NDP MPs hear local concerns as caucus meeting gets underway in Nunavut

New Democratic Party MPs are in Rankin Inlet, Nunavut, for their annual caucus meeting this week, which had to get started on Tuesday without Nunavut's own MP Lori Idlout, who was delayed by a storm.

The NDP says it's the first time a major federal party has held its caucus meeting in the North.

While the session serves as preparation for the upcoming session of the House of Commons, interim NDP Leader Don Davies said the NDP is also there to hear about issues Nunavummiut, and other northerners, face.

"I've taken two pages of notes but, already, not having stable internet, high prices of food, having unreliable power we had experience of that directly and were only here a day," Davies said.

The weather also played a part in proceedings so far. Idlout's flight to Rankin Inlet was delayed. On Facebook Idlout said she'd arrived in the community late Tuesday.

The temperature, though relatively mild for the Kivalliq region in January, also caught some of the NDP's Vancouver MPs a bit off guard.

"The minute you came out of the plane you felt immediately the difference between communities," said Vancouver East MP Jenny Kwan. "The wind, the cold was something that I have never experienced in all of my life."

Rankin Inlet Mayor Harry Towtongie said it's good to see southern politicians get a taste of the issues his community faces.

"I'm glad they came here to get to see how we are up here and see what the issues we have up here are — the problems we have with the weather, the housing, the power issues that we have up here, so its good to see a party come up," he said.

The MPs were to meet with local elders, community leaders and union members. They're scheduled to travel to the Meliadine gold mine Thursday, before returning for a town hall meeting Thursday night.

The House of Commons resumes in Ottawa Monday.