Herb Mathisen
Northern News Services
Published Wednesday, June 18, 2008

YELLOWKNIFE - With the Union of Northern Workers poised to present Premier Floyd Roland with 800 postcards opposing job cuts this afternoon, the budget they so bitterly protested passed last night before an empty gallery.

For the past three weeks, regular MLAs complained to cabinet that they had not been consulted in drafting the budget. Yesterday, they thanked cabinet for listening during the budget debate by passing it unanimously.

Contacted by Yellowknifer late Tuesday afternoon, Barb Wyness, spokesperson for the UNW, sounded surprised when told the budget was being discussed at third reading and was likely to pass. Four regular MLAs had already expressed their support, which gave Cabinet the number they needed.

Wyness said she could not provide a comment on the budget passing until it actually had.

No one at the UNW was available for comment later at press time.

Following weeks of budget deliberations, with regular MLAs moving to delete spending and recommend reinstatement of funds in different areas, Premier Roland announced his government's concessions.

Most prominent among them was deferment of the closure of the Arctic Tern Young Offenders Facility in Inuvik, saving 14.5 positions.

In Yellowknife, six positions were reinstated, including four court officers, one court worker and one legal counsel position devoted to devolution negotiations.

In total, the concessions reinstated 30 jobs across the NWT.

At the second reading of the budget, six regular MLAs were opposed, one abstained and the other four said they were only supporting it to debate it in committee.

MLAs had been cynical throughout session.

Yesterday, nearly all of them were appreciative that the amended budget now contained their input.

Glen Abernethy, MLA for Great Slave, initially opposed the budget in second reading, but said he now could support it. "Government identified 104 affected employees. Of these, 30 or more have already been placed into new positions or accepted early retirement," he said, adding that with 30 positions reinstated by Cabinet, cuts had been minimized to 40 employees.

In an interview Monday afternoon, Roland said he saw the budget vote as a confidence vote for the government. He suggested he would step down as Premier if it failed.

Now, the only role Roland will vacate is finance minister.

He said he will reshuffle Cabinet at the end of June, or in early July.