173 Leave of Absence Friday, April 12, 2013 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Friday, April 12, 2013 The House met at 1.30 p.m. PRAYERS [MR. SPEAKER in the Chair] LEAVE OF ABSENCE Mr. Speaker: Hon. Members, I have received communication from the following Members: hon. Prakash Ramadhar, Member of Parliament for St. Augustine, is currently out of the country and has asked to be excused from sittings of the House during the period March 27 to April 13, 2013. Miss Alicia Hospedales, Member of Parliament for Arouca/Maloney, has asked to be excused from today’s sitting of the House. The leave which the Members seek is granted. MOTOR VEHICLES AND ROAD TRAFFIC (AMDT.) BILL, 2013 Bill to amend the Motor Vehicles and Road Traffic Act, Chap. 48:50, brought from the Senate [The Minister of Transport]; read the first time. PAPERS LAID 1. Value Added Tax (Amendment to Schedule 2) (No. 3) Order, 2012. [The Minister of Housing, Land and Marine Affairs (Hon. Dr. Roodal Moonilal)] 2. Audited Financial Statements of CWC World Cup 2007 (T&T) Limited for the financial year ended September 30, 2007. [Hon. Dr. R. Moonilal] To be referred to the Public Accounts (Enterprises) Committee. 3. Administrative Report of the National Information and Communication Technology Company Limited (iGovTT) for the year 2011. [The Minister of Science and Technology (Hon. Dr. Rupert Griffith)] 4. Ministerial Response to the Second Report of the Joint Select Committee appointed to enquire into and report to Parliament on Municipal Corporations and Service Commissions with the exception of the Judicial and Legal Service Commission on an evaluation of the efficiency and effectiveness of the Arima Borough Corporation. [(The Minister of Local Government (Hon. Dr. Surujrattan Rambachan)] 5. Ministerial Response by the Ministry of Local Government to the 7th Report of the Joint Select Committee appointed to enquire into and report to 174 Papers Laid Friday, April 12, 2013 Parliament on Municipal Corporations and Service Commissions with the exception of the Judicial and Legal Service Commission on an evaluation of the effectiveness and efficiency of the Chaguanas Borough Corporation. [Hon. Dr. S. Rambachan] 6. National Performance Framework 2012 to 2015. [Hon. Dr. R. Moonilal] 7. Annual Report on Performance 2012 – Building the Foundation for Results. [Hon. Dr. R. Moonilal] 8. Trinidad and Tobago 2011 Population and Housing Census Demographic Report. [Hon. Dr. R. Moonilal] 9. Annual Administrative Report of the Integrity Commission for the period January 01, 2012 to December 31, 2012. [The Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Nela Khan)] 10. Annual Report of the Green Fund for financial year ending September 30, 2012. [The Minister of State in the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources (Hon. Ramona Ramdial)] ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS The Minister of Housing, Land and Marine Affairs (Hon. Dr. Roodal Moonilal): Mr. Speaker, may I indicate that the Government is in a position to answer questions Nos. 27 and 28 and will ask that questions 29 and 30 be deferred for one week. The following questions stood on the Order Paper in the name of Miss Donna Cox: Housing at Federation Villas (Minister of Tobago Development) 29. Could the hon. Minister of Tobago Development indicate: A. Does the Minister utilize a state-owned housing unit at Federation Villas? B. If the answer is in the affirmative, what are the arrangements for such occupancy/utilization? C. Could the Minister list the period he has utilized the state-owned housing unit during the period January 2011 to present? D. Is the Minister in receipt of a monthly housing allowance? 175 Oral Answers to Questions Friday, April 12, 2013 Housing at Federation Villas (Minister of State in the Ministry of the People and Social Development) 30. Could the hon. Minister of State in the Ministry of the People and Social Development indicate: A. Does the Minister utilize a state-owned housing unit at Federation Villas? B. If the answer is in the affirmative, what are the arrangements for such occupancy/utilization? C. Could the Minister list the period she has utilized the state-owned housing unit during the period January 2011 to present? D. Is the Minister in receipt of a monthly housing allowance? Questions, by leave, deferred. Ministry’s Staff assigned to Tobago (Details of) 27. Dr. Amery Browne (Diego Martin Central) asked the hon. Minister of the People and Social Development: Could the Minister state: a) how many staff members of the Ministry of the People and Social Development were sent to the island of Tobago for work-related purposes during the months November and December 2012 and January 2013; b) what were the names and positions of the staff members relevant to (a) above; c) for each staff member relevant to (a) and (b) above, what were their dates of travel between Trinidad and Tobago during the identified period; d) what facility/facilities was/were used for accommodation by each staff member relevant to (a) and (b); e) what was the total cost of the travel, accommodation and other expenses associated with the activities in Tobago of the staff members identified at (a) and (b)? 176 Oral Answers to Questions Friday, April 12, 2013 The Minister of the People and Social Development (Hon. Dr. Glenn Ramadharsingh): Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In May 2010, the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago identified seven pillars of development as a guide policy in the overarching sustainable development framework. The Ministry of the People and Social Development is aligned to pillar 1: People-centred development—we need everyone and all can contribute; pillar 6: Good governance—people participation, working for sustainable development. The Ministry of the People and Social Development is mandated with the responsibility for citizen engagement and to coordinate and implement the Government of Trinidad and Tobago’s social sector objectives. It is therefore imperative to strengthen the synergy of resources, reach and impact to the citizenry through the development of initiatives and promote the Ministry’s social support services. From July 2010, the Ministry, recognizing that in six months of that year, only 3,000 persons were intervened—their lives had intervention from the Ministry— set about a series of community outreach programmes to communities afflicted by poverty. The main objective of which was to deliver the many services, heighten awareness of these services among the residents. Through these outreach initiatives, the Ministry has held many social marketing activities, delivering services to over 100,000 clients from 2010 to present. This has presented an opportunity to open avenues to vulnerable members of the society in order to access and benefit services. We have the Direct Impact community outreach which increases the awareness of existing services from the Ministry of the People and Social Development, public utilities, housing, land settlement agency, legal affairs, NEDCO, NAMDEVCO and the CEPEP. We have also the Direct Effect which is where senior members of the Ministry, accompanied by their officers, with the above-mentioned Ministries and WASA, T&TEC, ADB and the National Commission for Self-Help, engage in walkabouts in selected areas which are deemed at-risk and vulnerable. This is to be on-spot with a knock on the door to hear complaints and obtain suggestions from the ground, issues directly affecting the daily lives of people. We have also propelled the “People’s Bridge of Hope” which is an initiative that seeks and sees the engagement of the corporate sector in terms of the NGC, the NEC, Petrotrin and those companies that can give back to social development, where we have given blood pressure kits, glucose monitor kits and wheelchairs to persons, with money that is not Government but from the corporate sector. [Desk thumping] 177 Oral Answers to Questions Friday, April 12, 2013 Poverty reduction and every MP’s office has benefited from this: wheelchairs, blood pressure kits, glucose monitor kits, hampers, health hampers. Mrs. Mc Intosh: “I never get no blood pressure kit!” Hon. Member: UNC constituents. [Crosstalk] Hon. Dr. G. Ramadharsingh: Your constituents get but you shall— [Continuous crosstalk] We shall continue to build these programmes so that they will better deliver to you. We also have the poverty reduction— Mr. Speaker: Hon. Member, please. I would like to hear the response to the question by the hon. Minister. Could we allow him to speak in silence? Could you continue? [Crosstalk] Well, he is doing that. Dr. Rowley: “Wha?” [Laughter] Hon. Dr. G. Ramadharsingh: The “Poverty Reduction through Empowerment Social Strategies (PRESS ON)” which is a holistic social intervention to meet the needs of clients. The programme is similar to the Direct Impact, however, it reflects the tenets of empowerment: 1. from welfare to work; 2. alpha numeric literacy; 3. food security; 4. engagement of the at-risk youth; 5. community-based micro enterprise; 6. civil society engagement; 7. the promotion of positive lifestyles; and 8. youth and no crime. Direct delivery, which sees us returning to these communities to deliver on the services requested by members of the community. Mr. Speaker, this move sees us going through the length and breadth of Trinidad and Tobago. In my capacity as the Minister of the people, within the first three days of assuming office, I was in Tobago launching a youth cricket match [Desk thumping] for the youths to stay away from crime. I have been there several times and especially when there were crises in terms of events and calamities that took place, we would respond immediately to the people of Tobago. 178 Oral Answers to Questions Friday, April 12, 2013 [HON. DR. G. RAMADHARSINGH] Mr. Speaker, the staff of the Ministry of the People and Social Development conducted its first Direct Impact in February of 2011.