Evidence of meeting #123 for Indigenous and Northern Affairs in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was infrastructure.
A recording is available from Parliament.
4:20 p.m.
Voices
Oh, oh!
4:20 p.m.
Conservative
4:20 p.m.
Conservative
Arnold Viersen Conservative Peace River—Westlock, AB
One thing I know, coming from northern Alberta, is that the oil patch and logging, in particular, bring the roads, the Internet, the cell service. Has that been your experience with the oil patch in your area? Have they just demanded that a lot of these things be in place and that, come hell or high water, they're going to have communications and roads and they're going to get their equipment up there somehow?
4:20 p.m.
Mayor, Hamlet of Tuktoyaktuk
Yes, they've definitely helped us get things going in the past, but now we're on our own.
4:20 p.m.
Conservative
Arnold Viersen Conservative Peace River—Westlock, AB
You were saying that there are private ports in Tuk.
4:20 p.m.
Conservative
4:20 p.m.
Mayor, Hamlet of Tuktoyaktuk
That's actually what we're looking for: some upgrades and help here. There are two private ones, as well as the one that the government owns. And Esso is across the harbour.
4:20 p.m.
Conservative
4:20 p.m.
Mayor, Hamlet of Tuktoyaktuk
They're across the harbour, yes, and they're abandoning everything.
4:20 p.m.
Conservative
Arnold Viersen Conservative Peace River—Westlock, AB
So that's infrastructure that will be obsolete soon.
4:20 p.m.
Mayor, Hamlet of Tuktoyaktuk
We want to fix up our community to get ready for.... BP and Imperial are going to be coming back. If we fix up our infrastructure and get things ready, then it will be more accessible and easier for the industry to come back and help. It's going to be back; it's just a matter of when.
4:20 p.m.
Conservative
Arnold Viersen Conservative Peace River—Westlock, AB
My friend across the way is saying that it's the price of oil that's causing the lack of investment in exploration up there.
4:20 p.m.
Conservative
Arnold Viersen Conservative Peace River—Westlock, AB
There must be other hurdles to bringing the investment up.
4:20 p.m.
Conservative
4:20 p.m.
Mayor, Hamlet of Tuktoyaktuk
Yes. People in the States are paying environmental people to come up and raise hell and shut everything down. Basically, that's happening. I've been back and forth to the States, and I know what's going on there.
4:20 p.m.
Conservative
4:20 p.m.
Mayor, Hamlet of Tuktoyaktuk
We have a big meeting.... I've been invited to speak on November 5 in Richmond, B.C., at the National Coalition of Chiefs. They want me to come down and speak on that as well.
4:20 p.m.
Conservative
Arnold Viersen Conservative Peace River—Westlock, AB
Okay.
Is there anything going on with pipeline infrastructure?
4:20 p.m.
Mayor, Hamlet of Tuktoyaktuk
Not yet. Hopefully we'll be shipping north from the oil sands to Tuk.