This is page numbers 3981 - 4022 of the Hansard for the 16th Assembly, 4th 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 caribou.

Topics

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Final supplementary, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Jane Groenewegen

Jane Groenewegen Hay River South

I was wondering if the department did any research on the readership of the News/North. Not to offend News/North, but I would suggest that the majority of school kids are not reading News/North. Perhaps $2,000 a week might have been better spent on samples of

nutritious breakfasts that could have been taken into the schools and handed out for free. Does the Minister agree?

Jackson Lafferty

Jackson Lafferty Monfwi

I do agree that students with full stomachs learn better in school. So we’ll continue to support in that respect.

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. The honourable Member for Weledeh, Mr. Bromley.

Bob Bromley

Bob Bromley Weledeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want to follow up on my Member’s statement and ask the Minister of Health and Social Services, given that we were lined up for major capital work on Stanton Hospital but have now let that opportunity slide, how long will the planning, budgeting and construction process take, in her estimation, to get what is needed in place, major redevelopment? When will that be actually in place?

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. As I’ve indicated in the House previously, we anticipate that it will take at least two years to finish the Master Development Plan for Stanton.

Bob Bromley

Bob Bromley Weledeh

Perhaps I’m not speaking clearly. I asked how long the Minister estimates it will take for planning, budgeting and construction to take so that facility is where we need it. How long? When can we expect that to be in place?

Sandy Lee

Sandy Lee Range Lake

The Member is familiar with our capital planning process in this House. A capital infrastructure like that would go through a master development planning process, which would be used to get into the planning process. It’s the planning process that would determine where that capital ask would fit in. Once it’s approved it will depend on what the building requirements are and depending on how big of a capital project it will be, it will take multi years.

Bob Bromley

Bob Bromley Weledeh

Mr. Speaker, the Minister is being quite modest in her estimates. I would say, at the rate we’re going, the pace the Minister is setting, we will be talking a decade or longer. This is totally unacceptable for this territorial facility, which is brimming over and desperately crying out for action. Everyone knows the territorial facility is overdue. Given that the Minister recognizes this need, what effort is she putting in to pushing to get this process shortened in an exception to the normal planning process? Everybody in this room, in this House, understands this is needed. Will the Minister push to get this done in a much more timely way?

Sandy Lee

Sandy Lee Range Lake

Since the Member and the committee have toured the Stanton Territorial Hospital, perhaps next they could do a tour of the Norman Wells Health Centre or Hay River hospital. My point being, Stanton Hospital is a very important piece of infrastructure for us and it provides very important territorial health care programs and services, but it is not one of the most aged buildings we have. It does require a midterm retrofit. It’s about 25 years old, but the Norman Wells facility is 40 years plus. The Hay River facility that we are working on right now, I believe it was built in 1966, plus the renovations. So, Mr. Speaker, I want to advise the Member and the House that a lot of work is being done to redesign the programs and services at Stanton.

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

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

Bob Bromley

Bob Bromley Weledeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there are no doctors in those facilities. The doctors are at Stanton Territorial facility. It’s there where people are sent from all over the Northwest Territories. This Minister is completely ignoring that fact and the desperate need here. Those other facilities are not brimming over. This facility is facing, really, a critical situation -- a quick tour behind the scenes and even her own staff will tell her that -- even comparing to other facilities that we have. So I ask again, Mr. Speaker, what effort is the Minister taking to actually get some work on the ground and recognize the need that’s there, the desperate need? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Sandy Lee

Sandy Lee Range Lake

Mr. Speaker, I think the Member knows that we are here to work for the entire Territories and, for his information, the Hay River hospital has seven doctor positions. They have 50 doctor locums that come and go. Fort Smith and Norman Wells have doctors’ offices.

Mr. Speaker, I understand the need to make sure that the Stanton Territorial Hospital is renovated and, more importantly, that the master development is done. I’ve explained before, the master development plan is more than just a footprint and square footage. It’s about what services will be provided at Stanton for years to come. With the opening of the territorial dementia centre, the consolidated clinic and other facilities, we are looking at a territorial plan that would fit into Stanton Territorial plan. We are doing a lot of work and I’m optimistic that we will have the plan in place and planning money that will have Stanton Territorial Hospital become bigger and better than it is now. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you; Ms. Lee. The honourable Member for Nunakput, Mr. Jacobson.

Jackie Jacobson

Jackie Jacobson Nunakput

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today my Member’s statement was on Mangilaluk School. Recently, Don Kindt Consulting conducted, completed and released a report identifying serious deficiencies and inadequacies with the Mangilaluk School in Tuktoyaktuk. Will this government commit to implementing the improvements to all of the problems identified in this report? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Jacobson. The honourable Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Lafferty.

Jackson Lafferty

Jackson Lafferty Monfwi

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the report that the Member is referring to we received just recently. My department is going through the overall review. The recommendations were brought to our attention and, clearly, we need to work with the community; we need to work with the Member on a going-forward basis. This could be part of the business planning cycle for next time around. At the same time, Mr. Speaker, we did receive a letter from the Member’s constituent school asking about the education planning regarding their school and, certainly, we are committed to working on that. There is also an invitation to the Minister and also Assembly Members. So I would commit going to the Member’s riding. Mahsi.

Jackie Jacobson

Jackie Jacobson Nunakput

I wanted a commitment from him to build the extension, not for a visit, but I’ll take that too. Thank you, Mr. Minister.

Mr. Speaker, you know, about a year ago I put a motion on the floor of the House that was passed. With so many reports that we go through in the government, Mr. Speaker, I need commitment from the Minister in regard to, like he said, a go-forward on getting this…enough reports and getting some action done on the building of the extension in Tuktoyaktuk, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

Jackson Lafferty

Jackson Lafferty Monfwi

Mr. Speaker, as I indicated, this is all preliminary. We just received the recommendations. They are recommendations for us to consider. We may not cover every aspect of the recommendations that are brought forward, but the most critical need we’ll certainly consider that into our business planning cycle.

Mr. Speaker, we may not be able to have the upgrades as we speak today, but certainly that’s a going-forward basis for the next business planning cycle. I am committing to looking into this further with the Member and with the school board education council to develop an action plan. Mahsi.

Jackie Jacobson

Jackie Jacobson Nunakput

Mr. Speaker, considering that the government once promised all students across the Northwest Territories would receive equal, quality education, this government should finally

develop an aggressive strategy to address all inadequacies and implement recommendations to make the real improvements on that report.

Jackson Lafferty

Jackson Lafferty Monfwi

Mr. Speaker, I totally agree that we must meet all the students’ educational standards across the Northwest Territories. In fact, our main targets should be far-reaching to try and be ahead of the other jurisdictions such as the southern jurisdictions. We are developing the plans and implementing those areas and we will continue to improve in those areas.

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Your final supplementary, Mr. Jacobson.

Jackie Jacobson

Jackie Jacobson Nunakput

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to thank the Minister for committing to come to the community; well, actually, the tour of Nunakput, to see all the inadequacies we have in the school system in all of the communities that I represent. Mr. Speaker, we have to action this sooner than later. The school system has to be really looked at in a way that, like from the South. You said the south is different than… We’re no different than the South, Mr. Speaker. We just want the Minister to commit to making sure that the quality of education is brought to Nunakput. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Jackson Lafferty

Jackson Lafferty Monfwi

Mr. Speaker, I may not be bringing a hammer and saw with me when I go to the communities, but certainly that is a starting point. The next phase will be the business planning cycle. I assure the Member that ongoing discussion and an in-depth discussion will take place and we’ll start planning for next year. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.