The Speaker Tony Whitford

Good morning, colleagues. Bonjour. Before I begin the Orders of the Day, by the authority given the Speaker by Motion 4-14(6), the House is authorized to sit beyond the hours of daily adjournment today. Item 2, Ministers' statements. The honourable Member for the Sahtu, Mr. Kakfwi.

Stephen Kakfwi Sahtu

Mr. Speaker, I would be remiss in my duties as Premier if I did not take time during this final session of the 14th Legislative Assembly to acknowledge the efforts and achievements of a department that does not receive a great deal of recognition in this House, but one which is nonetheless instrumental in ensuring the overall coordination and management of government -- the Department of Executive.

In my capacity as Minister responsible for Intergovernmental Affairs, and with the unflagging services of the Department of Executive, Cabinet has succeeded in placing the NWT on the national stage, raising our profile with our federal, provincial and territorial counterparts and, most importantly, establishing the linkage between a booming economy and the benefits to the nation. This positioning has helped to influence the growing national recognition that the territorial government must have greater access to revenues generated here, if we are to reach our goal of economic self-sufficiency. Meetings of First Ministers were used to build alliances with provinces and territories and unanimous support for devolution was gained from all.

On the intergovernmental relations front, we also worked hard to establish a solid working relationship with our northern partners. We signed a bilateral MOU with the Yukon, as well as a trilateral MOU amongst the three territories. Strengthening our northern voice has assisted in raising awareness about northern issues and the challenges northern governments face. For example, the unified approach that we northern Premiers took at the First Ministers meeting was critical in ensuring an additional $20 million per territory for health care, as well as convincing Canada that per capita funding for federal programs does not help the territories, where populations are small and program delivery costs are huge.

Our relationships with Premiers across the country has never been stronger and it has resulted in their support for devolution and initiatives such as the national diamond strategy. Furthermore, we will be hosting the 2004 annual Western Premiers conference in Inuvik next July.

One important role played by the Department of Executive is the corporate leadership and government-wide support offered to departments. Managers in the Executive chair interdepartmental committees whose purpose is to ensure that information is shared, to promote excellence in their respective fields and to solidify cross-departmental relationships.

The department assists with the development of the strategic, policy and communications aspects of overall government-wide strategies such as the energy strategy, maximizing northern employment, the social agenda and the development of the national diamond strategy -- a strategy developed by all provinces and territories and spearheaded by the NWT and Quebec.

As well, the Executive provides leadership in communicating about the government's agenda. The Executive produces the monthly Bear Facts newsletter, to keep our public service informed and connected. It manages the GNWT's Web site and visual identity program. As well, it provides an exemplary protocol service for visiting dignitaries from all over the world. In the past four years, we have planned or played host to over 50 protocol events, ranging from the visits of foreign ambassadors, high commissioners and consul generals to those of Canadian foreign service officers, heads of diplomatic missions and Canadian high commissioners, ambassadors and federal Ministers. With each visit comes an opportunity to promote an increased understanding of the NWT, its goals and aspirations and the opportunities we have to offer.

Through its Cabinet Secretariat, the Executive provides quality advice and analysis that is intrinsic to the Cabinet decision-making process. The thorough examination of all matters and issues that were brought before Cabinet is another assurance that sound decision-making, based on solid information and analysis, remains a cornerstone of governmental processes.

The Executive has provided corporate human resource support through the delivery of a number of innovative programs. The management assignment program, designed to help develop skills of existing employees to better prepare them for management and senior management is now underway. We had 101 applications this year. This group was reduced to 29 who are in the final assessment phase. Twenty will join the existing five participants. This innovative program is one means of providing training and career advancement opportunities within our public service.

A new employee recognition program was launched. It updated the long service and retirement programs, added departmental recognition programs and introduced the Premier's Award for Excellence, which celebrates excellence in public service. We have honoured the recent recipients of this award during this session.

Additionally, we have made strides in standardizing GNWT training in both human resources and in general management skills areas such as staffing and writing decision papers. These training opportunities are being delivered in all regional centres on a regular basis.

In terms of building the public service of tomorrow, highly successful student and graduate employment programs have been put in place. The graduate employment program, in place for the past two years, has seen over 200 new graduates of diploma and degree programs find initial employment in the NWT in their fields of study. A good cross-section of communities were represented among the graduates and placements. Over 90 percent of these graduates remained in relevant jobs following their initial placements. On the student side, increased coordination has resulted in over 300 students hired in each of the last two summers, one-third of whom were regional placements.

To support staff retention, we introduced a standard exit interview process for those changing jobs or leaving government. The first year of this new process has been completed and a report released on the results. These results will help the GNWT to become an even better employer and improve the retention of our valuable staff.

We have also done a variety of things to improve coordination and consistency in human resource practices across government. This has resulted in regular sharing of information among human resource officers and managers, regular reporting to deputy ministers and improved guidelines and procedures in a number of areas including a complete overhaul of the staffing procedures.

Mr. Speaker, the staff members of the Department of Executive are a hard-working and dedicated group of employees whose talents help ensure the continued smooth operations of the machinery of government. It has been my pleasure to work with them as Premier and I thank them again for their efforts. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Premier. Item 2, Ministers' statements. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Antoine.

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Mahsi, Mr. Minister. Item 2, Ministers' statements. The honourable Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes, Mr. Allen.

Roger Allen Inuvik Twin Lakes

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to talk today about some of the achievements of the Department of Justice during the 14th Legislative Assembly.

The department had many significant legislative achievements during the 14th Assembly, including the Human Rights Act and National Aboriginal Day Act. The Human Rights Act is one of the most comprehensive in Canada and everyone in this Assembly shares in this achievement. Other legislative achievements include the Personal Property Security Act, Powers of Attorney Act, raising the minimum wage, and increasing the small claims court limit. These legislative changes support our growing economy and the ability of residents to control their own affairs.

I am pleased that the Protection Against Family Violence Act and Youth Justice Act have been given third reading this final session.

During this Legislative Assembly, the department expanded its community justice program. Working in partnership, we have seen the number of communities involved in justice activities double over the last four years. The community justice program is an alternative to the justice system, encouraging offenders to accept responsibility of their actions and face their community. By next year, all communities will receive funding from the department to hire a part-time justice coordinator.

Mr. Speaker, considerable work has gone into modernizing the corrections system. We have created a corrections system that is safe, secure and focused on community support and reintegration. The department is using wilderness camps, alternative homes and traditional counsellors to help transition offenders back into their communities.

The department assumed responsibility for probation, expanding it into a community corrections program. With community corrections workers in eleven communities, the department is better able to supervise offenders and assist them in returning to their communities.

The third step in modernizing our corrections system has been the construction of new facilities to replace old, outdated centres. These facilities use new supervision techniques and provide an environment more reflective of aboriginal culture and values to support the rehabilitation of offenders.

Mr. Speaker, improvements have been made to other parts of the justice system as well. In the area of family law, the department has brought together all family programs under the supervision of one person. This has resulted in improvements to both legislation and the maintenance enforcement program. It has also resulted in the delivery of positive parenting programs in Inuvik, Yellowknife and Fort Smith, and support for a new collaborative approach to family law.

The department has also worked with the RCMP to improve the level of police services in the Northwest Territories. During the last four years, the department has provided resources for a new restorative justice coordinator in the RCMP, and to add an additional officer to all single-member detachments.

The department worked to prepare for implementation of the federal government's Youth Criminal Justice Act. This act complements the NWT's existing practice of diverting offenders into the community justice system. The department provided training and materials for all justice partners, including communities to prepare them for the larger role they will play in the system.

The final achievement I would like to highlight today relates to the role of the Department of Justice as the government's "in-house law firm," providing legal advice to government departments. The changing political and economic environment of the Northwest Territories has increased demand for legal advice and support from the department. The department's legal team played important roles in self-government, devolution and land claim negotiations over the past four years, and will continue to do so.

Also, Mr. Speaker, the department's legislation division has worked with both the Legislative Assembly and all departments to meet the active legislative agenda of the 14th Assembly while ensuring our laws meet the needs of citizens.

These are just some highlights of the many achievements of the Department of Justice, Mr. Speaker, and I thank you for the opportunity to talk about them.

---Applause

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Minister. Item 2, Ministers' statements. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Antoine.

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you. The honourable Member is seeking unanimous consent to waive the rules pertaining to the timing of the Ministers' statements, so that they may conclude the remaining ministerial statements for today. There are no nays, Mr. Minister, you may conclude your statement.