This is page numbers 3523 – 3556 of the Hansard for the 17th Assembly, 5th 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 going.

Topics

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

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

Norman Yakeleya

Norman Yakeleya Sahtu

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services. I want to talk about the elders in our small communities who have to go through a long-term care facility either in Inuvik or Yellowknife. Once they get assessed in that community, they are better suited in the long-term care facility, providing they have beds. Is it the responsibility of the elders to find themselves in those facilities?

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Mr. Abernethy.

Glen Abernethy

Glen Abernethy Minister of Health and Social Services

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Obviously, we want to work with our residents to keep them as close to home as possible, recognizing that we do have some infrastructure challenges. The Housing Corp has been doing a significant amount of work with respect to facilities in the communities to provide some opportunities for elders as they age and have to move out of their own units. We are looking at putting in a long-term care facility in Norman Wells, which would be the first of its kind in that region. So we are doing a number of things, but from time to time we do have residents who do have to come out of their home communities, either come to a regional centre or, if their personal condition happens to be more severe, they might have to come to a place like Yellowknife. With respect to how that is funded, I will have to get that detailed information from the department. I would be happy to share that information with the Member at a later date. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Norman Yakeleya

Norman Yakeleya Sahtu

I am certainly happy that Cabinet has agreed to put a long-term care facility in the Sahtu for the people of the Northwest Territories. My understanding, from talking to some of the elders, is once they are assessed and with the lack of infrastructure in their communities, they have to somehow make their way to Yellowknife or Inuvik and they have to pay for their airfare.

I want to ask the Minister, if that’s the case, is his department looking at where the elders don’t have to pay for their airfare once they get assessed and they have to come to a long-term care facility for their future needs?

Glen Abernethy

Glen Abernethy Minister of Health and Social Services

Where it’s medically necessary for an individual to come from one community and reside in another community on a permanent basis where the services are, we do provide financial supports and assistance to help those individuals get here, but it’s got to be medically necessary. Thank you.

Norman Yakeleya

Norman Yakeleya Sahtu

Would the Minister be committing to look at past files where people who have left their communities in the Sahtu who have to come to a long-term care facility because of their medical needs where these elders have paid for their own tickets from Colville Lake, Fort Good Hope, Deline or Tulita and that these files will be looked at and proper compensation will go back to these elders?

Glen Abernethy

Glen Abernethy Minister of Health and Social Services

Where it’s deemed medically necessary by physicians or other health professionals, we would certainly be willing to have that conversation. I would encourage the Member to come to my office and maybe we can discuss the individual cases, because I’m not actually aware of

the individual cases at this time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Abernethy. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Yakeleya.

Norman Yakeleya

Norman Yakeleya Sahtu

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have certainly known elders who have left the Sahtu and have come to me and said we have to pay for their tickets, because they don’t have any money from their $550 a month pension cheque. We have to pay money to get to the centre. The Minister is also welcome to walk into my office to have this discussion.

I want to ask the Minister if he’s willing to look at this file again and properly compensate the elders who have made their own travel arrangements, paid their own tickets to come to Inuvik or Yellowknife.

Glen Abernethy

Glen Abernethy Minister of Health and Social Services

I am happy to work with the Member. I am happy to walk down the hall to his office. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Abernethy. The time for oral question period has expired. Item 8, written questions. Item 9, returns to written questions. Mr. Lafferty.

Jackson Lafferty

Jackson Lafferty Monfwi

Mr. Speaker, I have a return to written question asked by Ms. Bisaro on February 7, 2014, regarding reallocation of funds for junior kindergarten. Ms. Bisaro requested a breakdown, by department, showing where the reallocated $1.8 million in funding to implement junior kindergarten in 2014-15 in our smallest NWT communities will be found.

Mr. Speaker, the $1.8 million to implement the optional, play-based Junior Kindergarten Program for four-year-olds in 29 small communities across the Northwest Territories in 2014-15 will be sourced from the Department of Education, Culture and Employment.

Ms. Bisaro also asked from which line of the department’s budget the reallocated funds will be sourced and the amount for each budget line. Mr. Speaker, the Department of Education, Culture and Employment will be re-profiling existing education authority contributions. These are the operations and maintenance contributions for the operation of school programs, which are projected to total $152 million in 2014-15. The re-profiled funding will come from adjusting the K to 12 pupil-teacher ratio, or PTR. It is important to note that although the PTR will be adjusted to accommodate the implementation of junior kindergarten, PTR funding

will still remain above the minimum legislated PTR level. In the NWT, a large part of the calculation of the amount of funding provided to education authorities is determined by looking at the number of students and how many teachers and support staff are needed for those students. The legislated pupil-teacher ratio is 16 to one, whereas current funding levels to education authorities are actually much higher, at about 13 to one, which is almost $11 million annually above the legislated requirement.

The total projected cost of implementing junior kindergarten, based on the school year of July 1 to June 30, will be as follows:

In the 2014-15 school year, the cost of

implementing junior kindergarten in 29 communities is projected to be $2.8 million annually;

In the 2015-16 school year, the cost of adding

regional centres – Inuvik, Fort Smith and Hay River – is projected to be $1.7 million annually; and

In the 2016-17 school year, the cost of adding

Yellowknife schools is projected to be $2.5 million annually.

The total cost to offer junior kindergarten in all of our communities, a goal that will be accomplished in September 2016, is projected to be $7 million annually. This cost will be absorbed by education authorities over the three-year implementation time frame and on an ongoing basis. We anticipate that there will be minor infrastructure investments required in some of our schools to make sure they are equipped for four-year-olds, but this cost will not be borne by the education authorities.

Ms. Bisaro also asked for the amount of reallocated funding that will be sourced from each individual education authority. Mr. Speaker, five education authorities will end up receiving a slight increase in funding as a result of junior kindergarten, while five will experience a slight decrease. Of the five education authorities experiencing a slight decrease, the greatest decrease, over three years, is just a 1.2 percent reduction in their total funding.

Specifically, over the next three years and annually thereafter, we are projecting that the Beaufort-Delta Education Authority will experience a net decrease of 0.4 percent, or $122,000 to their funding; the South Slave Divisional education Council will experience a net decrease of 0.9 percent, or $207,000; the Tlicho Community Services Agency will experience a net decrease of 0.1 percent, or $19,000; the Yellowknife Catholic Schools will experience a net decrease of 1.2 percent, or $214,000; and the Yellowknife Education District No. 1 will experience a net decrease of 0.3 percent, or $62,000.

Over the next three years and ongoing, we are also projecting that the Commission scolaire francophone will experience a net increase of 2.5 percent, or $104,000; the Dehcho Divisional Education Council will experience a net increase of 0.1 percent, or $7,000; the Detah District Education Authority will experience a net increase of 0.8 percent, or $14,000; the Ndilo District Education Authority will experience a net increase of 4.2 percent, or $91,000; and the Sahtu Divisional education Council will experience a net increase of 3.1 percent, or $408,000.

Mr. Speaker, our education authorities are run by professional administrators who I am confident will be able to manage a reduction of 1.2 percent, or less, over three years, especially considering that our education authorities are sitting on projected accumulated cash surpluses that total $8 million this school year. Mr. Speaker, given the fiscal realities we face, we are confident this is the best approach to funding this important and exciting new program for our children.

Let’s not lose sight of the big picture. We are talking about a minor financial impact in exchange for introducing free, optional, play-based, full-day junior kindergarten for four-year-olds across the NWT. Mr. Speaker, this government has heard what parents have said, and we are responding. The research clearly demonstrates that a quality daycare program for four-year-olds will not only improve school success but success in life as well. This, Mr. Speaker, is what junior kindergarten is all about. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Item 10, replies to opening address. Item 11, replies to budget address, day 3 of 7. Item 12, petitions. Item 13, reports of standing and special committees. Item 14, reports of committees on the review of bills. Item 15, tabling of documents. Mr. Abernethy.

Glen Abernethy

Glen Abernethy Great Slave

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to table the following document, entitled “Government of the Northwest Territories Anti-Poverty Action Plan, Building on the Strengths of Northerners, 2014-15 to 2015-16. Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Abernethy. Ms. Bisaro.

Wendy Bisaro

Wendy Bisaro Frame Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to table the report of the Action Canada Fellows, entitled “A Question of Future Prosperity: Developing a Heritage Fund in the Northwest Territories.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. Mr. Bromley.

Bob Bromley

Bob Bromley Weledeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to table page 8 of today’s News/North, entitled “Devolution Dishonoured, Premier Sold out Aboriginal Partners to Get Devolution Deal.” Mahsi.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Bromley. Item 16, notices of motion, Mr. Hawkins.

Robert Hawkins

Robert Hawkins Yellowknife Centre

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I give notice that on Wednesday, February 12, 2014, I will move the following motion: Now therefore I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Hay River North, that this Legislative Assembly strongly recommends the government allocate 25 percent of new resource revenues annually to the NWT Heritage Fund, commencing in the 2014-15 fiscal year.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Item 17, notices of motion for first reading of bills. Item 18, motions. Item 19, first reading of bills. Item 20, second reading of bills. Item 21, consideration in Committee of the Whole of bills and other matters, with Mr. Dolynny in the chair.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

The Chair

The Chair Daryl Dolynny

Good afternoon, committee. I’d like to call Committee of the Whole to order. We have three items here before committee: Bill 6, Tabled Document 4-17(5) and Tabled Document 22-17(5). What is the wish of committee? Ms. Bisaro.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

Wendy Bisaro

Wendy Bisaro Frame Lake

Thank you, Mr. Chair. We would like to consider Tabled Document 22-17(5), opening comments or general comments on the budget. Thank you.

Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters

The Chair

The Chair Daryl Dolynny

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. Does committee agree?