Thank you, Mr. Chair. Actually, at the beginning of the next session, I will be tabling a document on how we are going to address the core need within the territories which is one of my requirements, so that will be coming forward. There are a variety of needs. There is not one brush that paints all. So if it is suitability, or affordability, or adequacy, then we need to look at different programs for them. If it is a matter of getting them into a bigger unit; if it is a matter of actually helping to pay some of their expenses; or if it is a matter of fixing up their homes so that it is safe, we are looking at a variety of programs. As I mentioned earlier, the biggest need at this point, we have done amazing in the smaller communities, brought down our core need based on the 2014 survey compared to the 2009 survey. It actually did not do well for the municipality of Yellowknife, so we will actually be looking at implementing a subsidized rent program that will be coming out again at the very beginning of the next session. I look forward to actually presenting on the new initiatives and the new policies that we have worked on; and through the next two years, there are a lot more policy changes that we still need to do. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Questions for Ministers. Next on my list, I have Member O'Reilly.

Merci, Monsieur le President. My question is for the Minister of Finance. Traditionally, Ministers of Finance have met with NGOs, the business community, and the public in seeking input into, and explaining our budgets. I can personally recall meeting with at least four different Finance Ministers at such consultations before I became an MLA. Budget dialogue 2016 was a website-based consultation process, and that happened during a period of major cutbacks. Does the Minister intend to undertake any meaningful public engagement around the remaining two budgets? Mahsi, Mr. Chair.

Masi. Minister Robert C. McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, the Member is correct. There was a time when there was some budget dialogue that went around across the Northwest Territories, and I remember being part of a Regular Members committee that actually split into two groups and did budget dialogue in the northern and southern parts of the Northwest Territories. We were able to get some valuable feedback out of that process, but that process took place long before the business plans were even developed. Our business plans are in the process of being developed right now. I believe we have business plans coming up in November. If there is commitment to do some budget dialogue, to actually add some value to it, it would have to be done before the business planning review has even started, so we can incorporate what some of the comments we get back. There is processes through the website, and in talking to your MLAs, and in meeting with people out there, but I would have to find out. I do not know if we have time this year because the business plan is being developed. I can commit as we go forward to probably the last year of our last budget, then, there may be an opportunity there to take it out on the road, but then we would have to do it before our business plans are developed. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Masi. Questions for Ministers. Next on my list, I have Member Beaulieu.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, I have a question for the Minister of Health and Social Services. Mr. Chairman, I am familiar with some of the work where we would call territorial doctors' pool. What I am looking at is a situation of how, having doctors living in the Northwest Territories that serve the Northwest Territories is important not only to the people they serve but also just in general to the economy. There are lots of positive aspects. I have thought about ideas. If you need two doctors in the Sahtu, you hire four doctors and they all work half-time in the Sahtu, and they work half-time in the hospital here because a lot of the doctors need to work in both places. They need to work in a hospital environment. They work in pediatrics. A lot of the doctors need to maintain some sort of designation by working in certain areas, and they can do general practitioner work as well. I would like to ask the Minister, how far along the road has this department gone to bring that type of pool into the Northwest Territories, a territorial doctors' pool? How far are they from not using locums in the Northwest Territories as doctors? Thank you.

Masi. Minister Abernethy.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Before my time as Minister of Health and Social Services, there was a Minister of Health and Social Services who thought it was a great idea to move to a territorial pool of physicians across the territories. I think he is sitting across the hall right now asking me a question. It was fantastic direction because the net result of that is by having a territorial pool of physicians, having all the physicians as employees of the one organization as opposed to multiple organizations, they all had some responsibility or authority to engage with the territorial system. We have been able to build on that, and as a result, we have been able to actually get more physicians hired and located in the Northwest Territories than we have ever been able to before. We used to struggle miserably trying to find permanent physicians in places like Beaufort Delta and Inuvik. We actually have been able to find and retain some doctors in those communities. Yes, there is always turnover, but we are getting people to hire in. We are still having some difficulty, though, in the smaller communities like Behchoko and Norman Wells where we still have to rely on some locums. We are exploring those exact types of scenarios that the Member has described about maybe finding some people that are maybe located in Yellowknife and I guess a locum type support in Norman Wells but being the consistent person going back and forth. We still are not all the way there. We are having difficulties finding individuals who want to do that, but at a territorial level, the direction to move to a single medical system, I think has paid off significantly because we do have a stable core of doctors in Beaufort Delta. We almost never had that. We have had much better luck getting physicians in places like Fort Smith and Hay River in particular. Yes, more work needs to be done. We believe it is still a valid process, and we are trying to find people that might be interested in doing exactly the things the Member has described. Thank you.

Masi. Questions for Ministers. Next on my list, I have Member Green.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, my question is for the Minister of Justice. The mandate letter doesn't direct the Minister to revamp the program for men who use violence in their relationships, and nor did the assessment of the program completed a year ago, yet a revamp is what this program got despite pleas from Regular MLAs not to fix what wasn't broken. How does the Minister's approach to A New Day demonstrate his commitment and willingness to work with Regular MLAs in the spirit of the openness and transparency he touted in his candidacy speech? Mahsi.

Minister Sebert.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I think we all recognize this as a very serious issue. It is part of the government's initiative and partnership to prevent and reduce family violence. The original A New Day program, of course, was a pilot project, and when that pilot came to the end of its term, or prior to its coming to the end of its term, we did ask for an evaluation of the program. As a result of that evaluation, some changes were made to the program, which in our view, improved it. For example, men who had left the program were allowed to re-enter the program later on. Based on that, we did make some changes to the program which we think led to an improvement. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Masi. Questions for Ministers. Next on my list, I have Member Testart.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. The Department of Lands has a number of ambitious challenges before it. A key part to developing our economy is making land accessible for agricultural purposes, sorting out legislative gaps, and coming to some sort of common leasing system. We have more than 250 leases that all have their own individual terms. The Minister in his time in this portfolio honoured a deal that was made by an assistant deputy minister long since passed, without consulting this government, and without respecting essential policy of his department. I think that is scandalous, Mr. Chair, and I would like the Minister to tell us what his vision is for Lands? Every time these questions are put to him, he shrugs his shoulders and says, "It is complicated. It is challenging. We are working at it." We need some clarity. There are people across the territory, whether it is Yellowknife or smaller communities that depend on a coherent system of land management in the Northwest Territories. Our agricultural strategy will fail if we do not have cohesive land policy that can make it work. What is the Minister's vision for land in the Northwest Territories, and can he at least commit to developing a comprehensive plan to deal with these issues, and will he also commit to no longer honour deals that are not part of government policy? Thank you.

Masi. Minister Sebert.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. This is a multi-headed question. I don't know really where to start. The Member opposite has correctly identified that there were 250 or so equity leases. As I have mentioned earlier today, we are looking at this situation very carefully. I do want to resolve the matter. It is an issue that arose long before I became Minister. I was well aware of it in my prior capacity as a lawyer. I certainly heard from members of the legal profession about it, and I had hoped initially that there would be an easy solve to this. There isn't, because the leases, as has been pointed out, are different. Despite all of that, we are looking at various options, and I will be bringing options forward to Cabinet that will hopefully resolve the issue of equity leases. With respect to the issue of Cassidy Point, yes, that is an exception to government policy. However, my understanding about this matter is that a promise was made by the government, and it is the honour of the Crown that such promises be followed through, and that property ownership be granted in Cassidy Point. Perhaps in the future, similarly positioned people who have equity leases possibly may be able to also acquire ownership. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Masi. Questions for Ministers. Next on my list, I have Member Blake.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, my question is for the Minister of Health and Social Services. Mr. Chair, back in the 16th Assembly, decisions were made to take long-term care facilities out of smaller communities like Aklavik, and focus on regional centres. Many residents in the NWT would like to have these facilities back in our smaller communities. Does the Minister see this happening in the near future? Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Masi. Minister Abernethy.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, by definition, a long-term care facility is a level three-four facility that is providing 24-7 medical care, nursing care, and other supports for individual with high needs. The facility in Aklavik, by way of example, was not a long-term care facility as defined in the way that I've just described. It was more of an independent living unit that actually had a home care position staffed out of that unit. We aren't putting long-term care units in the smaller facilities as a result of capacity, but also it is mostly a safety issue because the individuals who are residing in long-term care facilities have a much higher acuity, a much higher medical need, and require really what is 24-7 care. But with the Housing Corporation, we are working to put independent living units in some of the smaller communities as an important part of the continuum of aging in place.

In those designs, in order to recognize that there is programming that is also needed at the community level, which we have talked about today and many times previously, the Housing Corp. is actually incorporating space in these new designs that will allow for programming to take place, where we could have our staff come in and help by providing day programs and other things. In short, Mr. Chair, the answer is no, we are not planning to put long-term care facilities in smaller communities throughout the Northwest Territories. They are very expensive to build. We have to make sure that they're safe. They have to meet infection control protocols, and they have to be able to provide 24-7 care. Long term, independent living units we are absolutely looking at, and I believe there is room for that across the territories. We are looking forward to working with Members and the Housing Corp moving forward. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Masi. Questions for Ministers. Next on my list, I have Member O'Reilly.

Merci, Monsieur le President. I've spoken in this House before about what I have used, legislative inertia, and I want to pose a question to the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs. A big part of that backlog of work I think comes from that department, as well. Earlier today and earlier in the House, as well, she talked about moving forward with some municipal legislation, one of the pieces being the Cities, Town and Villages Act, to empower communities to be able to levy local improvement charges, in particular.

In her statement, she talked about how they had been undertaking months of consultation around this issue. I don't know what that "months of consultation" is really all about, because NWTAC has been on board with this for a long time. The city even provided draft language on what the change had looked like. I don't understand what the problem is here, why there needs to be more or why we have to do months of consultation. What kind of assurance can the Minister provide that this important piece of work is actually going to get done in the next two years? Merci, Mr. Chair.

Masi. Minister Cochrane.