Please be seated. Monsieur le pr‚sident, mesdames et messieurs les deputes, mesdames et messieurs, et amis. It is a great pleasure to be here again today.
Since we last met, your Commissioner has had a busy and successful time. I have had the pleasure of travelling to Sachs Harbour, Enterprise and Fort Resolution, bringing the total number of communities I have visited to 15. It is always a delight to meet old friends and participate in local celebrations and events in our communities. It remains my goal to visit each and every Northwest Territories community before the end of my term of office and I am pleased to report today that I am well on the way to achieving that goal.
I had the honour of being invited to many community events in the last few months including the Inuvik Youth Conference, the Arctic Winter Games, the History Fair, the annual Youth Parliament here in the Legislative Assembly, and several high school and college graduations. I continue to be both impressed and amazed by the intelligence, skill and resourcefulness of our young people. They are certainly to be admired and respected for their extraordinary commitment and ingenuity.
It is good to see so many people, especially young women, graduating from high school and college. To witness so many going on to post-secondary training to fulfill their dreams and take their place as valuable, contributing members of our society is particularly gratifying. At least two women from the NWT have qualified as medical doctors this year. These young women have chosen a noble and important profession and I offer them my sincere congratulations.
As well, I would like to thank and congratulate the Department of Education, Culture and Employment, the district education authorities, all our schools and, of course, the students themselves on their excellent graduation results.
---Applause
Our educational improvements and successes go from strength to strength and you should all be proud of yourselves. Our future is certainly in good hands.
During this session, the Government of the Northwest Territories will be introducing the following bills entitled Supplementary Appropriation Act, No. 1, 2006-2007 and Supplementary Appropriation Act, No. 4, 2005-2006 for consideration by the House. The government considers these bills essential to the good conduct of government business and, as such, I recommend their passage.
As Commissioner of the Northwest Territories, I now declare open the Fifth Session of the 15th Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories. Thank you, merci, mahsi cho and qianami.
Speaker's Opening Comments