Premier meets face-to-face with Trudeau
Leaders discuss infrastructure in first official talks
John McFadden
Northern News Services
Monday, February 15, 2016
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
Premier Bob McLeod said it is obvious that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is taking a more collaborative approach to dealing with the territories and provinces than his predecessor Stephen Harper.
McLeod made his comments after his first face-to-face meeting with Trudeau since both won their respective elections last fall. He sat down with the PM in his Parliament Hill office on Feb. 11 and discussed a range of issues. McLeod said he feels that Trudeau has a firm grasp on the multitude of challenging problems facing the NWT.
"I think he's very aware, very well briefed," said McLeod. "I talked to him about some of the things that are important to us such as reducing our reliance on fossil fuels, the need for infrastructure investment, that we need to invest in our people so that we could have healthy sustainable communities filled with happy prosperous people," McLeod said, adding he also asked the PM about his plans for the NWT and some of the commitments he made during the election campaign.
"He indicated that he was very interested in working with us to develop the North and his vision was based on what he heard talking to people," said McLeod.
"We have some large projects that we want to get going - the Mackenzie Valley Highway application for infrastructure money ($700 million) had been submitted over a year ago. We were looking to extend the all-weather road into the Slave Geological Province and to construct an all-weather road to Whati."
McLeod said no firm commitments were made on funding for those projects but he has a good feeling about them.
The Liberals promised to spend $126 billion on infrastructure projects across Canada during the federal campaign. It is not yet clear exactly how much of that would be earmarked for the NWT.
McLeod reminded Trudeau that the territory doesn't want to see infrastructure funding provided on a per capita basis because of the NWT's small population.
He said they also talked about formula funding and the fact that the NWT is facing a $34-million dollar shortfall due to changes in federal grants.
The premier said he remains optimistic that a resolution will be found but added that he won't likely know the exact details until next month.
McLeod said Trudeau is well aware of the high cost of living in the North and that the prime minister reaffirmed his election promise to increase the Northern Residency Tax allowance by 33 per cent.
He said it is still not clear however when that increase will take effect.
McLeod said Trudeau acknowledged that he is now boss of the premier's brother Liberal MP Michael McLeod.
"He said that it is obvious that we had come from a good family," McLeod said.
The premier said that Harper did not regularly meet with the premiers and that's something that will change under Trudeau.
The two will meet again at a first minister conference coming up in Vancouver on March 2 and 3. McLeod said he also extended an open invitation to Trudeau to visit the territory whenever he can fit it into his schedule.
