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Yanik D’Aigle acclaimed as Conservative Party candidate for federal election

2005ConservativeYanik

Yanik D’Aigle, the only candidate who put his name forward for the Conservative Party of Canada candidacy, was acclaimed for the position Thursday night.
The cut-off for the position to run for the party against Michael McLeod, Member of Parliament for the Northwest Territories in the fall federal election was March 16 at 5 p.m. EST.

Yanik D’Aigle was acclaimed on May 16 as the Conservative Party of Canada NWT candidate for the coming federal election. D’Aigle, a Royal Bank of Canada banker and manager said in a recent interview that he wants to address cost of living challenges faced by northerners and work on policies that will enhance northern development.
photo submitted by the Northwest Territories Conservative Party

The federal election will take place Oct. 21.

In an interview earlier in the week, D’Aigle took aim at the cost of living in the North and making the region an attractive place to live in the future.

“The cost of living is not getting any cheaper, especially up here and especially in the North,” he said. “When I say cost of living, I’m talking about our day to day folks, our businesses, our industry.

When we are not competitive in the cost of doing business and the cost of living in the North, it doesn’t make it attractive.”

D’Aigle, a manger with Royal Bank of Canada, has lived in the NWT for seven years with his wife and four children. He ultimately wants to ensure future Northern residents retain the high quality of life he has enjoyed and says there are ways right away to cut costs and champion Northern development to help make that happen.

His campaign platform will include the Conservative Party’s promise to allow Northern territories to keep all royalties in the North to go toward Northern development.

“The GNWT has to borrow money to put in a heritage fund because we are paying so much to the federal government,” he points out.”We have to make commitments to all communities with the agreements that we have. But we need the money and we need to incentivize. If we are only paying the federal government as well, we know that the money should stay in the North. It is Northern development. We need roads. We need national building initiatives.”

He is also committing to eliminating the federal carbon tax, even though he recognizes climate change is a growing problem and that there are important green initiatives needed to improve the environment.

“Climate change is happening, but we have to look at ways that are going to reduce our carbon footprint of things that actually reduce our carbon footprint,” he said.

Advancing the Taltson hydroelectricity project is an important part of that, which he supports.

“When we think of carbon tax and what we generate in the North here - as residents and businesses- our footprint is minuscule in the world, let alone in Canada to what it is we actually (produce),” he said, noting that he has been supportive of the GNWT’s efforts in finding sources of alternative energy and seeking ways to make the economy greener.