Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Back on February 24, 2014, in this House, I spoke to the fact that right now superbugs pose the biggest challenges in our hospitals nationally. In fact, one in 12 patients in a Canadian hospital are infected by superbugs during their stay. Unfortunately, after waiting 94 days for an answer to my tabled written questions from the Department of Health and Social Services, it is clear this department is not concerned about these national statistics or the potential health threat to the residents of the Northwest Territories. My questions will be for the Minister of Health and Social Services.

The fact that this department has almost ignored national alarming statistics on hospital superbug infestation is shameful. Focusing on one matrix, that of only methicillin-resistant strains of Staph A begs to ask the Minister are reporting mechanisms truly in place or do these superbugs fail to cross the 60th parallel, because every other jurisdiction in

Canada faces these threats. So why, Minister, why are we so unique that we don’t see these other prevalent superbugs in the Northwest Territories? Thank you.