the increasing rates of tuberculosis and other health issues that are occurring from this somewhat unnatural way of life for Inuit.

What do you see? Do you see changes that need to be made to the housing model? We always hear about the need for more money and more houses, but do you see, a little bit outside of that question, which you've already asked us, a need for a change in the way the houses are built or the way things are done? Do you see possibly a hybrid form of a return to the way Inuit used to live? Hunting and gathering used to be the way people survived, and they did it quite healthily, I would assume. They were quite healthy people back in the days previous to the 1700s.

Do you have some thoughts about that, Linda, if you wouldn't mind answering?

[Linda Roy Makiuk]

In the history of my ancestors, I cannot go that far back. I'm half French and half Inuk. I've lived both sides as well, as a French person and as an Inuk person, but I live the lifestyle of the Inuk. I eat country food; I do all the main things.

To see the difference between then and what it is now.... I would not know that.