This is page numbers 1355 - 1396 of the Hansard for the 14th Assembly, 6th Session. The original version can be accessed on the Legislative Assembly's website or by contacting the Legislative Assembly Library. The word of the day was tlicho.

Topics

Supplementary To Question 418-14(6): Declining High School Graduation Rates
Question 418-14(6): Declining High School Graduation Rates
Item 7: Oral Questions

Page 1373

Brendan Bell

Brendan Bell Yellowknife South

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Well, I think we're all looking very hard for answers here, and it's disheartening to hear that the ministry has none yet. I'm wondering if the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment can tell this House when he reports back with his findings on the declining graduation rates? Thank you.

Supplementary To Question 418-14(6): Declining High School Graduation Rates
Question 418-14(6): Declining High School Graduation Rates
Item 7: Oral Questions

Page 1373

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Bell. The honourable Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Ootes.

Further Return To Question 418-14(6): Declining High School Graduation Rates
Question 418-14(6): Declining High School Graduation Rates
Item 7: Oral Questions

Page 1373

Jake Ootes

Jake Ootes Yellowknife Centre

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it will likely take a number of weeks before we could put some substantive information together that would clearly outline what is happening and why things are happening. We know it is happening; we have that information. But why that is happening may be subject to a number of factors, Mr. Speaker. It may be the enrollment has been declining in certain grades. Just looking at the number of students and community types here, for Grade 12, 1999 was 290 and in 2002 it's 220. We need to analyze what is happening there, Mr. Speaker. On the positive side, as I say, we have increased enrollments and increased graduation rates in the communities and by aboriginal students. Thank you.

Further Return To Question 418-14(6): Declining High School Graduation Rates
Question 418-14(6): Declining High School Graduation Rates
Item 7: Oral Questions

Page 1374

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Minister. Item 7, oral questions. The honourable Member for Range Lake, Ms. Lee.

Sandy Lee

Sandy Lee Range Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my question today is for the Minister of Justice and it's in regard to the meeting he had with the federal Minister of Justice, Martin Cochon. Mr. Speaker, I read with a great deal of interest the press release that he made public on September 26th announcing the content of the meeting. There were references to two issues, one being the firearms law and the other being the legal aid. So I would like to know from the Minister what was discussed at the meeting and does he have anything to report about any additional funding for legal aid? Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Minister of Justice, Mr. Allen.

Return To Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Item 7: Oral Questions

Page 1374

Roger Allen

Roger Allen Inuvik Twin Lakes

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, I wanted to report that it was a very productive meeting and very cordial, as well. We discussed, as I expressed to many colleagues across the Northwest Territories, to convey the importance of the firearms legislation in the context of prosecution. With that we got a commitment from the federal Minister that we would not purposely prosecute individuals except on a case-by-case basis, but would ask the public to comply with the law because it's a federal piece of legislation.

Secondly, I would acknowledge the support the federal Minister has given us in the past for legal aid across the Northwest Territories. He committed to continuing to support us, contingent upon Treasury Board decisions. Thank you.

Return To Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Item 7: Oral Questions

Page 1374

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Allen. Supplementary, Ms. Lee.

Supplementary To Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Item 7: Oral Questions

Page 1374

Sandy Lee

Sandy Lee Range Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. May I ask the Minister for more specific information as to what this government's position is in regard to legal aid? Is there a specific dollar amount that this government is asking for from the federal government? Is there a plan of action, like the one that we saw in quarters of the Northwest Territories that got us some money from the federal government? I'd like to know more detail about what this government is asking from the federal government. Thank you.

Supplementary To Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Item 7: Oral Questions

Page 1374

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Minister of Justice, Mr. Allen.

Further Return To Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Item 7: Oral Questions

Page 1374

Roger Allen

Roger Allen Inuvik Twin Lakes

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I do not have the specific details. We do have a representative from the department on the Legal Services Board of the NWT and through their administration they will factor in a budget; also, additional financial requirements on an annual basis. From that perspective, I gather the new government will be faced with trying to support that additional requirement. Thank you.

Further Return To Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Item 7: Oral Questions

Page 1374

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Allen. Supplementary, Ms. Lee.

Supplementary To Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Item 7: Oral Questions

Page 1374

Sandy Lee

Sandy Lee Range Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I didn't want to make the obvious point that we have a lack of funding in legal aid services and that I just assumed that the government must have been asking for more money from the federal government. The Minister just indicated that he's waiting for the decision of the Treasury Board, which I'm assuming is about money. I would like to know, did we ask for money and, if so, how much did we ask for? Thank you.

Supplementary To Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Item 7: Oral Questions

Page 1374

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Minister of Justice, two questions there, Mr. Allen.

Further Return To Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Item 7: Oral Questions

Page 1374

Roger Allen

Roger Allen Inuvik Twin Lakes

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In reference to my meeting with the Justice Minister, no, we did not discuss specific dollar amounts. It was a matter of making the Minister aware that we required additional federal funding to support legal aid in the Northwest Territories. As customary with other Ministers, we conveyed that to the federal Minister and hopefully he will be able to get the support of the Treasury Board to continue to support our needs. Thank you.

Further Return To Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Item 7: Oral Questions

Page 1374

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Allen. Your final supplementary, Ms. Lee.

Supplementary To Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Item 7: Oral Questions

Page 1374

Sandy Lee

Sandy Lee Range Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Just on that note about the Minister waiting to hear from the federal Minister and Treasury Board decision, could the Minister give any dates as to when he would expect an answer from the federal government? Thank you.

Supplementary To Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Item 7: Oral Questions

Page 1374

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Minister of Justice, Mr. Allen.

Further Return To Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Item 7: Oral Questions

Page 1374

Roger Allen

Roger Allen Inuvik Twin Lakes

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We had our officials attend the federal/provincial/territorial First Ministers meetings in Quebec and I haven't received the results back as to what the content of the discussions were. I'll ensure that as soon as I receive them that I'll share them with the Member. Thank you.

Further Return To Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Question 419-14(6): Meeting With Federal Justice Minister Cochon
Item 7: Oral Questions

Page 1374

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Allen. Item 7, oral questions. The honourable Member for Great Slave, Mr. Braden.

Bill Braden

Bill Braden Great Slave

Mr. Speaker, thank you. My question this afternoon is for Mr. Allen, Minister responsible for the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation. A few weeks ago in Yellowknife, Mr. Speaker, a decision was made by the Housing Corporation to potentially put a property up for sale and contribute the proceeds to the Homelessness Coalition in order that they might secure a proper facility for a homelessness facility for men. My question is, Mr. Speaker, is the Housing Corporation taking immediate action to make this transaction and move the funds over to the Homelessness Coalition? Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Braden. The honourable Minister responsible for the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation, Mr. Allen.

Return To Question 420-14(6): Sale Of Property Proceeds To The Homeless Coalition
Question 420-14(6): Sale Of Property Proceeds To The Homeless Coalition
Item 7: Oral Questions

Page 1375

Roger Allen

Roger Allen Inuvik Twin Lakes

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. If I can just make a correction to that. It's the Minister responsible for the homeless that's the proponent to this letter and I want to assure the Member that, yes, we are continuing to work with the various advocacy groups and also the coalition to speed up the process. Hopefully it's being done as we speak. Thank you.

Return To Question 420-14(6): Sale Of Property Proceeds To The Homeless Coalition
Question 420-14(6): Sale Of Property Proceeds To The Homeless Coalition
Item 7: Oral Questions

Page 1375

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Allen. Supplementary, Mr. Braden.

Supplementary To Question 420-14(6): Sale Of Property Proceeds To The Homeless Coalition
Question 420-14(6): Sale Of Property Proceeds To The Homeless Coalition
Item 7: Oral Questions

Page 1375

Bill Braden

Bill Braden Great Slave

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. That's good news. The information I was looking for was to ensure that, indeed, this process is possible and to get some urgency on this. Will the Minister be able to advise the MLAs and the coalition of exactly when it is this house may be put up for sale? Thank you.