Nathan VanderKlippe
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Nov 18/02) - Territorial Finance Minister Joe Handley is painting a depressingly bleak picture of the territory's financial future.

Joe Handley: "You don't have to be a rocket scientist to understand that we're getting screwed." - NNSL file photo

Speaking with News/North last Wednesday, he said meetings with his counterparts in Ottawa have so far produced no concrete results. Worse, the federal government seems dead set against helping out the NWT.

"You don't have to be a rocket scientist to understand that we're getting screwed," he said.

On numerous fronts, the NWT has been unable to access the funding it needs. For example, on the much-vaunted devolution talks -- billed as a way to make the NWT the 'Texas of the North,' a 'Have territory' -- Ottawa is refusing to negotiate money with responsibility.

Without that money, the GNWT could gain some more decision-making power, but would derive none of the resultant benefits.

The federal government is blocking talks of what are called "net fiscal benefits" on a number of fronts, said Handley. First, it only wants to negotiate with the territorial government, leaving aboriginal groups out of the picture. That in itself could terminate talks.

But Ottawa is also telling territorial leaders that it wants to use a one-size-fits-all for devolution funding in territories: in other words, copying the Yukon agreement.

That agreement only allows the territory $3 million in royalty revenues before federal clawbacks of 80 cents on the dollar kick in. The NWT has the potential to generate a hundred times that amount of royalties.

"To us it just doesn't add up. We need an agreement that is based on our economic activity," said Handley.

In fact, Handley has virtually given up on making the economic case for letting the territory hang on to more of its cash.

"We only have one MP and we don't have the political clout here that some of these other provinces have. We're really getting shafted, in my view," he said. "It's a political battle. It's not an economic argument anymore."

For example, a Nov. 11 Globe and Mail story pointed out that federal payouts to the NWT amount to about $4,140 per person. That compares with about $25,960 per person in Nunavut and $14,935 in the Yukon.

In fact, Ottawa spends less per person on the NWT than it does on PEI, Newfoundland and Nova Scotia.

"These other provinces are almost being rewarded relative to us," said Handley.

Handley and other territorial leaders have made numerous phone calls and trips to Ottawa, trying to secure more cash for the territory -- especially as the NWT faces a $104 million deficit this year.

But the territory only has one elected representative in Ottawa, Western Arctic Liberal MP Ethel Blondin-Andrew, who has been criticized by some for dropping the territory's interests in favour of the Liberal party line.

"She's helping, but there's only so much she can do as one MP," said Handley. "A junior minister has to toe the line. If she doesn't want to toe the line, she'd have to step out of her portfolio and say, 'OK, I won't be on cabinet any more so I can have more freedom to speak.'

"But that's a tough decision to make, too. Where are you going to be most effective?"