The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Good afternoon, colleagues. Item 2, Ministers’ statements. The honourable Minister of Justice, Mr. Ramsay.

David Ramsay Minister of Justice

Mr. Speaker: I am pleased to report that earlier this month the Territorial Court of the Northwest Territories launched the Wellness Court, supported by a new Department of Justice Wellness Court Program.

The Wellness Court is an alternative to conventional court that focuses on the offender rather than the offence. This court, and the supporting program, provides intensive supervision and targeted programing for chronic offenders who have mental health issues, addictions or cognitive challenges that contribute to their criminal behaviour. With this program we hope to help offenders develop a healthier life and move away from re-offending.

In a conventional court, a person who is charged comes before a judge who will look at the offence, listen to all the evidence and make a ruling based on the case and information before them.

In the Wellness Court, a person who is charged also comes before a judge, but their sentencing is delayed so that they can participate in the Wellness Court Program. In this program, a case manager and team provide intensive support and supervision to the offender as they work to make positive changes. The team helps them access services such as housing and income support as well as mental health and addiction programs.

To participate in the Wellness Court and its associated programs, the accused must be ready to make changes in their life, accept responsibility for their actions and plead guilty to at least one charge. The defense lawyer will work with the accused and the Crown prosecutor to see if the case can be

referred to the Wellness Court. If referred, a case manager will assess the accused to determine suitability with the program. If accepted, an individual wellness plan will be developed.

While completing their wellness plan, the offender must maintain this commitment to change and appear regularly before the judge who will oversee the entire process. During this phase, the case manager and team provide intensive supervision and support to the individual.

Offenders who participate in this program are subject to conditions to guide them. If they break these conditions, they will return to the court for sentencing unless they work with their case manager to remain in the program.

If they complete their plan, the offender will appear before the judge for sentencing, taking into consideration the work and progress they have made in the Wellness Court Program. After sentencing, the team will arrange after-care to ensure continued support for the offender.

Mr. Speaker, by having a person accept responsibility for their actions and supporting them as they do the hard work necessary for change, specialized courts in other jurisdictions have demonstrated chronic offenders can not only succeed but can successfully change their behaviours. We have seen success through the Domestic Violence Treatment Option Court, and we expect similar success from the Wellness Court.

The Territorial Court is critical in the implementation and operation of this specialized court. Without this, the Wellness Court and supporting program would not have been possible.

The department has also worked very closely with the Yellowknife Health and Social Services Authority and the Department of Health and Social Services in setting up the Wellness Court Program. The RCMP, Legal Services Board, the NWT Bar and staff from the Public Prosecution Service of Canada have also made important contributions.

Mr. Speaker, our thanks go out to each of these partners for the role they played in the development of this project and will continue to play to ensure the success of the Wellness Court. This is a new initiative and we expect that both the court and the supporting program will evolve over time.

Our government is committed to ensuring that NWT residents get the programs and services they need to be healthy, educated and self-reliant. This alternative form of justice is another positive step towards giving people the tools they need to make good choices for themselves that will help us to reduce crime and build safer communities. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The honourable Minister of Transportation, Mr. Beaulieu.

Tom Beaulieu Minister of Transportation

[English translation not provided.] Mr. Speaker, building a safe and effective transportation system is vital to support the development of a sustainable economy and meeting the social needs of NWT residents. Goals identified by Members of the 17th Assembly express the significance of improving transportation services across the NWT to reduce the cost of living in communities and to create employment and business opportunities for residents.

To this end, the Department of Transportation is updating its NWT Transportation Strategy to guide further development of our integrated air, road, rail and marine systems over the next 25 years. I am pleased to report that we have made significant progress on this initiative.

The new strategy will update the first territory-wide multi-modal Transportation Strategy completed in 1990. Much has been accomplished in the 25 years since the first strategy was released and we know that our transportation system will continue to evolve significantly over the next 25 years. We are preparing for the future by considering what challenges and opportunities lay ahead of us and where our priorities are best placed to benefit all Northerners.

But our priorities can’t be placed without first hearing from the people who live and work here. That is why the Department of Transportation has been busy this past summer and fall gathering perspectives on the transportation system from stakeholders across the territory.

In June the department launched an online survey that gave residents the opportunity to submit comments on transportation services and related areas, including support for economic development and protection of the environment.

Mr. Speaker, the strong level of public interest in our transportation network was evident. The department received over 500 responses to the survey from residents and other transportation stakeholders. I would like to thank everyone for their participation.

We also met with key stakeholder organizations from within the NWT and from southern Canada who conduct business in the North to hear their concerns and ideas. These meetings confirmed the strong role that transportation plays in supporting industries and organizations that provide essential services to our residents and contribute to economic growth for our territory.

The department also conducted interviews with NWT political leaders, including MLAs and Aboriginal leaders, to hear their thoughts on priorities for transportation in the North.

Staff from the department have read and reviewed every single one of the responses to the online survey. Those responses along with the information gathered from stakeholder meetings and interviews with political leaders will inform the development of the updated strategy. Other GNWT strategies, such as the Economic Opportunities Strategy and the Mineral Development Strategy, have been reviewed to ensure our government is focused and our priorities coordinated.

Mr. Speaker, managing the growth and development of all parts of the NWT’s transportation system is essential to long-term and sustainable prosperity for our residents. A comprehensive multi-modal strategy that considers safety, the environment, economic development, and social needs alongside current and future infrastructure investment needs will be a critical tool for us.

Once the strategy has been drafted, we will again be calling upon residents to ensure that we have clearly heard and reflected their ideas. Public meetings will be held in regional centres this winter to review the draft and determine if there are additional priorities to consider. I encourage Northerners to take part with the same level of enthusiasm that we saw with the online survey and to once again ensure their voices are heard. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

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

Jackson Lafferty Monfwi

Mr. Speaker, I am very proud of the Department of Education, Culture and Employment’s work to promote and preserve the culture, heritage and languages of the NWT.

As a northern people, our culture is rooted in the land and created in the places where we live and practice our daily lives. Northern culture is unique, woven together from our diverse experiences and incorporates our heritage, stories, spirituality, traditional knowledge, languages and creativity.

Mr. Speaker, ECE is entrusted with the crucial role of ensuring our languages, culture and heritage are transmitted to future generations.

To ensure we fulfill that trust, ECE is developing a government-wide, 10-year Culture and Heritage Strategic Framework. This initiative will focus the GNWT’s work around a set of common culture and heritage priorities for the next decade and was mandated by the Premier. Aboriginal governments, multicultural and heritage organizations, youth, elders, artists and many other partners will be involved in helping us develop the framework. A draft framework is scheduled for completion in the summer of 2015, followed by an action plan.

Mr. Speaker, our goal is not to duplicate strategies but find common themes between them that will let us better coordinate our efforts in many related areas. For example, the priorities identified in the NWT Arts Strategy will inform our work towards a broader framework. Likewise, we hope to work with groups like the NWT Arts Council and the Gwich’in Social and Cultural Institute to create a framework that builds on our individual efforts and supports our shared purpose of promoting NWT culture and heritage.

Mr. Speaker, as you know, one of our initiatives is the Culture and Heritage Circle, established in 2011 to recognize those who have contributed to preserving and promoting the arts, cultures and heritage in our territory. At a celebration earlier today, we honoured this year’s recipients: Camilla Tutcho, Elder category; Rene Fumoleau: Individual; Janelle Nitsiza, Youth; Foster Family Coalition of the NWT, Group; and Deninu Kue First Nation, Minister’s Choice category. I look forward to recognizing the recipients in the gallery later today.

Congratulations to all of you and the valuable contributions you have made to the cultures and heritage of the Northwest Territories. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

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

Norman Yakeleya Sahtu

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Sahtu got world-wide attention when major oil companies won exploration record bids for the vast hectares of land surrounding Norman Wells, Tulita and, recently, Fort Good Hope. To the Sahtu people, this area is our home and our land, but to most of the world it’s a remote frontier region yet to be developed, waiting to be tapped.

Between 2012 and 2014, the Government of the Northwest Territories conducted a needs assessment to determine the employment needs and job opportunities related to oil and gas exploration and looked at its impact on government, business and other organizations in the Sahtu. The findings of the assessment are key to managing the resources we have and making sure the benefits go to our people. The Sahtu labour force is about 1,200 people, and just about two-thirds of them have jobs. If development goes ahead, there will be opportunities for rig workers, certified tradespeople and people with advanced technical and professional skills.

We need project managers, administrators, safety operators, cat operators, wildlife monitors, truck drivers and heavy equipment operators. Industry, business, government and other stakeholders all say the same thing: people need life skills and job readiness training, literacy skills, a driver’s licence and a quality high school diploma in order to get jobs, and they need affordable houses and the lower cost of living to stay and work in the Sahtu.

The government needs to find ways to invest in developing the workforce in the Sahtu and all the Northwest Territories. We need to act on the findings of this assessment and create an environment that is good for all professional skill development, and we need to act now.

This statement is the first of a three-part series about the Sahtu oil and gas needs assessment. I want to challenge Members of this House and the people of the Northwest Territories to get ready for this development. Now is our chance to make the best decisions for the Northwest Territories and for the people of the Sahtu. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.

Robert Hawkins Yellowknife Centre

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. For some time there hasn’t been an Aboriginal wellness coordinator at the North Slave Correctional Centre, and it’s been my understanding that this position has been vacant this summer as of June 3rd .

Being someone who is actually familiar with the Correctional Centre by working there only, I actually am familiar of how critical this cultural-appropriate programming is to the healing and rehabilitation of many. It’s important that we have relevant programming that is meaningful for those who are seeking help. With this position vacant, people are not getting the treatment that they certainly need.

We need to be part of the solution for productive choices. This Aboriginal wellness coordinator

position is key to the success of many getting back into their lives, back into the world with the best step forward.

This programming, in my view, is certainly important and I hope the Department of Justice sees it as well. So, it is important in some views, because from the latest information I’ve received, it was important enough for the department to build a spiritual lodge that they built some time ago, a woodshed that’s also a sweat lodge, fire feeding and talking circle and even a gazebo. Wow! Who thought that would be so hard to say? Even a gazebo, Mr. Speaker.

When it comes to corrections, the judiciary has already sentenced them, so the state has passed judgment. So what I’m saying here is let us not pass further judgment by not giving people the appropriate supports and programs they need.

The system has chosen which path they need to take, but it’s certainly our duty to ensure that they receive the help that they need. If we expect them to return to society properly, we must ensure we give them every chance and every skill through productive choices. I believe this counselling is important, if not absolutely critical, to help them on the right path.

Again, as I remember working there in the centre, many people benefitted from this. I’ll be honest; not everyone does, because not everyone believes in it. But for those who suffer from mental illness, to addictions, to anger management things, these are the types of supports that are critical to help them back on the path.

We cannot give up; we should not give up. I believe in the hope that this program gives. I certainly hope the department and I certainly hope the Minister feels exactly how I feel too. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Blake.

Frederick Blake Jr. Mackenzie Delta

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Over the last number of years, we have been lobbying for an all-weather road to Willow River gravel source in Aklavik. I would like to thank the department for their contributions over the years. Last year the community received enough funds to purchase a bridge for Willow River, which is now located in Inuvik.

By January, the plans are to haul the bridge to the site at Willow River and, with adequate funding, put the bridge in place for use in the future.

Mr. Speaker, the community would like to shift the focus from an all-weather road to an all-terrain vehicle trail to be used by the community members,

which can be made wide enough for a winter road during the winter months, Mr. Speaker.

I will have questions for the Minister later today. Thank you.

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

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