Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise today in support of the motion. I want to congratulate and thank Member Yakeleya for bringing it forward, Member Hawkins for seconding it, and for all our colleagues here today who have brought forward into this House very strong and compelling arguments for the need of not just addictions awareness, but now we’re putting some money behind that need.
We’ve heard today, and we’ve also heard over the last couple of weeks during this sitting, many different ways where money has been used frivolously or monies where we could have been reapplying it to proper programs such as this. We have the need and we’ve had the desire to finance money for another territory at huge cost to this government and huge cost to taxpayers that goes unnoticed, but there is a number quantifiable to that and a quantum.
We were able to find no problem to find monies and bonuses for $1.2 million for senior bureaucrats, and yet that goes without question. It seems to be common practice. We can afford to pay over $750,000 in WSCC penalties over the last two years. Again, with very little question with very little care in the world as to, really, the true cost to we, as taxpayers, and to the people who need it most. Yet, we hear many times the experts, the medical practitioners and how many more coroner’s requests and inquests we’re going to have to have in this House before we can do something proactive for the people who need it most.
We’ve heard from the other Minister, the Minister of Finance, on his Lego road show. This is a dialogue and budget dialogue talks that he took throughout the Northwest Territories, and in this Lego road show it was clear and evident that people came back to the table with Legos in hand saying we want to put these Legos, we want to put this money and infrastructure into addictions. We’ve heard it. We’ve heard it from everybody in the Northwest Territories. We’ve heard it from people here.
The question I have to ask not just the Minister of Health and Social Services but all of Cabinet: Are you listening to the people? Do you hear their voice? Thank you.