Good morning, colleagues. Welcome back to the Chamber. Orders of the Day. Item 2, Ministers’ statements. The honourable Minister responsible for Municipal and Community Affairs, Mr. Robert McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I’m pleased to share with Members the infrastructure achievements of community governments in the Northwest Territories. Community governments are important partners for the Government of the Northwest Territories as we work towards achieving our goals of this Assembly.

Beginning in 2005 with the federal New Deal for Cities and Communities and then in 2007 with the GNWT’s New Deal for NWT Community Governments, community governments began receiving funding to invest in their own infrastructure priorities. While not all community governments have advanced at the same pace with this new funding, we have seen impressive results in many areas and we should all celebrate these success stories.

Community governments are now investing in core municipal infrastructure, including upgrades or construction of new roads, improvements to solid waste sites, and upgrades or construction of new office buildings and fire halls. Aklavik, Behchoko, Colville Lake, Fort Liard, Fort Providence and Kakisa are examples of community governments who have chosen to make their infrastructure investments in these areas to provide enhanced programs and services to their residents.

Using a wide range of infrastructure programs offered by the Government of Canada over the past five years, community governments have been able to invest heavily in water and sewer infrastructure,

solid waste sites and energy savings projects in community public buildings.

Most recently, nine of our community governments took advantage of Canada’s Infrastructure Stimulus Program by undertaking 10 different projects throughout the Northwest Territories, of which four are already completed.

Most of these community governments decided to join forces to leverage funding under the Building Canada Plan to upgrade water treatment facilities in order to meet the Canadian Guidelines for Drinking Water Quality. To the community governments of Fort Good Hope, Fort Liard, Fort Simpson, Inuvik, Jean Marie River, Lutselk’e, Trout Lake and Wrigley, I extend my congratulations on your success in this area and for improving the quality of drinking water for the residents in your communities.

I believe that it is important to also note that while our community governments are not only delivering on important infrastructure needs, they are doing so in an environmentally conscious manner. In Fort Good Hope, the community government decided on a high-efficiency heating system and building insulation package in their community office complex, and in Dettah the new community complex includes a high-efficiency wood pellet boiler.

Finally, I would like to highlight some of the projects community governments have completed to support health and well-being of their residents. In Tulita, the youth will now be able to swim in their above-ground pool. In Gameti, they are now enjoying their new recreation centre. In Enterprise, the new community centre has meeting rooms, recreational and fitness facilities, and many other features to keep the young and old busy 24 hours a day. In Paulatuk, the youth are enjoying their new youth centre. In Ulukhaktok, the residents are utilizing their community centre. Fort Providence and Fort Resolution chose to upgrade their arenas, while here in Yellowknife the soccer players and other users are enjoying the new fieldhouse.

We are very proud of the success that community governments are achieving as important infrastructure projects are completed. Municipal and Community Affairs will continue to support community governments as they address their

priority needs and we look forward to continuing to work with community governments as they bring forward new projects that reflect the needs and priorities of residents.

Mr. Speaker, the funding that the Government of the Northwest Territories provides to community governments for their infrastructure priorities helps us achieve our vision for sustainable, safe and vibrant communities. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. February 21st to February 25th marks

Education Week. This is an important time of the year when we celebrate the academic achievements of students across the Northwest Territories and also recognize the many educators who support and strengthen our educational system.

Since last September I have had the pleasure of hosting forums in various regional centres as part of the Aboriginal Student Achievement Initiative. Through these forums, I have met incredibly talented youth. These bright students have courage and determination and are committed to not only for their own futures but the future of others by building a stronger North. I am honoured to share the stage with them at the forums and appreciate the knowledge they continue to bring to discussions.

Some of the youth have shared stories of the people they turn to for support and to rely on. Teachers are often among those identified and Education Week is a great time to acknowledge their efforts. The Northwest Territories Teachers’ Association Thank You for Making a Difference annual campaign is all about students recognizing their teachers. The Teachers’ Association gets nominations from students from all over the Northwest Territories who want their teachers recognized for the difference they make in their lives. All our teachers deserve our gratitude for everything they do. I congratulate everybody who received nominations and those receiving Thank You for Making a Difference awards.

Mr. Speaker, learning doesn’t start nor stop when you walk into or out of the school. Learning is a lifelong journey that includes the family and the community. Education is a shared responsibility, and by working together we can help our students receive the education that they deserve.

This Education Week the department is challenging all residents of the Northwest Territories to take part in the Thumbs Up campaign and identify ways that they can help support the education system. It is

about recognizing how each of us is doing a good job and also listing ways that we can continue raising the bar even higher, Mr. Speaker. Residents can get their Education Week package at the regional Education, Culture and Employment centres or from their community school.

Mr. Speaker, we are achieving success on this Assembly’s goal of healthy, educated people and I encourage the Members to join me this week in celebrating the contributions of many people across the North who are helping us to get there.

In closing, I would again like to thank the teachers and educators across our Territory who commit so much of themselves so their students can be successful. I also want to thank our partners in the communities, the Aboriginal governments, the industries, and Aurora College, who continually work to improve education and training opportunities for our people. Finally, a big thanks to our many students for their commitment to bettering themselves while challenging us to better ourselves too. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. The honourable Premier, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to advise Members that the Honourable Michael McLeod will be absent from the House today to attend the Western Transportation Advisory Council meetings in Vancouver. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Item 3, Members’ statements. The honourable Member for Sahtu, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It’s important that we run a government that serves the people. Mr. Speaker, to do that, we need to be aware of the culture that we’re living and working in.

In the Sahtu region, this government has many employees who really need to know about our culture. I don’t know why there are no cultural awareness programs for territorial government employees. We have them for teachers and they’ve been very successful. They are proper both for the teachers and in the communities. It’s a very simple program to implement, Mr. Speaker.

I propose that we make it mandatory for government employees working in the region to learn about the culture of that area. The program should include traditional activities and some basic

language skills. This should be done properly, in a one-week program. People in the communities should be involved in it. This would have added advantage to helping government employees meet people from around the region, learn from one another and build relationships and work together. Most importantly, a cultural language program will help improve our government services.

I am not raising this issue out of the blue, Mr. Speaker. Last May 18th , the Deputy Premier stood

up in this House and made a good promise. Mr. Miltenberger gave us his word that the Department of Human Resources would have a cross-cultural awareness program developed, including an on-the-land component, available to all GNWT employees by the end of the fiscal year. Time is running out, Mr. Speaker, and we have not yet seen that program going out in the Sahtu region or anywhere else. I know the Minister of Human Resources is part of this department’s plans for a Brilliant North. The action plan states that cross-cultural awareness training will be rolled out this year. I look forward to seeing that happen, especially in the Sahtu region. I expect local people to be involved in the training plan and teaching our way of life.

I will be asking the Minister of Human Resources questions about this training program at the appropriate time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The honourable Member for Frame Lake, Ms. Bisaro.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Domestic violence is all too prevalent, Mr. Speaker, but domestic violence involving women and girls is an area that is especially concerning. The NWT is not immune to domestic violence, unfortunately. We are reminded on a daily basis of incidents that have occurred in one or more of our communities. Most of them report violence against women. Not only does the violence have an impact on the victim, but the offender’s actions affect everyone around the victim, children most often, but other family members and friends are also impacted by the trauma. They all must continue to deal with the impact of the violence as the victim struggles to recover physically and mentally and as they try to assist and provide support to the victim.

There is also potentially the trauma of a court case. Often the stress on the victim is too much and they turn to drugs and alcohol to deal with it. That creates another vicious cycle and children again bear the brunt of the resulting damage.

As a government, we provide resources to assist the victims of family violence, and shelters are the

most visible and noticeable result of our funding. Some of our communities have shelters for women and girls, but many do not. That is something which must change, Mr. Speaker.

As we have heard earlier this week, there exists worldwide an organization called V-Day which strives to create awareness of violence against women and girls. The NWT Chapter is called V-Day North, and for four years now volunteers have been highlighting this issue and creating awareness through public events. There will be three events this year. The first is a live comedy event tomorrow night. The second is the screening of a documentary film which will be held February 28th ,

and the third is a play that will take place March 10th , 11th and 12th . Each event has a minimal entry

fee of $10, I think. Most of the proceeds are donated to NGOs here in Yellowknife, with 10 percent going to fund shelter programs in Haiti. Those two NGOs are the Alison McAteer House and the Centre for Northern Families, both of which provide shelter and support for women and children fleeing violence.

On behalf of them and V-Day North, I encourage everyone to attend one of the V-Day events coming up. A small contribution from each of us will have a huge impact on these two shelters and their clients. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. The honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I would like to speak about the importance of early education and how I believe that ECE should support junior kindergarten in our future years.

The GNWT has two strategic initiatives in this area. One provides funding for the languages initiatives that supports local language programming for preschool children and the second provides some assistance to regions to assist early childhood providers. In Yellowknife, preschool programs and preschool bilingual programs are offered on a fee base. There is also a program at the Yellowknife Catholic Schools for children who, for various reasons, are referred by the community agencies that need the extra assistance and need a head start.

Last summer Yellowknife Education District No. 1 offered a short summer program, without fee, to support pre-kindergarten students. Mr. Speaker, from all indications that I have been told, this was a significant success and a great head start for those kids rolling into kindergarten. These are valuable initiatives I believe we need more of.

I support universal junior kindergarten in the NWT. Mr. Speaker, at a UNESCO World Conference on Early Childhood Care and Education, the key message was that education is essential for development and there is no better place to set development on the right track than in the first few years of a child’s life.

It is clear that a child’s life chances often play out well before the first day in school. By providing junior kindergarten, we can help to level that playing field and to ensure that every child has a solid foundation that literacy can be built upon. By reaching all children earlier, they will find they will be better served and can find problems and identify them, if necessary, and that need support such as eyesight, nutrition and the ability to play. Mr. Speaker, this gives the system the ability to tap into resources early, and as we all know, early intervention is the key to overcoming struggles of that nature.

Mr. Speaker, we all support universal education through many messages we talk about here, but we must ensure that there’s a level playing field for all our children, and it begins at junior kindergarten. Mr. Speaker, accordingly, these students who receive early education and a solid foundation in literacy and numeracy, these adults go on and become more productive citizens in our lives. Mr. Speaker, they turn out to be true, real contributors.

Mr. Speaker, finally, the UNESCO director general says this is the greatest investment in a child’s life.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’ll have questions for the Minister of Education later today.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. The honourable Member for Tu Nedhe, Mr. Beaulieu.

Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. [English translation not provided.]

Mr. Speaker, today I would like to speak about the Apprenticeship Program and its impact on small communities. In our small communities we have to bring trades personnel in to do work on our units and on our buildings. This is due to the lack of trades personnel at the community level.

Mr. Speaker, this is not to say we have no tradespeople at all, we do have a few, but much more is needed. For now, every tradesperson in a small community should have an apprentice working with them. In a community such as Fort Resolution and Lutselk’e, we have many skilled people that can do carpentry, plumbing and even electrical, but for the most part they are not certified and they need to be certified tradespeople in order to take advantage of the opportunities that are available to them within the community and the

mining industry. This is another way of putting people in the small communities to work.

Mr. Speaker, I believe that this government has to do all it can with all of the departments working together to plan and organize all the work necessary at the community level. Mr. Speaker, the deferred maintenance alone in the GNWT buildings is over $300 million, not to mention any new construction our industry needs. With all of this work needed in our government, our government must coordinate itself, led by the Department of Education, Culture and Employment, to take advantage of this, seize the opportunity to train and certify people and continue the work on the government’s objective to create a society that’s independent and self-sufficient.

Mr. Speaker, the bottom line is the small communities have the human resources needed to do the labour on these projects in the communities and around the communities. This government must find a way, find the money and develop policies to help people in the small communities sustain their economy. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’m going to speak today about the management of health authorities in the Northwest Territories.

Mr. Speaker, this issue is nothing new to anyone sitting here today. I and other Regular Members have been asking the government the entire time I’ve been here for a better way to fund and manage our health care system. Mr. Speaker, the government continues to take the easy way out when it comes to dealing with deficits at the authorities. They continually throw money at it through so-called one-time funding requests or through supplementary appropriation.

Mr. Speaker, let me recap one-time funding and appropriations to authorities: 2002-2003, $3 million; 2004-2005, $2.2 million; 2006-2007, $2.9 million; 2007-2008, $4.9 million; 2008-2009, $25 million; for a total of $38 million. Most of the trouble it would seem at the Stanton Authority started after the board was disbanded in November 2002. In April 2003, then Health Minister Miltenberger issued a press release where he stated it is important that Stanton Health Authority have a fully functioning board to provide leadership and direction to the organization. Mr. Speaker, here we are eight years later and still no board at Stanton. The red ink continues to spill and the government has no answer to the management and financial control over our health care system.

Mr. Speaker, you would think that for a government that is on very shaky financial footing, that we would have taken steps to get financial control back from the authorities. Mr. Speaker, what we should do immediately is collapse all authorities, establish advisory boards in each region, establish one board of management for health and social services with balanced regional representation. We must get financial control back. It will lead to more seamless and effective management of the resources we do have, the mobility of health care professionals, equipment and the provision of services will improve under one board.

Mr. Speaker, this is something the government must act on, and while we’re doing this we should also address the issue of the employees at the Hay River authority, include them once and for all in our system.

Mr. Speaker, I’m at a loss as to why this government has not acted on this matter and somewhere around the next corner there lurks another supp, I am sure. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Menicoche.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. [English translation not provided.]

The community of Wrigley has really excelled at Dene hand games over the last three years. I am very proud to speak about that today, proud that they have a strong cultural belief system, they practice it and support each other and their youth. The Dene hand games is one of our strongest cultural experiences for the Dene of the NWT, on par with drum dancing, which we all love.

I believe our government should be supportive of this and provide resources to support the Dene hand games. We must make efforts to support and sustain this. As you know, we have spoken many times. Our small communities have limited fundraising abilities and low employment rates, yet in the community of Wrigley the energy and dedication of the residents, the band office and parents make it possible to travel and participate at hand games tournaments throughout our North and even in northern Alberta.

Mr. Speaker, the Wrigley hand game players have always done well wherever they go. They have requested assistance from our government, but we have no programming for this. The communities are not asking for full sponsorship, only a contribution to assist them in travelling for this important cultural activity. The band offices support it, the parents support it, the people support it and our government must support it.

We have a successful Youth Ambassador Program and I believe we can have a cultural ambassador program to support this. Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. The honourable Member for Great Slave, Mr. Abernethy.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Over the last seven years the Mine Training Society, which is a partnership between industry, Aboriginal and public governments, has been training Aboriginal Northerners so that they can obtain long-term, meaningful and well-paying jobs in the mine and mine services sector. The Mine Training Society was originally an initiative of the Government of the Northwest Territories. It started 15 years ago as an adhoc committee put together by the Minister of Education of the day, Charles Dent, along with the Chamber of Mines, Diavik Diamond Mines, Yellowknives Dene First Nation and Indian and Northern Affairs. Together they began the process of community-based training for Aboriginal Northerners, which led to the creation of the Mine Training Society.

In 2003 the Mine Training Society, with support of the Department of Education and Indian and Northern Affairs, developed the Northern Mineral and Industrial Skills Strategy. This strategy resulted in the Mine Training Society becoming one of the first of nine Aboriginal Skills and Employee Partnership, or ASEP, agreement holders with Human Resources and Skills Development in 2004.

The Mine Training Society has been working with ASEP since 2004. Since that time it has worked with its partners to train over 900 people, of which 600 have obtained employment in the mine and mine service sector. Using funds from ASEP in the amount of about $16.8 million, the Mine Training Society partners have invested an additional $18.6 million in support of training. This further partnership investment has been used to support the development of best practice programming like the Underground Miner Program as well as purchasing infrastructure support for Aurora College, such as the underground mine simulator that is housed at the Yellowknife Campus.

Mr. Speaker, organizations like the Mine Training Society are a necessary component in the economic development of the Northwest Territories. By focusing on the creation of a skilled Aboriginal workforce for the mine and mine service sector, the Mine Training Society is facilitating economic opportunities for residents in many of our small communities throughout the North. It is imperative that we see the continuance of this organization as a unique partnership of industry, Aboriginal governments and pubic government. It produces

measureable and very tangible results for the North.

Mr. Speaker, later this afternoon I will be speaking to the motion before the Legislature regarding the Mine Training Society and the Aboriginal Skills and Employment Partnership program. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In February 2009 I told this Assembly about a Weledeh constituent who is taking on the Workers’ Compensation and Safety Commission. I’ll update you today on his progress.

The basis of this dispute is the fact that while workers can receive compensation for the psychological pain resulting from injuries, WSCC practices doesn’t allow compensation for physical pain. Psychological pain settlements are made according to a written standard which rates severity. I have read the policy. There may be a provision for a physical pain standard to determine compensation, but WSCC has not developed a standard and does not allow physical pain claims.

My constituent believes this is wrong. For three and a half years now, despite the severe pain and debilitation caused by his injuries, he has fought to have this changed. He’s mounted his case with savvy determination and minimal legal assistance. Recently he took his case to the NWT Human Rights Commission for a ruling on WSCC’s position. In their recent decision, the Human Rights Commission agreed to refer the matter to adjudication. We now await the adjudication hearing.

Throughout this struggle my constituent has repeatedly stated his determination to go on, not just for himself but for all injured workers who have been denied the compensation for pain as well as psychological injury. My constituent has also had to negotiate bottlenecks holding up current benefits. For example, I recently had to intervene so that my constituent no longer has to buy his medication out of pocket and await WSCC reimbursement. Sometimes out of work or with no money for medication, he has had to borrow from family for lack of a mechanism to send the bill directly to WSCC.

Mr. Speaker, I can’t overstate my admiration for this amazing and dedicated man, and gratitude for the opportunities I have had to help him out in small ways. The adjudication will be coming shortly. If it succeeds, I expect to see the WSCC reviewing the complete list of all those who’ve been turned down for pain compensation, and a WSCC action plan to

pay complete compensation to these injured workers. Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Bromley. The honourable Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Treaty 11 has been around for some 90 years, since it was signed in the summer of 1921. Mr. Speaker, the reason for the land claim settlement was because of the discovery of oil in and around Norman Wells. In order for the government to allow industry or people to move into the Northwest Territories and obtain the right to that oil, they had to have a treaty signed with the First Nations people in the Mackenzie Valley, which included the Treaty 11 area that went all the way to the Beaufort Sea.

Mr. Speaker, the whole reason for treaties some 90 years ago was to open up the North to allow a legal transfer to take place between the indigenous people of the Northwest Territories, the Government of Canada and the Dominion of Canada to allow for that to take place.

That is no different than what we’re talking about here in regard to devolution between the Government of the Northwest Territories taking powers from the federal government and imposing that right over indigenous people in the Mackenzie Valley like they did some 90 years ago. But since then, Mr. Speaker, the people in the Northwest Territories, the Dene and Metis people, have woken up to the reality that they have rights that have not been implemented under their treaties, especially in the area of lands and resources and the management of those lands and resources in the Mackenzie Valley, and that’s what we call the modern day treaties.

In those modern day treaties it’s pretty clear that they have the right to lands and resources, not only ownership rights but the rights to royalties and any revenues that flow from those additional Crown lands outside the lands they already own.

Mr. Speaker, the federal government and the Government of the Northwest Territories has treaty, Constitution and land claims obligations that are entrenched in Section 35 of the Canadian Constitution. What’s happening here in the Northwest Territories, Mr. Speaker, is pathetic. We are leaving out one of the largest landowners in the Northwest Territories from a fundamental process, by exclusion, by ignoring them and not taking them seriously and allowing them due process, hearing them out, giving them the resources so that they can have the meetings they need to discuss the issues that are before them. Because they make waves, they’re pushed off the table and they’ll sign

with anybody that’s on our side and agrees to everything that we’re telling them, but not deal with the people who are impacted by this decision.

At the appropriate time I will have questions to the Premier on why the Dene people have been excluded from this process.

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. Item 4, returns to oral questions. Item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery. The honourable Member for Frame Lake, Ms. Bisaro.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Although not a constituent, it’s my great pleasure today to recognize an old colleague -- and I don’t mean old in age, but a colleague I worked with quite a long time ago at Sir John Franklin School -- Mr. Ed Jeske. With Ed up there is Vivian Squires, who will soon be the new executive director for the Yellowknife Seniors’ Society.

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. The honourable Member for Thebacha, Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to recognize a few people in the gallery today. Ms. Denise Yuhas, a very successful businesswoman and one of the best constituency assistants in the business. Bonnie Lynch, one of our northern trained and very capable nurses; and Ms. Theresa Beaulieu from Fort Smith as well. Welcome to the gallery.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I guess my recognition of visitors in the gallery will sound a little bit like déjà vu thanks to Ms. Bisaro. I too would like to recognize Mr. Ed Jeske. He’s a very well-known and wise, respected constituent. Accompanying him, as Ms. Bisaro had mentioned, is the lovely and charming Vivian Squires, who has just returned as the executive director to the YK seniors. Welcome to them both.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. The honourable Member for Great Slave, Mr. Abernethy.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to recognize a few people joining us in the gallery today on behalf of the Mine Training Society: Hilary Jones, the general manager, Rachelle Beaulieu, Marilyn Hardisty, Jessica Enzoe Riddle, and Kelly Arychuk, the chair.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I don’t get to do this very often but today I would like to recognize my granddaughter, Julianne Groenewegen, in the visitor’s gallery. I’d also like to recognize my very long-serving constituency assistant, Wendy Morgan, who is also in the visitor’s gallery today.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The honourable Member for Weledeh, Mr. Bromley.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to welcome any Weledeh residents and I’d also like to recognize the Mine Training Society folks and Jane Arychuk, head of our Aurora College campus here, and, of course, my long-time and old-time mentor Ed Jeske and his accompanist Vivian Squires.

Thank you, Mr. Bromley. The honourable Member for Yellowknife South, Mr. Bob McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to recognize a constituent of Yellowknife South, Ms. Kelly Arychuk. I’d also be remiss if I didn’t recognize a long-time hockey supporter, minor hockey, senior hockey, old-timer hockey, the only guy I know that has an arena named after him -- I’m sure he would have brought his cow bell in if security would have let him -- Mr. Ed Jeske.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I’m pleased to recognize Marilyn Hardisty in the gallery here today, a former resident of Jean Marie River. Welcome.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. If we’ve missed anyone in the gallery today, welcome to the Chamber. I hope you’re enjoying the proceedings.

Item 6, acknowledgements. The honourable Member for Sahtu, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to acknowledge the recent grand opening of the Chief T’Selehye School in Fort Good Hope. The official celebration began on January 14, 2011.

I’d also like to thank the people who made this happen. My appreciation to Minister Jackson Lafferty and to the Government of the Northwest Territories. Congratulations to the community of Fort Good Hope, especially to the parents, teachers and the community.

Chief T’Selehye was a strong leader, and may the school produce more such leaders in the future.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Item 7, oral questions. The honourable Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is directed to the Premier and is in light of my Member’s statement and specifically the lack of consultation that seems to be taking place between the Dene leadership.

I’ve received a phone call from Billy Erasmus, who put a formal request into the Government of the Northwest Territories to host a Dene leadership meeting, which includes all the Dene leaders throughout Denendeh, regarding the Mackenzie Valley on this issue that are before us on devolution. The Dene people are the ones that are most impacted by this decision and we do have treaty obligations, whether it’s from the old treaties 8 and 11 or the modern day treaties.

I’d like to ask the Premier what it’s going to take for this government to assist those groups to get to the table, have their issues put forward, and when are we going to hear them out so we can understand where they’re coming from by allowing these meetings to take place.

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. The honourable Premier, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I must take exception to the manner the Member raised in his Member’s statement about how this government has been pathetic in reaching out. The fact is, during the life of this government, the 16th Assembly, we set up the regional leaders approach that had all the regional leaders, presidents, grand chiefs at the table to help set the discussion about what we share and how we do work and things. At the table we also recognize that we’re not always going to agree on subject matters that come forward.

In fact, this agreement-in-principle that the Member is referring to bring people back to the table on, if you look at chapter 4, the general provisions of the devolution agreement, from 4.5, 4.6, 4.7, 4.8 all talk about Aboriginal rights and interests and how this government and the federal government and the parties that sign onto this would work in ensuring that those rights are protected throughout the Northwest Territories in this devolution process.

Aside from that on the specific question of support for Aboriginal governments, we have supported Aboriginal governments by providing funding

directly to the regions to take part in devolution discussions.

Further to that, the meetings in the Sahtu, for example, we have supported those meetings with funding, along with attending those meetings and will continue to do that.

As we all know, all groups are not part of the Northern Leaders’ Forum which some groups are not taking part in. Yet the Dene leadership forum includes all the Dene leadership throughout the Northwest Territories, which allows them to have that discussion among themselves for those groups that are not part of the Northern Leaders’ Forum but do take part in those discussions.

I’d just like to ask the Premier, since he made a reference to the wording in the agreement under the land claims agreement, which is protected under the Canadian Constitution, it’s pretty clear that the Government of the Northwest Territories shall involve the Aboriginal governments in developing implementation of a northern accord agreement on oil and gas which is negotiated in accordance with the element of the land claims agreement. I’d just like to know, if you have a constitutional agreement which clearly stipulates that you shall involve them, and then on one hand you’re saying, well, if you’re not at the table, you can’t talk, I’d like to know what we’re going to do to have an inclusive system that includes First Nations leaders to have that discussion either amongst themselves to develop their positions and bring them forward so the Government of the Northwest Territories and the people of the Northwest Territories can see exactly what the First Nations positions are.

The process we have used has been absolutely inclusive. In fact, it’s through the modern treaties, as the Member has referred to them as, the land claims and self-government discussions and the ones that are in negotiations that set up the regional leaders process.

Every one of the regions has been a part of that process. It’s been at those regions, those regional leaders, the grand chiefs and the presidents that have said they’re the decision-makers that affect their claims and the people they represent, not the Dene Nation national chief. So we’ve worked with those regional leaders through this process.

In fact, through the Northern Leaders’ Forum, which is a side to the regional leaders table, Mr. Erasmus asked to be a part of that and I took it to the regional leaders. They accepted that he could be a part of that process as an observer, because, again, they held that right to be the decision-makers. So we’re working with the decision-makers.

This agreement-in-principle, clearly with the involvement of those who wanted to be at the table and chose to be at the table helped with the wording in this around those protections, and about the sharing of authorities, and about the resource revenue sharing piece. These are included in this agreement-in-principle that we’re working on and going forward towards negotiations on, because we had involvement in the early days and we’ve left it open to come to the table and be a part of those decisions, be a part of that discussion and help set the future course of the Northwest Territories.

I’ll try to get back to my original question. Will the government consider funding the meeting coming up next week between the Dene Nation and the Dene leadership so that they can basically develop their position, see exactly what their issues are, and format that discussion and make their positions clear to the people of the Northwest Territories and the Government of the Northwest Territories?

The groups have been involved from the earliest days, right from 2002 forward up until the protocol work we were doing. All groups were involved in that. We looked at the request from the Dene Nation, reviewed it to see how we could look at doing this work and reaching out, and the decision was to work with the regional approach that we put together at the start of this Assembly and we’re continuing to do that. We have contacted the Dene Nation and informed them our approach will be with the regional and community leaders.

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. Final supplementary, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Again I’d like to ask the Minister, there’s been a lot of push by the Premier to go community by community. I think before you do that, you’re undermining the Aboriginal leadership by doing that and not recognizing that they are elected officials with just as much authority as we have. I’d like to know if we are undermining the Aboriginal leadership without having that dialogue with them first, before we go into the communities. The same thing applies to ourselves as MLAs and Members of this House. What are we doing to get those Aboriginal leaders, show them some respect, and treat them as real leaders in the Northwest Territories and quit ignoring them?

The Member continues to stand up in this House and, in a sense, show disrespect to the process that we have put in place through regional leaders. The Member has at least in his mail copies of the letter and correspondence that we’ve sent to regional leaders to say we are working with them going forward with the regional leaders, so the grand chiefs, the presidents and the community leaders, the chiefs from their

communities. We’ve invited them to give us times when they would like to meet and discuss how we proceed forward. So we’ve communicated on that behalf and await responses. In fact, we’ve acted on the first response we had from the Sahtu and the door is open for those who want to come forward and have these discussions on how to move forward.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. The honourable Member for Sahtu, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is to the Minister of Human Resources. It has to do with the promise that was made last year that Mr. Miltenberger stated May 18th . I want to ask

the Minister when the Cross-Cultural Awareness Training Program will be available to all GNWT employees as was promised last year.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The honourable Minister responsible for Human Resources, Mr. Bob McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Unfortunately he never communicated that information to me. No, I’m just… We have been working diligently on developing a Cross-Cultural Awareness Training Program for the Government of the Northwest Territories. Our 20/20: Brilliant North Public Service Strategic Plan makes cross-cultural awareness and diversity awareness a priority for this government. We developed a framework agreement that promotes exactly that and we’ll be rolling it out in the new fiscal year, 2011-2012. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I want to ask the Minister when the department rolls out this cross-cultural training program, when, I guess, is the time frame in terms of dates as to when he thinks that it will be delivered in the Sahtu region.

We’ve awarded a couple of contracts so that we can develop a Cross-Cultural Awareness Training Program that can be delivered. We are working with communities and we are also involving Aboriginal governments, those that are willing to participate. We’ve written to all of them and invited them to participate. We also will be tendering and awarding another contract to develop a training curriculum framework for our e-training component of this cultural awareness program. My expectation is it will be early, probably the summer of 2011. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, can the Minister inform me and inform the House if the ground-roots people from the Sahtu region, in terms of their unique cultural way of living, are involved in part of the cross-cultural awareness training the same as

the Gwich’in or the Akaitcho and the other diversity cultures in the North here. Is the Sahtu involved?

As I said, we have written to all of the Aboriginal governments inviting them to participate in the development of the cross-cultural awareness training. I would have to check to see if the Sahtu government has responded in the affirmative. But we are also developing a guide that would outline the training on the land or experienced-based training that’s available out there, and my expectation is that our Cross-Cultural Awareness Program that will be developed will involve people in the regions and elders and so on. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Your final supplementary, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. From experience, sometimes we find that some people are very well-expertised in putting together training programs, but they still don’t get it in terms of them facilitating or delivering a cross-cultural or any type of training program. How will the people in the Sahtu be in the forefront of actually teaching the program or putting the program together in terms of this cultural training that would be greatly received, hopefully, by the GNWT employees?

The contract has been awarded and we’ll address those issues. Our expectation is that all new employees that are new to the North, new to the government, will undergo the cross-cultural awareness and diversity-awareness training. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The honourable Member for Tu Nedhe, Mr. Beaulieu.

Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. In my Member’s statement I spoke of apprenticeships in the small communities and how this government should try to take advantage of the Apprenticeship Program and to try to get some deferred maintenance requirements done. I mentioned that across NWT and GNWT buildings, there is a deferred maintenance backlog of over $300 million.

I want to ask the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment: does the Minister know what the deferred maintenance requirements for each community are? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. The honourable Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Lafferty.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Those are the areas that we need to explore with each department. Each department has their own mandate. They have their own goals

and objectives to deal with the communities, whether it comes to apprenticeship or training on the job at the community level and also employment. So we need to gather that information. I can definitely share that with the Member as well. Mahsi.

Mr. Speaker, I’m trying to get the appropriate department, I guess, to start looking at employment rates. It’s very difficult to kind of place this issue, like the Minister responded, on one department. I’m also trying to find some sort of champion, I guess, from Cabinet to be able to lead something like this. Again, I want to ask the Minister if he knows, if the Minister or the department knows what industry needs for the demand of trades personnel are in the Northwest Territories. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, we do have data. We’ve conducted a survey in the past and we also have an MOU with the mining industry and they’ve identified how many apprentices will be required, how many positions will be required, training programs and the local employment. Just recently the Rio Tinto Diavik, they’ve hired on I believe it’s nine additional apprentices. That’s above and beyond what they’ve committed to. So kudos goes to the team. But others, the corporations and the bands have identified what’s going to be required in the next five to 10 years down the road. We do have the information on that and we are working with that information as we develop a plan to move forward on identifying budget, within the budget, to allocate that funding specifically to the communities such as Fort Res and Lutselk'e in the Member’s riding and other communities as well. Mahsi.

That’s good news, Mr. Speaker. It sounds like there’s been some activity with the industry. Now, in as far as the department themselves go, the department of Housing, Public Works, MACA, ITI, and their needs for work to be done, just any sort of work that has to be done, most of that type of work, when there’s contracts and so on, there’s a requirement for trades personnel to be on-site. I’m wondering if the Minister has discussed any sort of plan with departments such as Housing, Public Works, MACA and ITI in as far as the need for trades labour goes for their work. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, there’s always an ongoing discussion interdepartmentally, whether it be MACA, PWS, Housing, and within our Education department and other departments, as well, that may require whether it be apprentices or training on the job, and we do what we can as the department to assist in those areas because we do have the funding allocated under apprenticeship and an on-the-job training as well. Mr. Speaker, I’ll continue to work

with those departments and strengthen the working relationships that we have and identifying those key areas of interest that are out there in the Northwest Territories and in the communities that we need to push for. Mahsi.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Again, that’s positive. I think that’s in the right direction. There seems to be some good planning, I guess, going on for future needs and I’m talking about trades, although I’m ultimately trying to get some apprenticeships. Will the Minister commit to developing an overall plan for trades and apprenticeships, for both, to address the total needs of all trades requirements in the NWT including government and private industry? Thank you.

That definitely is part of the plan within Education, Culture and Employment. We need to have short-term and long-term plans as well. Just identifying some of the key areas in the Member’s riding, we’re happy to share that information on the 18 journeypersons in Fort Res mostly in the heavy equipment operators, three journeypersons in Lutselk'e, carpentry, heavy-duty mechanic and housing maintenance, and also two registered apprentices in Fort Res. Those are just, I think, a start for us and we need to identify those key areas working with the departments and also the corporation, the band council at the community level and also the community government. We need to identify what is required at the community level and we are more than willing to work with the communities in developing those key areas as well. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services and focused on the Centre for Northern Families which has obviously, according to the news, found itself in a fairly desperate financial situation. Mr. Speaker, the Centre for Northern Families obviously plays a big role in our city here and in society in general across the Territories in helping women who find themselves in dire situations, women and their children. I am wondering, Mr. Speaker, beyond the stabilization supports and modest funds that are provided to NGOs delivering critical services, what progress has the Minister made in helping to get the centre squarely back on their feet. Mahsi.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As the Member knows, the Department of Health has been working with Education, Culture and Employment to review the situation and come up with the options. I do not have the most recent information. I have asked the staff to look into that and I will get back to the Member. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I am certainly aware that the department has been working with them, but this work hasn’t resulted in any progress. That is a huge disappointment. I have a specific question.

The Minister committed to providing a secondment from GNWT some years ago now, I believe, to actually assist this important NGO to get back on their feet. Has this been done? If not, when will it be done? Mahsi.

Mr. Speaker, that was one of the options that I was discussing with Education, Culture and Employment. It should be noted here that ECE and Health are a joint funder and supporter of this program. I know that the staff had been working with the organization. I will update the Member. I have asked for the information, I just don’t have it in front of me. Thank you.

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

Mr. Speaker, thanks to the Minister’s commitment there. I look forward to that information, but I can say that it hasn’t been done yet. That is again a huge frustration and so much for interdepartmental efficiencies that supposedly have been worked on. I am wondering, Mr. Speaker, given that, again, the role this NGO plays is critical and we continue to have people go missing when they are released from the hospital, the Centre for Northern Families ends up being the last stop of last resort. It is really critical to get this result. This has been going on for years now. Will the Minister commit to getting that resolved before the end of this term? Mahsi.

Mr. Speaker, we do have an agreement here that that organization has an important function to deliver and it is an important part of the spectrum of services that we provide for the homeless and those who need our support in the community, not just for Yellowknife but for many people that come to Yellowknife. But the Member is also aware that we have had long-term structural issues with the financial situation of that organization. We have been working, the department and ECE. I just do not have the most recent update, but I will commit, once again, to follow up on that and see what our options are. Thank you.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I talked a bit about family violence and particularly violence against women and girls in my statement. I would like to follow up with some questions to the Minister of Health and Social Services about the Family Violence Action Plan. The first phase of the Family Violence Action Plan is done. We are now into phase two. I would like to ask the Minister some questions on the progress of this plan. One of the goals and a component of a goal is to increase funding to two shelters with their own buildings to compensate for O and M costs that are not experienced by other shelters. The deadline for that or the timeline on that was October 2008. I would like to ask the Minister whether or not that evaluation has been done and, as a result, whether the increased funding has actually occurred. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In fact, it was. The increase in funding did happen. The increase was as a result of the recommendation from the action plan. The increase was provided under the Shelter Stabilization Enhancement Funds.

I have sat with the operators of shelters in Hay River and other communities. They have thanked us and the government for enhancing the funding. It was also part of the action plan that recognized that there are only five shelters in the Territories and that there are a lot of communities where we needed to support families and victims of family violence and it was for that reason that in 2010-11 five non-shelter region projects were funded, one in Fort Providence and then Fort Liard, Fort Simpson, Norman Wells and Behchoko. The program included prevention and outreach educational workshops, the implementation of community-based awareness campaigns and the hiring of a community services coordinator to assist victims. Mr. Speaker, yes, we are moving under that plan. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, thanks to the Minister for that summary. I appreciate that the department is providing funds and that they are doing what they can to develop shelter services in other communities beyond where they actually have bricks and mortar. It is something that we absolutely have to do. If it is a priority for this department to make sure that shelters are running and are actually operational, I have to go to Mr. Bromley’s comments about the Centre for Northern

Families. This centre is struggling. If it is a priority for this government to provide shelters and make sure they work, why is it the Minister can’t seem to get the Centre for Northern Families on a stable financial footing? Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate that we are talking about... While lots of clients of the Centre for Northern Families, have to do with victims of family violence, the Centre for Northern Families is funded in a different way and they serve also different clientele.

I can assure the Member that, under the action plan, a number of things have been accomplished. We have conducted a territorial attitude survey on violence. A territorial family violence consultation was held under this action plan. We have also developed a training program called Supporting Northern Women, a Northwest Territories shelter worker training program which has been delivered in all shelters.

The existing family violence shelters outside of Yellowknife have been better funded and stabilized, and services have been enhanced in communities where there are no shelters. Protocol development has happened in Yellowknife and Sahtu. We have funded YWCA on Child Recovery Program for children who witness abuse. We also have developed a video on non-violence, a strength-based community inquiry, and a lot more work has been done to research and develop a program for men who use violence.

Also, I would like to advise the Member that evaluation of the first five years of the Protection Against Family Violence Act will be completed by March. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Short supplementary, Ms. Bisaro.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will try to be short. Maybe I should sit down. No.

I would like to thank the Minister for that summary of all the wonderful things that we are doing, but it did not go to my question. If it is a priority for this government to make sure that shelters are funded, then why is the Minister not making sure that the Centre for Northern Families is financially sustainable? They are funded differently and that is the problem.

Mr. Speaker, as I indicated, the Centre for Northern Families has a unique challenge that the Department of ECE and I have been working on. We are committed to working with the organization and to support the organization to the extent possible. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Final supplementary, Ms. Bisaro.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My last question has to do with a part of the action plan

which talks about a community consultation in Inuvik to develop a strategy for the implementation of changes that are required, and the timeline on that was February 2009. Can I ask if that is done?

I am aware that a lot of work has been done and is being done on that, so I will follow up to be able to confirm that to her, seeing as it’s going back to 2009.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just want to follow up on my Member’s statement where I mentioned that the community of Wrigley is travelling for hand games and supporting an important cultural aspect of our Dene heritage. I’d like to ask the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment what kind of support is out there in his department that could support the initiatives such as this.

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

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Within the traditional and cultural activities, and pertaining to that is also language, we provide over $12 million specifically in those areas. The funding is allocated to the school boards, as well, and at the community level to deal with the cultural preservation and promotion of the culture. The money is available in that respect. It is a group that deals with the funding as well.

When it comes to hand games tournaments that are happening in almost every region, there have been a lot of requests that have come to our attention. We always refer them to the community level, the school boards or cultural agencies that we work with.

It has been the case where they have been turned down with their requests and they have had to fundraise on their own. Especially for a small community that has little or no income, it’s very hard to fundraise. They did manage to support their culture and I’d like to ask the Minister if we can design some type of programming or be flexible with our program to include hand games cultural activities just to get people travelling around.

This could be part of the discussion. We haven’t heard much in the regions. The forum on Aboriginal Student Achievement Initiative, that is part of the cultural preservation, as well, and deals with the language. This could be part of the discussion that we will have with the group. As we move forward where we

could, identifying within the $12 million I’ve already identified, maybe we could work with that. I need to get some feedback from the language expertise at the community level that we deal with at the forum.

Sounds like some hoolay for the specific initiative. I’d like to ask the Minister if he can look in his department at the different types of programs to see what can fit to support this type of initiative. It’s very important to the community of Wrigley, very important to all our communities in the North, and interactions amongst the different communities is something that we should support as a government.

One thing that we can possibly look at through the Aboriginal Student Achievement Initiative is the training aspect where we’ve had some requests in the past for training. We’ve provided in-kind contributions. This is an area we could possibly look at. But when we talk about the huge regional hand games tournament, it’s very difficult to put money towards that where it’s much broader. We want to focus on the youth that are getting involved in the hand games demonstration, hand games training. That’s an area we could probably explore.

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Final supplementary, Mr. Menicoche.

I’m certainly glad that the Minister is looking to the youth aspect of it. I think that’s a huge component of what’s happening in Wrigley.

Can I also ask the Minister if he can work with the Department of ITI? I know that we sponsor hand games at the Olympics and national events. Just an extension of this and that’s what the communities want. If we’re funding it anyways, can we bring it home? Can we bring it to the small communities?

Whether it be the tournaments, the Vancouver demonstrations -- and we’ve sponsored those participants to be at the function to demonstrate what the hand games are all about so we can show the world -- those are areas we can sponsor through the GNWT as a whole that we’ve done.

With respect to the Dene hand games in various regions, in the past those organizations have been very successful conducting those events with or without the help of organizations or sponsors. Like the Member has stated, they have raised money. This is an area especially with the youth that I like to focus on those areas.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In my Member’s statement I talked about early childhood education. UNESCO says early childhood education is defined by the years of birth to eight years old. They believe that it makes a remarkable difference on the brain development of young people if early education is offered early in the beginning of school years, before the traditional time of grades 1 to 4.

I would like to ask the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment what his government and department can do to help support schools that wish to offer junior education programs.

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

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. We do currently provide funding to the school boards but it is at their discretion if they want to provide pre-kindergarten throughout the summers as the Member has alluded to. Last year this was successful. It was their own initiative. It wasn’t our department saying they should have that. We provide funding for that, but this could be also part of the Aboriginal Student Achievement Initiative because it covers all areas of the Northwest Territories, the students, and junior kindergarten has been an option that’s been identified through that venue. There is ongoing discussion. We still have two more regions to attend. I’m sure this will be part of the discussion as we move forward.

The problem with the Aboriginal Student Achievement Program, although it’s a fantastic program, it doesn’t fit all the students. I’m talking about programming that school boards can offer for all students.

We have schools that are presently taking on this role of junior kindergarten and I think it’s a significant advancement of the education of a young person and giving them the right start. Would the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment investigate the opportunities on a proposal basis trying some pilot projects of funding junior kindergarten?

Again the Aboriginal Student Achievement Initiatives focus is on the sector of what’s happening within the education system. I’d like to find out the results of that discussion at the forum. That gave us guidance as we explore different areas. Whether it be junior kindergarten that the Member is referring to within the schools in the Northwest Territories during the summer as an option, those are the areas that we will likely explore once we get the Aboriginal Student Achievement Initiatives finalized and then

recommendations will come out. It does reflect overall on the department as well.