Thank you, Mr. Roland. Good afternoon, colleagues. Orders of the day. Item 2, Ministers' statements. The honourable Premier, Mr. Kakfwi.

Mr. Speaker, I wish to advise Members that the Honourable Jim Antoine will be absent from the House for the rest of the week to attend a Resource Development Council Conference in Anchorage, Alaska. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Kakfwi. Item 2, Ministers' statements. The honourable Premier, Mr. Kakfwi.

Mr. Speaker, later today, on behalf of the Minister responsible for Justice, I will table a proposed Human Rights Act for the Northwest Territories. Tabling of this draft bill is the latest stage in our consultation with the public. As you no doubt remember, earlier in the fall we released a discussion paper on the proposed act. I am pleased to report that response by concerned groups to this discussion paper has been positive so far.

We are taking a somewhat unusual step in tabling this draft instead of introducing it in the House for first reading, that is because we want the public to review this draft and give us their opinions. This draft will be included in the consultation package that we are preparing now.

The Department of Justice has two goals: to create legislation that meets the needs and expectations of northern people, and to meet national requirements such as rulings by the Supreme Court of Canada. During the rest of this month and into December, the Department of Justice will be preparing further consultation materials that deal with the various interests and concerns people have raised with us so far. The departments staff will also conduct further research into some of the issues associated with this type of legislation.

Mr. Speaker, this legislation will replace the Fair Practices Act, which has been our human rights law since 1966. The Fair Practices Act is a good law, but over the years human rights legislation has advanced and we have not kept up. Our aim is to build on the best qualities of the Fair Practices Act to create

a law that satisfies people's wishes and meets national requirements.

Once the draft Human Rights Act is tabled, it becomes a public document. Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues here and the public to consider this draft and take part in the consultation process, that way, we will create a law that meets our needs and stands the test of time. Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Kakfwi. Item 2, Ministers' statements. The honourable Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Ootes.

Mr. Speaker, I want to share with you today the details of an exciting new program designed to reintegrate older workers back into the workforce. The Older Worker Pilot Project is a joint effort of the Department of Education, Culture and Employment, divisional boards of education and district education authorities in the NWT and Human Resources Development Canada.

Mr. Speaker, the Older Worker Pilot Project was developed to help Canada address the issue of unemployment among workers between the ages of 55 and 64, by creating innovative ways for older workers to acquire new skills, while at the same time making a meaningful contribution to society through participation in the labour force.

In the Northwest Territories, the Older Worker Pilot Project will employ 19 workers between the ages of 55 and 64 in schools in the Deh Cho, Beaufort Delta and South Slave regions, as well as in Yellowknife.

Mr. Speaker, these workers are elders with unique life experience and special language and cultural skills from which young people will benefit. Through interaction with elders employed in the schools, as elders in residence, special needs assistants, literacy mentors and program support assistant trainees, students will acquire knowledge of their traditional values and language. Self-esteem and self-worth in both groups will be enhanced.

Most of the workers hired under the Older Worker Pilot Project will learn on the job under the supervision of the school principal. Together they will decide on specific projects that will allow workers to use their skills effectively, while at the same time providing the greatest benefit to the school.

Mr. Speaker, this unique program will go a long way in addressing the issue of unemployment among older people in NWT communities. These people are untapped sources of knowledge and insight and this program is an opportunity to untap these resources. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Ootes. Item 2, Ministers' statements. The honourable Minister responsible for the Status of Women, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Good afternoon, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to have this opportunity to speak to you today about the Status of Women Council of the NWT. Mr. Speaker, the Status of Women Council of the NWT was established in 1990 with a mandate to work towards the political, social and economic equality of all women in the NWT. The council works to achieve its mandate through research, public education, advocacy on behalf of women and assistance to women's groups.

Since its establishment, the council has undertaken an impressive amount of work in the areas of human rights education, wellness, family violence, income and employment, justice, political representation, and child care.

Given the nature of the council's work, Mr. Speaker, it is important to note that many of the projects they have initiated have not achieved overnight success. More often than not, these projects and initiatives have required a number of years of hard work and dedication. Ongoing and consistent efforts by the council and its staff have resulted in many progressive initiatives. These include:

• • continuing efforts to raise awareness about FAS/FAE;
• • the Women and Children's Healing and Recovery Program, which resulted from the work of the Coalition for New Futures for Northern Women; and
• • establishment of Family Violence Awareness Week, which we plan to make an annual event.

Mr. Speaker, there is a common strength that is reiterated throughout the work of the council. It is the strength of partnerships between non-government agencies and government, Mr. Speaker. The Status of Women Council has developed positive, productive working relationships with numerous agencies and they have shown that partnerships do work. We as a government, Mr. Speaker, have been part of this partnership and I am proud that we have been able to move forward with the council on a common agenda and a common purpose.

Mr. Speaker, later today at the appropriate time, I will be tabling the 1999-2000 Annual Report of the Status of Women Council of the NWT. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Item 2, Ministers' statements. The honourable Minister responsible for Transportation, Mr. Steen.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to clarify the answer I gave during question period on Wednesday, November 8, 2000. The Member for North Slave had asked me, in my capacity as Minister responsible for Transportation, whether the department intended to build a winter road to Wekweti.

My answer did not clearly separate the important difference between the seasonal public winter roads built and maintained by the Department of Transportation and the short-term resupply road the Department of Public Works and Services uses to deliver government cargo to Wekweti more cost effectively by truck than aircraft.

The Department of Transportation's winter roads are built every year and kept open through the season for use by the general public. The Department of Public Works and Service's resupply road to Wekweti is built strictly for the delivery of freight, with no public commitment that it will remain passable for general traffic or kept open any longer than necessary for the delivery of the shipments involved.

The Department of Transportation has never opened a public winter road for general traffic to Wekweti and, at least in the immediate future, has no plans or budget to build one. A public winter road to Wekweti would be 215 kilometres long and cost an estimated $450,000 a year.

In the past, when there has been a winter road into the Colomac mine site, the Department of Public Works and Services found it cost-effective to build a temporary resupply road into Wekweti because it provides cheaper transportation for government cargo than an airlift. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Steen. Item 2, Ministers' statements. The honourable Minister responsible for the Status of Women, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, October was Women's History Month and a time when the Governor General's Award in Commemoration of the Person's Case is presented. The Government of Canada established this award in 1979 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Person's Case decision, and to salute the contributions of contemporary women in the advancement of women's equality.

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to tell you that Mrs. Elizabeth Mackenzie of Rae has been awarded this prestigious honour. Accompanied by her daughter Alice, Mrs. Mackenzie was presented with the award in Ottawa on October 18th by Her Excellency the Right Honourable Adrienne Clarkson, Governor General of Canada.

Mrs. Mackenzie was recognized for her efforts to combine the Dogrib culture and non-aboriginal cultures in the delivery of educational programs in Rae. Mr. Speaker, leaders in the Dogrib region, and indeed throughout the North, have sought and received advice from Mrs. Mackenzie. Her tireless work and her dedication to the mutually respectful merging of cultures has made her a positive role model for women and for all Northerners. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Item 2, Ministers' statements. The honourable Premier, Mr. Kakfwi.

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the Minister responsible for Justice, I would like to make a statement on Restorative Justice Week. Mr. Speaker, across Canada and around the world, people are observing Restorative Justice Week. This is an international movement to raise public awareness about the realities of crime, criminal justice and corrections. I would like to take a moment to discuss what that means in the NWT.

The philosophy of the restorative justice movement is to find a more holistic way of responding to the needs of people affected by crime and is inspired by aboriginal traditions. It focuses on having offenders take responsibility for their actions and on helping victims of crime recover.

Over the past few years in the NWT, we have been looking for different ways of responding to crime. For example, we have found that community justice committees are a more effective way of dealing with certain types of cases than the court system. I am pleased to note that the number of community justice committees is growing as more communities choose to get involved in this program.

We are working hard to bring the concepts of healing and restitution into our justice system, whether that means alternative measures for young offenders or bringing elders to our jails to work with inmates. Mr. Speaker, this year's theme for Restorative Justice Week is Harmony and Healing: Broken Wings Take New Flight. It is an opportunity for all of us to think about how to support everyone affected by crime and build stronger communities. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Kakfwi. Item 2, Ministers' statements. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as we all know, the Government of the Northwest Territories has implemented a Hay Job Evaluation System to rate the Government of the Northwest Territories' jobs and all positions in the territorial government with a point system. Mr. Speaker, this system that we have has to be fair and equitable to all our employees to ensure that they have ways of evaluating performance in the job evaluations of our employees. It has to make sure that everybody is treated fairly and is paid for the services they provide to this government as our employees. In order to do that, we have to ensure that we continue to improve the pay scheduling system that we have in place.

I, for one, feel we do have to continue to improve it, but we have to be fair to all our employees. We cannot classify or declassify individuals for sake of promotion. I feel that we have to do an evaluation, especially when we have senior staff in this government whom we move from one position to another by simply giving them a new heading. I think it is important that the Hay Job Evaluation System is there for all employees and it has to be carried out by all employees. It has to be evaluated to ensure that they are being paid fairly, but also for the underpaid employees that we are not overlooking them in the area of benefits, services, and wage differences.

We have to clearly see if there is a job evaluation system in place for the new positions that have been announced by this government with regard to the chief of staff. I feel it is important that we look at that in conjunction with the position that was previously the executive assistant position. If this position is the same or this person took on more responsibility, how do you classify that position?

We have a system in place to evaluate the individuals and we also have a system to ensure that the job is also evaluated so that other people doing the same work are treated the same, and have the same opportunities to be treated fairly and equitably. All employees of this government have to realize that for the work they do, their performance on behalf of this government, they are paid fairly and equitably and it is distributed up and down the ranks. With that, Mr. Speaker, I will be asking the Premier questions on this matter later on. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. Déclarations de députés. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Hay River North, Mr. Delorey.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this being National Addictions Awareness Week, I wanted to lend my support and acknowledge some groups and individuals who are working hard to spread the word and educate people across the Northwest Territories on all the problems associated with addictions. I want to commend the National Women's Association, the Native Women's Association, the Status of Women Council of the Northwest Territories and the Department of Health and Social Services for their effort to develop the material being issued in the FAS/FAE awareness campaign.

Mr. Speaker, we must do everything we possibly can to help raise the awareness around this very important and harmful issue. Mr. Speaker, I have been very blessed with being one of 13 kids brought up in a family whose mother did not drink or smoke. As a result of that, all 12 of us now are very healthy, the oldest being 78, the youngest being 50.

I have been very blessed with two grandkids from one of my daughters who refused to drink or smoke during her pregnancy. I am enjoying two grandsons who are very strong and healthy for that reason now. My oldest daughter, Michelle, seven-and-a-half months ago found out she was pregnant. Michelle is a very ordinary girl who likes to have a good time. She was a smoker and enjoyed a sociable drink, but since she found out she was pregnant has refused to drink or smoke.

I hope that she and her husband, Brent, are rewarded with a very strong and healthy baby. I want to thank them for doing their part in keeping the family strong. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

-- Applause

Thank you, Mr. Delorey. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for North Slave, Mr. Lafferty.

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Déclarations de députés. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Range Lake, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This past weekend, over 950 kids representing over half of the Northwest Territories communities participated in territorial schools' Spike It volleyball tournament in Yellowknife. Over 12 teams from Fort Smith alone attended. I am especially pleased to recognize this because I believe not enough has been discussed in this House about preventative measures for community wellness.

Mr. Speaker, I truly believe that individual wellness must go hand-in-hand with economic wellness, otherwise all the economic prosperities we may gain from oil and gas and diamond development will be without any meaning or value.

Mr. Speaker, this week we talked about addictions and we have had government strategies and proposals discussed in this House throughout our past three sessions, but what we do not seem to have is an overall approach, a common thread or focus for preventive efforts. I would like to call on the government to focus more on this important connection.

The point is, Mr. Speaker, there is a strong evidence that boys and girls involved in organized team sports keep healthy and stay out of trouble. This includes eating healthy and laying off cigarettes, drugs and alcohol. Further, it has been found that boys and girls involved in sports have increased self-esteem, lower drop-out rates, get better grades and are more likely than non-athletes to go on to a four-year college or university.

Mr. Speaker, organized sports such as Spike It, Arctic Winter Games, Aboriginal Games and Super Soccer events clearly demonstrate ways the GNWT can successfully become more involved in promoting health and social wellness. Since there is already the interest and infrastructure, additional support for organized sports is a common sense approach for this government to take, that which will give us value for our money. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

-- Applause

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, Mr. Roland.