This is page numbers 3003 - 3034 of the Hansard for the 16th Assembly, 3rd 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 work.

Topics

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The honourable Member for Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Summary Of Issues Considered During This Session
Members’ Statements

March 11th, 2009

Jane Groenewegen

Jane Groenewegen Hay River South

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it has been a long six weeks. Mr. Speaker, I came here six weeks ago with many concerns. From my perspective, we have made progress.

There were issues around communication and how consensus government is working. We have

embarked on a process to bring more clarity to how we communicate and work together. As I’ve shared in the House before, consensus government has many good aspects, but there are also some anomalies that undermine the spirit and intent of consensus. Some of these are processes and some are entrenched conventions or attitudes, but we look forward to more work and dialogue on this as we collectively consider the principles of consensus government.

I came here with very serious concerns about the direction of the proposed changes to the Supplementary Health Benefits Program and the impact of these changes on seniors, persons with disabilities and those families who have members with chronic health conditions. Those proposed changes are being taken back to the drawing board for further analysis and consideration and that is a good thing.

I came here with many concerns around the direction of the Board Reform Initiative. This is another initiative that created a lot of concern and input from the public, which is a good thing. The input is a good thing and that is active democracy. Again, the approach to board reform, I believe, has been altered to not throw out the fundamental of looking for efficiencies, but a more consultative, bottom-up, as opposed to top-down, incremental approach to potential changes.

I came here with serious concerns about our government’s approach to the unsolicited proposal for the NTPC merger with ATCO. I am reasonably assured that the sequencing and this review, along with several others related to the supply of affordable and reliable energy to our residents, will progress with involvement from Regular MLAs and the public. I look forward to the results of these reviews.

Some disappointments are related to the fact that I don’t think we found any really tangible initiatives on behalf of northern residents and of businesses to address the cost of living and the conditions of these economic times, but there is still time for those and it is not too late.

I would tell you that I am somewhat disappointed with the lack of enthusiasm from the other side with respect to the milk subsidy and the return of the housing subsidy from ECE to NWT Housing Corporation, but I do sense that the door is not completely closed on those as well.

Some have referred to the interaction between Cabinet and Regular Members in a negative context. I see this tension and the back and forth as a necessary reality...

I would like to seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement, Mr. Speaker.

---Unanimous consent granted

Jane Groenewegen

Jane Groenewegen Hay River South

Thank you, colleagues. Mr. Speaker, I see this tension and back and forth as a necessary reality as Regular Members represent the interests of their constituents, and as a part of our role in holding the government accountable.

To end on a positive note, I appreciate all the Members’ engagement in the important issues that have been raised during this session. I leave hopeful and encouraged and ask Cabinet Ministers not to forget us while we’re apart, and until we meet again, don’t do anything we wouldn’t do. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.

Program Review Initiative
Members’ Statements

Robert Hawkins

Robert Hawkins Yellowknife Centre

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, one of the key goals established as Members of the 16th Assembly was to work to

ensure that we have effective and efficient government. I fully support this because any way we can make sure government is more relevant to the needs of the people, I believe we demonstrate effectively that we are providing value to the work we do here for the people of the North.

One of the priorities that was established is to meet these goals through what we define as effective government, efficient government and value for government through our program reviews. Mr. Speaker, the Program Review Initiative for government was committed to be undertaken to do analyses on our programs that we do. As everyone knows, the program review office has been established within the Department of the Executive and staff were assigned to carry on this work through the established mandates and target areas. Mr. Speaker, that still leaves some questioning what official areas they are talking about.

Although I support the principle of this work very strongly because it needs to be done to make sure that we are working hard and efficient, if truth be known, one-third of our term has gone by and I fear that this initiative may be lost to wishful thinking and we may never have time to fully implement the values of the work that’s being done. Members still hear that progress is being made, but we want to make sure that we’re an equal partner in this process.

More importantly, on top of the issue, the gathering of this information is critical for us to program our wishes, our goals, and our dreams going forward for the needs of the North and to make sure that our economy is running properly. Is our government running efficiently and effectively? I sometimes wonder, but the information still hasn’t come across my desk. That alone points to the fact, is it? I don’t know.

The work of the program office is a critical component to the value of work that we do here. I ask the Premier and the rest of the government, and of course the overview committee for refocusing government, to make sure they get on this work while we leave here in the next while; sorry, before we return here in May, because this will be critical with the upcoming business planning process that will begin tomorrow.

The business plan process creates a new life on its own because the bureaucrats within the system are already starting to prepare the draft business plans that will come up in the summertime that will be moved forward to committee members in the fall. That’s why it’s so important not to miss the next opportunity, because we will have to wait a full business year before we get to deal with this again.

The message I really want to get across here is MLAs need to be informed. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Program Review Initiative
Members’ Statements

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. The honourable Member for Deh Cho, Mr. Michael McLeod.

Michael McLeod

Michael McLeod Deh Cho

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise today to commemorate the life of Jonas Nadli. This is the third senior to pass away during this session from my riding.

Jonas was born at Mink Lake on April 4th , 1931, to

Elizabeth Matto and Louie Nadli. He had five brothers and his mother, remarried to Joseph Minoza, had two sons after his own father passed away. Together they had one son, Leonard, who was better known to all of us as Gozoah.

As a young child Jonas spent many years in the mission in Fort Providence. When his brothers and himself were allowed to return to the community or to his home, he spoke only French and that certainly created a language barrier for them with his inability to communicate with his parents. He had to have one of his older brothers translate for him. It was very difficult, and most of the time when they talked to their parents it was through gestures,

including trying to tell their parents that they were hungry.

Jonas Married Angelique Thom on July 15th , 1955, and together they raised a son, Michael. Michael and his wife, Shirley, have two children, a son named Danny and a daughter named Rosslyn. Michael is the former grand chief of the Dehcho First Nations.

This July would have marked Jonas and Angelique’s 54th wedding anniversary. Throughout

their life together they lived a very traditional lifestyle in places like Horn River, T’elemia, Leshamie, Big Point, Big Island, and, finally, Fort Providence. Living on the land allowed Jonas to become a very skilled hunter, trapper, provider, and the survivor of many hardships.

Because he loved the traditional lifestyle and had a deep passion for what he did, small challenges such as harsh winters did not slow him down. All his trapping and hunting was done by dog team and he always had a very good, hardworking team of dogs. Because he was very skilled in hunting, many people depended on him. He fed many hungry families over the years. Many people have eaten fish from his nets, rabbits from his snares, meat from successful hunts, and shared tea around the campfire and listened to his many stories and jokes.

I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.

---Unanimous consent granted

Michael McLeod

Michael McLeod Deh Cho

Adults and youth alike loved to travel with both Jonas and Angelique and live with them wherever they set up their camp. He taught many young people the skills of being a good hunter and a provider and a trapper. More importantly, they were very good role models to our young people. Jonas and Angelique spent a total of 10 years working at our youth camps and very much enjoyed passing on and teaching the traditional ways of life.

This past fall Jonas became very ill and throughout the Christmas season, and finally after Christmas he was forced to spend some time in the hospital. He was there for about a month and he certainly wasn’t comfortable in an environment such as a hospital setting, but he managed to endure his time there and he had a lot of strong support from his family.

Jonas was a very humble man, a very quiet man. He touched many hearts in the community of Fort Providence and throughout the Deh Cho. I think all of us are very thankful that we were given the chance to know him and I want to offer my condolences to his friends and his family.

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Item 4, reports of standing and special committees. Item 5, returns to oral questions. Item 6, recognition of visitors in the gallery. The honourable Member for Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

Jane Groenewegen

Jane Groenewegen Hay River South

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I would like to recognize and thank Pages from Hay River South. David Stanga and Zachary Biggar are both Grade 9 students at Diamond Jenness Secondary School and I’d like to thank them for doing a great job this week.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The honourable Member for Frame Lake, Ms. Bisaro.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

Wendy Bisaro

Wendy Bisaro Frame Lake

It’s my pleasure today to recognize a Page as well; a constituent and a very hardworking Page, Mr. Stuart Hamre, who has been with us off and on for the last six weeks. Thank you very much to all the Pages.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. The honourable Member for Kam Lake, Mr. Ramsay.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

David Ramsay

David Ramsay Kam Lake

I have a constituent who is working here as a Page as well, Ms. Madison Phillips. I would like to thank her and the rest of the Pages for all of their hard work over the past six weeks. Mahsi.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Item 7, acknowledgements. Item 8, oral questions. The honourable Member for Weledeh, Mr. Bromley.

Bob Bromley

Bob Bromley Weledeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to follow up on my Member’s statement with questions for the Minister of Health and Social Services. Given that we have an increasing and accelerating condition of crack cocaine addictions in Yellowknife -- especially with the concentration of diamond dollars, not unexpectedly -- what is Health and Social Services doing to address that problem?

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Bromley. The honourable Minister responsible for Health and Social Services, Ms. Lee.

Sandy Lee

Sandy Lee Range Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There are a number of programs and services that the program provides to those who want to address

their addiction issues. The Member knows that we have a treatment centre on Hay River Reserve, Nats’ejee K’eh. We also have out-of-territories service committee, a treatment committee where those persons who need treatment from elsewhere would be placed there. We also have programs in the city. We have counselling services, the Stanton Territorial Hospital Authority has more acute mental health service, the Tree of Peace has a front-line service working with their client groups on addressing addiction issues. There are a number of programs and services that we provide to address this issue.

Bob Bromley

Bob Bromley Weledeh

I’d like to call on this Minister to draw on her full knowledge and recall some of her past work in this area before she became Minister, as well as her current knowledge. I assume there’s no change. At least, I haven’t heard any change from what there was in 2004 when she passionately called for an addiction treatment centre in Yellowknife. More specifically, what are we doing to prevent the HIV and Hep C epidemic typically associated with IV use of crack cocaine, as is now common in Yellowknife? What programs do we have in that area?

Sandy Lee

Sandy Lee Range Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’m very well aware that the Members have very busy schedules, so I’m not going to ask the Members to read the entire body of work that includes all the statements I made. I want to state that I was one of the few Members on the other side who did not necessarily say that we need a treatment centre was the answer to everything. I said that because I consulted with a lot of people involved in working with people with addictions and a lot of them will tell you that building a treatment centre is not the answer to everything or the answer to a lot of things. It’s nice to have, but something like crack cocaine are very highly addictive and specialized drugs. We have facilities elsewhere that can provide those services better.

On the Hepatitis and other conditions, I want to state that the department has been working really hard to track down and treat those who have STIs. We have hired an extra STI coordinator to address that issue. Tuberculosis cases have all been identified and examined. We have to continue to work on this highly addictive issue area and the work continues.

Bob Bromley

Bob Bromley Weledeh

I appreciate the Minister’s response there. Obviously, however, the work is not working or we wouldn’t have this accelerating rate of crack cocaine addictions that our hospitals are seeing. So additional work is needed on this and perhaps addictions centres are one way to go.

Specifically on the prevention side of things for the HIV and Hep C potential that we have, is the

department going after harm reduction techniques such as has been used in Vancouver? I realize it’s a big city situation, somewhat different, but harm reduction techniques have been demonstrated to be working in this situation and our medical staff obviously think what we’re doing now is not sufficient. Are harm reduction techniques being considered and pursued?

Sandy Lee

Sandy Lee Range Lake

I have read with much interest the same e-mail that the doctor has sent to the Member and myself, and I’m interested in pursuing further what the doctor has to say. Having said that, the government is not at the moment considering the harm reduction proposal that the Member is suggesting, which is the sort of self-service IV clinic in Vancouver. That is not an option that we are considering. However, a small group of people in Yellowknife, the front-line workers are aware of who are our most in need of help in our streets in Yellowknife that the doctor is referring to and we need to continue to work with them to provide the support and services they need so that we avoid contamination or a spread of disease.

I should let the Members know that HIV rates in the Territories remains very, very low. We are lucky in that regard, but all the people working on the front line are aware of the potential danger and there’s a lot of work done to address that.

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Final supplementary, Mr. Bromley.

Bob Bromley

Bob Bromley Weledeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thanks for that assurance from the Minister. I’m wondering what sort of monitoring we’re doing for HIV and Hep C in association with crack cocaine addiction, if we have any way of monitoring that.

Sandy Lee

Sandy Lee Range Lake

I realize that these are not all the same conditions, but the recent outbreaks of syphilis and tuberculosis have taught us a lot. It has allowed us to set up a committee of resource people, including those from the affected community; a homeless person or whoever it is that are most exposed to it. We have professionals and people on the street working together to identify people who are most at danger and working and having the STI nurses and coordinators and the front line workers talking to them, being in touch with them, and to make sure that they’re provided with the services that they need. In the long run we do need to have something like a day drop-in centre or something like that, where people could be more protected and have more services available to them. We are working on that.