"We must stop making excuses for our lack of commitment to a 911 initiative," she said, asking Robert McLeod, minister of municipal and community affairs, if he would partner with the City of Yellowknife to begin the necessary steps to starting up the service.

A recent report illustrated seven communities in the NWT - comprising 77 per cent of its population - have the necessary infrastructure for 911 services.

While McLeod said the government needs to ensure 911 can benefit all 33 NWT communities, he said he would consider partnering with the city if it was cabinet's wish.

Grubstake at stake

The recent cut of the $65,000 grubstake program had Dave Ramsay, Kam Lake MLA, questioning the message the government was sending in turbulent economic times on Friday. The grubstake program helped prospectors get out on the land to search for mineral deposits.

"Our modern day economy was founded on resource development," he said.

"It remains a cornerstone of our economy today, and I think we are fooling ourselves if we look into the future and resource development is not a key component to our economy and the future development of this territory."

Industry, Tourism and Investment minister Bob McLeod said the department refocused in the areas of land use and regulatory initiatives. He said there was little uptake on the program and it provided the government with an uncertain return on investment.

However, McLeod said if reinstating the program was seen as a priority, it could be addressed in the business planning process in October.

Petitioning online

With recent cuts to merit-based scholarships affecting NWT students across Canada, Robert Hawkins, Yellowknife Centre MLA, asked the government to consider taking in online petitions. Rules currently require petitions to have the signatures of those that sign and not just names.

"Our Northern students are spread throughout Canada and of course the North, and just maybe an online petition is the only way they could rally their concern in a respectable, reasonable and certainly a timely way," he said last Wednesday.

"If we don't consider this issue, the voice of democracy will fall silent on a generation that demands to be heard."

Including biomass in energy reviews

Fresh from a trip to Scandinavia, Bob Bromley, Weledeh MLA, wanted to know to what degree biomass and other alternative energy initiatives were being considered in the government's three current energy reviews. Bromley said he saw first-hand the predominant role these forms of eco-friendly energy production played in the economies of Denmark, Finland and Sweden.

"Consideration of selling off our power corporation, of course, has been largely because of costs of electricity," he said on Wednesday.

"We are pretty convinced that there are some opportunities for reducing those costs, and at the same time, increasing or enhancing our local economies and reducing greenhouse gas emissions."

Floyd Roland, minister responsible for the NWT Power Corporation, said he looked forward to receiving a report of the trip from Bromley and Mackenzie Delta MLA David Krutko, adding biomass options will be looked at across the system.

Quote of the week:

"I can commit to the member that we will have a look at it. I'm not committing that we'll do anything once we have a look at it. I don't think that came out right."

Robert McLeod, minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, responding to a question from Yellowknife Centre MLA Robert Hawkins asking him to look into enacting home warranty consumer protection.