Good afternoon, colleagues. I am sorry to announce the passing of Tom Butters.

Tom Butters, a long-time Northerner, was first elected to the NWT Legislature in 1970. From 1970 to 1975 he served as Member of the Legislative Assembly for Western Arctic and in 1975 as MLA for Inuvik until his retirement in 1991. In 1994 Tom was made a member of the Order of Canada. Tom is the longest serving Member of the Legislative Assembly. Although Tom lived in British Columbia in his final years, he is fondly remembered by many people in the Mackenzie Delta where he and his wife, Peg, raised their family.

Tom was predeceased by his wife, Margaret “Peg” Butters, and his son Alan Butters. He leaves to mourn children Christine Cross, John; Ian Butters, Vina; and Meg Innes, Alan; and five grandchildren.

Thank you, colleagues. Orders of the day. Item 2, Ministers’ statements. Honourable Premier, Mr. McLeod.

Mr. Speaker, it is with great pleasure that I rise to advise Members of the Legislative Assembly that the Honourable George Tuccaro, Commissioner of the Northwest Territories, has been reappointed to his position for another one-year term.

---Applause

The appointment was announced by the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada, the Honourable Bernard Valcourt, last week. Commissioner Tuccaro’s second term will begin on May 11, 2015, and end on May 10, 2016.

The role and relationship of the Commissioner’s Office and the Government of the Northwest

Territories has always been a close one. Only 30 years ago the Commissioner would have been directly involved in the day-to-day running of government and would have had many of the same responsibilities the Premier now has.

As our people and territory have evolved, so has our political system. Today elected representatives serving the people of the Northwest Territories have the responsibility for the daily direction and control of the government.

At the same time, the role of the Commissioner has evolved into a more ceremonial and symbolic office similar to that of a provincial lieutenant governor. In this role, the Commissioner symbolizes and expresses the values and aspirations of all residents of the Northwest Territories. In representing the interests we all share, the Commissioner is a powerful symbol of the things that unite us as Northerners.

The Commissioner is also an important symbol of our belief in our democratic institutions of government, both in Canada and the Northwest Territories. Through his relationship with the Governor General, Lieutenant Governors and other Commissioners, the Commissioner symbolizes our participation in the Canadian federation.

The demands of being Commissioner require a person with unique characteristics. To represent and reflect their interests, the Commissioner needs to know and be in touch with people all across the Northwest Territories. A Commissioner needs dignity and tact to help foster respect for the institutions of government, despite political controversy and human error. Also, a Commissioner needs selflessness to rise above personal interest and represent the interests of all Northwest Territories residents.

I think everyone will agree that Mr. George Tuccaro has demonstrated all those characteristics in private life and in his term as Commissioner. Mr. Tuccaro is well known across the North, both as a broadcaster and through his travels. His support for Northern arts and culture is well known. He has served on the NWT Arts Council, promoted Aboriginal language programming at CBC North, served on the Legislative Assembly’s Cultural Enhancement Committee and been involved in many cultural

events throughout the years. His more recent work before becoming Commissioner, involving issues like healthy lifestyles, drug and alcohol abuse prevention and residential schools, proved that he is still in touch with the issues that affect so many Northerners today.

Mr. Speaker, it has been an honour to have worked with Mr. Tuccaro during his term as Commissioner. He is traveling in the Mackenzie Delta this week promoting the anniversary of the Canadian flag, but I would like to invite all Members to join me in congratulating him on his reappointment. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Mr. Speaker, the Department of Health and Social Services is pursuing the 17th Legislative Assembly’s goal of

healthy, educated people by investing in prevention, education awareness and early childhood development. By working in partnership with community and Aboriginal governments, non-governmental organizations, health professionals and other stakeholders we can achieve our vision of best health, best care, for a better future.

To help all partners align their efforts, we are holding a Territorial Wellness Gathering from March 3rd to 5th at the Explorer Hotel in Yellowknife. We

are partnering with the NWT Association of Communities to host this event, and I would like to thank the association for their assistance.

Community leaders, elders, and youth from all 33 communities will come together, along with representatives of Aboriginal governments and non-governmental organizations, staff from the health and social services authorities, the Government of the Northwest Territories and Health Canada to take part in the Gathering.

Participants will learn about how social determinants and economic factors influence people’s health and explore how we can work together to improve the overall well-being of our residents. The gathering will focus on three themes: Closing the Gap; Healthy People and Communities; and Building Stronger Families.

It will be informative and inspirational, with compelling presentations from prominent experts. It will provide opportunities for participants to actively engage on the three themes and share ideas on how they can improve residents’ quality of life. It offers individuals and organizations a venue to learn from each other, share their wisdom and

exchange knowledge on best practices that enhance the well-being of our communities.

The sessions will also be available through live webcast so that all residents have the opportunity to hear these presentations.

A number of key speakers from across Canada will be attending the gathering, along with our own local experts and residents. They will share their wisdom and stories and will be a valuable resource that participants can learn from.

I look forward to hearing from respected professors, researchers and physicians such as Dr. Janet Smylie, one of the first Metis doctors in Canada, and Dr. Cindy Blackstock, executive director of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada.

Mr. Speaker, there are many factors that negatively influence the health and well-being of our residents. These include struggles with income, education, early childhood development, food insecurity and housing. Other issues include mental health, fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, diabetes and even the impacts of climate change.

The gathering will offer participants an opportunity for open and honest dialogue about these issues and help foster awareness and understanding and will give participants ideas for addressing issues in their communities. It will also provide information and real life experiences from Northerners on successful efforts to improve the well-being of our residents.

Aboriginal people in the Northwest Territories have an increased burden of chronic disease and the trends will continue to worsen unless we intervene. We know that better promotion of healthy lifestyles is one of the keys to improving this situation.

Because so many NWT residents are Aboriginal, especially in the smaller communities, improving the health status of the Aboriginal population is one way the Department of Health and Social Services is working to accomplish our goals.

We continue to develop effective, culturally-appropriate prevention and promotion programs and work with our health centres to create a welcoming environment where Aboriginal people feel respected and supported. The Northwest Territories has an opportunity to become a leader in culturally-sensitive approaches to care.

Improving the health of all NWT residents will require the cooperation and effort of many groups and organizations, Mr. Speaker. We need to continue to develop strong partnerships with community and Aboriginal governments, non-governmental organizations and health and social service providers to form an integrated approach in order to have a collective impact.

This is why having events like the Territorial Wellness Gathering is important. We hope that from the gathering we can collectively develop solutions that give residents greater opportunity to enjoy the benefits of healthy lifestyles.

Mr. Speaker, exchanging information and finding new, innovative ways to address the social and economic factors that negatively influence our residents’ well-being will help us achieve our goal of having sustainable, vibrant, safe communities.

This gathering also moves towards achieving our commitments in the GNWT Anti-Poverty Action Plan, Early Childhood Development Action Plan and Pathways to Wellness: An Updated Action Plan for Addictions and Mental Health.

By strengthening our partnerships and weaving together our collective wisdom, we will realize our vision of best health, best care, for a better future. I look forward to sharing the findings from the gathering with my colleagues in this Assembly. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Mr. Speaker, the Department of Education, Culture and Employment has approved five traditional Aboriginal names for the Mackenzie River under the NWT Geographical and Community Names Policy.

As the department responsible for community and geographical names in the Northwest Territories, we place a special emphasis on traditional Aboriginal geographical names as they are important to the culture, history and languages of the people of the Northwest Territories.

Mr. Speaker, the Mackenzie River is the largest and longest river system in Canada and continues to serve as a transportation corridor. It provides key support to communities along its length, while serving to foster economic development. In this way, like a strand of sinew, it ties the Northwest Territories together. The Mackenzie River is one of our most important geographical features and helps to define the Northwest Territories’ place in Canada.

In 1984 the Geographical Names Board of Canada declared the Mackenzie River a geographical feature of pan-Canadian significance in recognition of its historical importance and prominent place in the Canadian landscape. With that decision, both the French and English names for the Mackenzie River became official. Previously, only the English place name was an official name.

Through the NWT’s Geographical and Community Names Policy, we have the ability to also make the traditional names for geographical features official to assure their cultural continuity. In accordance with this, the five Aboriginal names for the Mackenzie River are now approved and join the English and French versions as official names.

The Aboriginal names are: • Kuukpak, the Inuvialuktun name; • Nagwichoonjik, the Gwich’in name; • Deho, the North Slavey name; • Dehcho, the South Slavey name; and • Grande Rivière, the Michif name.

All of the Aboriginal names translate as a variation of “big” or “great” river, underscoring its importance as a geographical feature.

Mr. Speaker, now that the Aboriginal names for the Mackenzie River have been recognized, an elder from any community along its length can stand on its bank and tell his or her grandchildren that their name for the river is known by all. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Item 3, Members’ statements. The honourable Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Blake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We know that the Northwest Territories three regional land and water boards as well as the Mackenzie Valley superboard have been prominent in the news these past three days.

Just this past Friday, on February 27th , the NWT

Supreme Court granted an injunction requested by the Tlicho Government. This injunction effectively stops, for now, the elimination of the Wek’eezhii Land and Water Board and the launch of the new superboard, which is supposed to take place effective April 1st .

What catches my attention is that the court’s decision doesn’t only affect the Wek’eezhii Land and Water Board because the superboard would have replaced the Wek’eezhii as well as the Sahtu and Gwich’in boards. All three will now continue until the Tlicho case is decided.

Recently, the Sahtu Secretariat also filed a case to maintain the Sahtu Land and Water Board. The outcome of these cases will now have a significant impact on how land and water are managed in the Northwest Territories, particularly on how First Nations engage on decisions respecting their

traditional lands. For example, the Gwich’in First Nation currently nominates two of the four positions on the Gwich’in Land and Water Board, with all four members nominating the chair. Under the new superboard, they would nominate just one person of 10 without a guaranteed spot on proposed three-person panels to hear new applications.

Later I’ll have questions for the Premier about the status of the Gwich'in Land and Water Board. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Blake. Member for Range Lake, Mr. Dolynny.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In Alberta, Quebec, Ontario and Nova Scotia, information about daycare inspections is posted online. Parents and the broader public in those jurisdictions can freely scrutinize whether a daycare facility is in good standing with government regulations.

CBC recently filed an access to information request for five years’ worth of child care inspection reports in the Northwest Territories. The Department of Education, Culture and Employment put a $3,000 price tag on retrieving these records. When CBC modified the request, asking for only records since 2012, the cost was lowered to $1,700. Sadly, the government decided to put a hefty price tag on information that is vital to public interest, and a bit of a back-story will demonstrate just how grievous that is.

Since 2010 the department has been under fire from the Auditor General on daycare inspections. By law, the government is required in inspect facilities annually, but the AG found long gaps between inspections. For up to half of the facilities, the government wasn’t keeping track of compliance, and in response to the AG findings, the department promised to inspect facilities annually.

In 2012 the AG followed up and once again the department was given an unsatisfactory grade. The reason was appalling. The department had managed to bring inspections nearly up to date but by only glossing over major violations. Things like blocked fire exits, electrical outlets left uncovered and chemicals within reach of small children. The Auditor General was so concerned that she ceased the audit and sent a letter directly to the deputy minister for immediate action. To this day we are still following up on many issues of this audit and are still concerned at gaps in our system.

About 70 percent of our child-bearing Canadian women are employed in the workforce. Their families’ needs for high-quality daycare facilities cannot be overstated. However, if our jurisdiction can’t even meet minimum standards, what hopes

do we have of providing our youngsters with safe, healthy and stimulating care?

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

Thank you, Mr. Dolynny. Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Early in February of this year I spoke in this House about the new provider for the medevac contract and questioned the Minister of Health and Social Services about how this will benefit those in small and remote communities. At that time the Minister spoke about contract guarantees of two hours to get to a community and the upcoming implementation of the new Med-Response program.

Last week the Minister of Health and Social Services advised this House that the Med-Response call centre is officially open and ready for business. Just to recap, this is a system that will give all health centres in all the communities a one call direct access for emergency clinical support and to coordinate expediting of medevacs.

I am especially interested in how they will assess patients and dispatch medevac flights quickly when needed. I have had several failings in my riding over the past years because quick and critical dispatch medevacs never happened.

I will be asking the Minister of Health and Social Services during question period about how exactly residents in small and remote communities benefit from the new Med-Response system. Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Member for Hay River North, Mr. Bouchard.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As you well know, we have a new health centre going into Hay River. We’re hoping later this year that it will be open, and it looks like it might even be a bit ahead of schedule.

One of the situations with the new health centre that we’ve been hearing rumours about for the last year is maintenance staffing may change. With the current health system, we have a hospital and we have our own maintenance crew that takes care of all the maintenance in the facility, takes care of room temperatures and any medical equipment that needs to be adjusted or repaired is done by that maintenance crew. The majority of the snow removal is done by that maintenance crew several

times a day. It’s a high-demand, highly necessary service that we get at our authority.

About a year ago my colleague and I from Hay River started hearing rumours that Public Works and Services want to take over the maintenance of the new health centre. I guess we have some concerns on how that’s going to roll out. We’ve been asking both the Ministers of Health and Public Works what the plan is going forward on this maintenance. We continue not to get any answers on it. We’re continuing to not get any direction.

The maintenance people who currently work there are a hardworking group, and they need to hear what the plan is going forward. These people have lives; they have families that are dependent on their employment situation. They want to know exactly what’s going to happen in the future.

We also know that we need that high maintenance. We need that service immediately. We don’t want to have to put in a request to Public Works and Services and wait for three days to get a response, or even a day later. Some of this stuff has to deal with clinical response time and needs to be immediate. We need to have staffing in the health centre directly for maintenance.

I will have questions for both the Ministers of Health and Public Works and Services later, to ask about where we’re going for maintenance, and we need these answers sooner than later. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Bouchard. Member for Sahtu, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This morning a youth from Tulita called and said that they are organizing themselves. The youth was talking about the challenging times they’re having in the community and that they are working on various program initiatives to get out on the land. The youth are now starting to see the benefits of going out on the land, learning about their way of life and just to get out to certain areas around Tulita.

Also, the youth in Norman Wells are also finding it difficult to meet some of today’s challenges with the issues they have to deal with. Later in life, if they don’t take care of those issues, it will show up in our health system, in our correctional system and maybe in our education system.

The youth are looking for a place where they could have a building, especially in Norman Wells, where there is a lot of interest in having the youth get together to learn training in school, learn sports and, as I talked about the other day, education. The people want to help the youth, but they need to get together and get the partnerships and see what

type of support can be given to the youth through the partnerships and through the programs.

I want to say this because the youth are asking for help, and sometimes we’re so busy in life that we forget that they are watching us as leaders and seeing what we can produce for them in the small communities by working for them. More importantly, I guess, I take it from the youth in Tulita that sometimes we need to show the youth how to organize themselves and get something that they really need.

I’ll be asking questions later on, to the appropriate Minister, on programs and skills that they can help with the youth in the Sahtu communities. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Member for Deh Cho, Mr. Nadli.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. As you drive into the Northwest Territories along the Mackenzie Highway, near the hardworking communities of Enterprise and Hay River, you have the opportunity to stop just off the highway to appreciate some of the natural beauty of the Northwest Territories. If you drive this route often, or if you haven’t driven it in some time you may have forgotten, but looking ahead to spring and summer hiking, camping and other outdoor recreation, I need to remind you. Today I want to talk about Alexandra Falls or, as it’s known in Slavey, Xahtl’o Ndeh Naili Cho.

The falls offer fantastic views. Whitewater kayaking opportunities, hiking trails and a day-use area are all part of the Twin Falls Gorge Territorial Park. The park also includes the Louise Falls and Escarpment Creek campgrounds. So whether you want to stop for photographs and have a picnic lunch, or a multi-day camp, the falls facilities have something to offer.

[English translation not provided.]

Today I’d like to recognize Mr. Doug Lamalice. Mr. Lamalice is a member of the K’atlodeeche First Nation. He isn’t only a father of seven and an active artist, he is also a celebrated tour guide, leading cultural and nature tours around the falls, and a former member of the Aboriginal Tourism Champions Advisory Council. One of his tours, called Walk a Mile in My Moccasins, shares stories of Dene culture while visitors walk the trails. Through his work as a guide, Mr. Lamalice has been an ambassador of the Northwest Territories and for the K’atlodeeche First Nation, teaching visitors from all over the world about his culture and the land.

In 2013 two of Mr. Lamalice’s daughters discovered a fossil near Louise Falls, preserving their find until

it could be studied by a curator from Alberta’s Royal Tyrrell Museum of Paleontology. The Lamalice family does exceptional work, and it’s not just me that thinks so; Mr. Lamalice was recently honoured with a hospitality award.

The next time you’re passing by the falls, make a point of stopping. Let’s keep supporting those on the front lines of tourism and the people on the ground and on the trails and viewing platforms that keep tourism coming in the NWT.

Thank you, Mr. Nadli. The Member for Weledeh, Mr. Bromley.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Because of waste grain in the South, snow geese are overpopulating Banks Island and destroying wildlife habitat. Egg harvest can contribute to their control while addressing nutritional deficiencies and cost of living for NWT residents facing food insecurity.

More than two decades ago, Canada and the U.S. amended the Migratory Bird Convention to allow for the spring harvest of migratory birds to aid in management such as addressing the overpopulation of snow geese. But despite American states and some eastern Canadian provinces instituting spring sport hunts to complement traditional spring hunts, an NWT proposal at the time to institute spring bird and egg harvests was ignored. Since then the problem has become dramatically worse and long-term habitat loss of all wildlife is now measured by satellite as snow geese populations soar ever higher.

Although I can’t go into the detail on my authority on this, snow geese eggs are delicious and nutritious, and millions are laid on Banks Island each year. Meanwhile, many northern families go hungry and schools and medical facilities seek traditional foods to complement the diets of students, patients and elders, and the overpopulation of snow geese still needs to be controlled. There is such a practical, common sense opportunity for a win, win, win here that I fear government will let yet more decades go by without the simple local action required for continental benefit.

Now, two decades since the first opportunity for action, the federal government is finally permitting a spring hunt of snow geese by all residents in the NWT. But it’s too little too late. If states and provinces, electronic decoys, electronic calls and 50 per day bag limits for years haven’t done it, a dozen more Northerners popping away won’t even be noticeable.

It’s time to get serious. Hire traditional harvesters in Sachs Harbour to harvest goose eggs and

distribute them throughout NWT communities wherever there is a high cost of living and a demonstrated need for nutritious food.

A million-plus snow geese on Banks Island means about 400,000 nests each spring or about 1.5 million eggs. A modest start of 5 percent would equal 75,000 or 6,500 dozen goose eggs. A modest start of 5 percent.

I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.

---Unanimous consent granted

For 15 communities with demonstrated need, about 500 dozen goose eggs would go to each community, the equivalent of over 1,000 dozen chicken eggs. A significant contribution to the health and well-being of residents while helping to solve a North American wildlife population issue and provide some modest employment in Sachs Harbour.

A smaller harvest the first year could prove up the methods of harvest and distribution, followed by larger harvests in subsequent years as assessed and approved by federal and territorial government biologists. International funding would undoubtedly be available. Here we have a straightforward wildlife population issue with a straightforward win, win, win northern solution.

I will have questions. Mahsi.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I mentioned in Committee of the Whole yesterday, the City of Yellowknife has a land issue. A quick look around the city shows that this city’s expansion is hampered by water bodies and large rock outcrops. That’s why Yellowknife is so compact and the lack of urban sprawl is something that Yellowknife has been recognized for. This is something that other cities strive for.

Right now with lands withdrawn from development by Aboriginal government and the territorial government releasing little land to the city, Yellowknife is reaching the end of available land to use for future development, whether it be for housing, recreational use, commercial or industrial use.

It’s gratifying to see my local government planning ahead, but frustrating for me that they are not getting great cooperation from the territorial Lands department. From my time on city council, I know that the acquisition and development of land takes time, years in fact. The city is on record that they wish to take over all Commissioner’s lands in the

city and have asked for it from the GNWT and have been denied that.

That the GNWT will only release small parcels at a time has hampered the city’s planning efforts. It means the city is unable to get access to or ownership of a significant quantum of land for development and it’s pretty hard to plan in a vacuum when receiving land in dribs and drabs. There’s no opportunity to plan for the big picture, to plan for future expansion in a coordinated and timely manner.

On top of the lack of a significant quantum of land, it’s my understanding that several parcels in Old Town will not be released in fee simple title. It will only be given to the city under lease arrangements. It’s hard to understand why that is, and I appreciate the Minister’s offer yesterday to look into that for me.

Things are not yet dire. The city does have some space for development of single family dwellings in some parcels which were developed in the past. Niven Lake area, Block 501 and Grace Lake still have some lots available. But as they should, council is looking to the future and planning for a potential influx of residents due to several construction projects on the horizon. The city needs a large parcel to plan for the next subdivision and they need certainty to plan properly.

I understand the need to consult with local Aboriginal governments. That’s part of the land release process. I’m not asking for that to change, but the GNWT must be more understanding of the needs of community governments where land is concerned.

Thank you. I will have questions for the Minister of Lands at the appropriate time.

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. The Member for Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. A number of years ago when the Dene K’onia Young Offender Facility in Hay River was closed down, a need came to light which the GNWT responded to, and a facility called the assisted living facility in Hay River was built for adults who needed to be in residential care. It was an excellent addition to the infrastructure and the economy and to the service spectrum in Hay River and in the North for adults primarily with intellectual challenges.

This facility is managed by the Hay River Health Authority, and I believe it is doing an excellent job. They have 10 permanent beds and I believe that they have two placements for respite care for intermittent use by others.

This organization is involved in the lives of these adults living in this facility. They can be seen out doing recreational activities, out in our community, going out for lunch, participating in community events and being cared for by the numerous people who are employed at the assisted living facility. I would like to thank these folks for the good work that they do and say that I’m very proud to see Northerners being cared for in the North by Northerners.

It raises the issue of how many other adults and children who are Northerners are in the care of southern placements and southern institutions at this time. I will have questions later today for the Minister of Health and Social Services.

When we take our residents and put them in southern placements, they lose out by not living in their home territory. We lose out on the economy of the jobs that are created by caring for them, and I think that there could be a tendency for out-of-sight, out-of-mind. We have to ask ourselves regularly as a government, what are the opportunities for repatriation of those NWT residents that are living in the South? Sometimes I think that, like I said, out-of-sight, out-of-mind, we may forget about them and forget about the opportunities that may arise to bring them home and have them in all regions of our territory.

Later today I will have questions for the Minister of Health and Social Services for more specifics about case management and about how often we review the opportunity for economies of bringing these folks home to the North to be cared for and to live here with us. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, Mr. Moses.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Canadian Education Association’s 2014-2015 Ken Spencer Award for Innovation in Teaching and Learning recently honoured seven award-winning programs from across Canada that challenge and rethink our traditional concept of schooling. This year’s Ken Spencer Award winning programs tap into students’ passions which lead to increased motivation through meaningful, relevant learning. These models exhibit well-nurtured growth, creativity, flexibility and potential scalability to additional classrooms and schools. Their success relies upon trusting relationships built between students and teachers, mentors, business leaders and parents, which serve to reconnect many disengaged students to a love of learning.

This is the sixth year of the award. The Ken Spencer Award for Innovation in Teaching and

Learning was established with the generous contribution of Dr. Ken Spencer, to recognize and publicize innovative work that is sustainable and has a potential of being taken up by others, to encourage a focus on transformative changes in schools and to provide profile for classroom innovation within school districts, schools and the media.

Today I am honoured to recognize the East Three School gardening program with their honourable mention for this award in receiving $1,000. The East Three School gardening program, entitled “Growing Student Engagement Under the Midnight Sun” was originally developed to combat poor diets and a low level of nutritional understanding among the student population. This gardening and ethnobotany program was gradually grown into a multi-faceted educational experience.

Students grow several dozen crops, from herbs, heirloom tomatoes, First Nation beans, lentils, rye, along with einkorn and other heritage grains. Last fall students grew, harvested, processed and prepared as well as consumed over $1,000 worth of produce.

Food grown has been used in the healthy lunch program and in a local dinner fundraiser featuring wild and local foods such as char, muskox and reindeer. Students also participated in other service learning projects using produce that they’ve harvested as ingredients in meals for the local soup kitchen. This program represents a model for other northern schools wishing to increase student engagement while improving attendance and nutrition.

Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.

---Unanimous consent granted

I’d like to acknowledge the departments of ECE and ITI for their contributions and beginning to build strong support for school food initiatives and also recognizing the important role that health and nutrition have played in learning and development.

Some future projects that East Three School gardening program plan to do include a traditional food snack program as well as an ethnobotanical garden with medicine and food plants. They’re also looking at doing a cultural lunch program featuring northern games as well as knowledge sharing and looking at creating prototypes for indoor aquaponic and hydroponic veggie production as well as creating a mini school greenhouse and planters.

I’d just like to take this opportunity to thank teacher Mr. Patrick Gauley-Gale and his staff and students who have committed to healthy living and nutrition for their peers and staff at East Three Secondary School and for their kind-hearted community outreach initiatives. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Moses. Item 4, returns to oral questions. Item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery.

In the gallery today, colleagues, we have with us from the office of the Auditor General of Canada, Mr. Ronnie Campbell. I welcome Mr. Campbell to the Assembly. It’s always a pleasure to have you here.

Colleagues, I’d like to take this opportunity to recognize the impending retirement of Mr. Campbell. Mr. Campbell was recruited in Scotland by the Hudson’s Bay Company and began his life in Canada and his Canadian career in the North.

Ronnie, the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories is very grateful for your expertise and your insight and candour over the years. On behalf of all Members of the Legislative Assembly, I would like to extend our warm wishes for a long and happy retirement. Thank you very much.

---Applause

Mr. Bromley.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to recognize my constituent from Ndilo, Brent Betsina, also winner of the national level silver medal from the Canada Games.

---Applause

More on that a little bit later. Welcome, Brent. Also, of course, my constituency assistant, Bob Wilson, resident of Weledeh. Of course, I’d like to join you, Mr. Speaker, in welcoming Ronnie Campbell to the House. It’s been a pleasure working with him, and I also wish him all the best in retirement. Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Bromley. Ms. Bisaro.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I too want to welcome Mr. Campbell. It’s been a great pleasure to work with him over the years that I’ve been here. I know that he’s approaching retirement with the same mindset as I am: looking forward to it. I wish him well and thank him for all the work that he’s done for us over the years. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. Mr. Moses.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I too would like to recognize Mr. Ronnie Campbell and thank him for all his hard work working with committee, especially for his guidance, his experience and knowledge in helping us guide and direct government into making some good decisions and making programs a lot better in the Northwest Territories.

I’d also like to recognize and acknowledge Mr. Brent Betsina. Good job. You’ve made the NWT

proud during the Canada Winter Games. Good job. Thank you.

Again, I’d like to welcome everybody here in the public gallery. Thank you for coming and taking an interest in our proceedings here today.

Item 6, acknowledgements. Mr. Dolynny.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise today to acknowledge a Range Lake constituent who needs very little introduction to Members of the House. I wish to acknowledge and congratulate the Honourable George L. Tuccaro, who has been reappointed as Commissioner of the Northwest Territories for a term of one year, from May 11, 2015, to May 10, 2016, and this will be his second term.

Mr. Tuccaro, who is a member of the Mikisew Cree First Nation of northern Alberta, has played a prominent role in the lives of Northerners, even prior to his initial appointment as our Commissioner.

Mr. Tuccaro enjoyed a long and illustrious career in public broadcasting with CBC North in Yellowknife, and we are the lucky few to get to hear his silky voice and smooth delivery when the Commissioner joins us here in the Chamber to open sessions of the Assembly or to provide assent to legislation passed by this House.

On behalf of all Members, I wish to extend my congratulations to Mr. Tuccaro and his wife, Marilyn, on his reappointment to our 16th Commissioner of the Northwest Territories. It’s a well-deserved honour and we wish him every continued success. Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Dolynny. Mr. Bromley.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I rise to acknowledge and congratulate my Ndilo constituent Brent Betsina on his outstanding performance in the sport of judo at the Canada Winter Games in Prince George, BC.

Master Betsina, an active member of the Yellowknives Dene First Nation, is 18 years old and competed in the over-100 kilograms category at the Games. Brent has been active in the sport of judo for eight years and contributes his success to his role model and coach, Mario Desforges.

Brent went into the Games with a goal of having fun, having a positive attitude while competing and doing his best. Winning the Northwest Territories first medal since 2007, a silver medal in judo was a sweet bonus to these goals.

I invite all Members to congratulate Brent on his national achievement on behalf of the Northwest Territories at the Canada Winter Games – I wouldn’t be surprised to see him in this chair one year – and say well done, Brent. Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Bromley. Item 7, oral questions. Mr. Blake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Just in follow-up from my Member’s statement, I have a few questions for the honourable Premier. I’d like to ask the Premier, as stated with this latest injunction that effectively has put on hold the superboards, can the Premier confirm that the Gwich’in Land and Water Board will be maintained like the Wek’eezhii Board until the related court cases are decided?

Thank you, Mr. Blake. The honourable Premier, Mr. McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I can confirm that the Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories suspended Section 253(2) of the Northwest Territories Devolution Act with regard to the MVRMA, all plan to come into force April 1, 2015. This will result in the preservation of all the regional land and water boards for now, including the Gwich’in Land and Water Board, and a delay in implementation of regional studies and cost recovery authorities.

As I mentioned, the regional boards, including the Gwich’in Land and Water Board, were scheduled for elimination as of April 1st .

I’d like to ask the Premier, how will the board’s effective operations be maintained and supported while the court case is being decided?

There will be no change in the operation of these boards and we have confirmed with AANDC that they will be assessing not only the court decision but also how to keep the current system functional. Our Department of Lands will also be doing a preliminary scan of significant projects that are currently within the MVRMA.

Can the Premier confirm which board members will be able to continue their work and how will any empty spots be addressed to ensure smooth operations? For example, with the Gwich’in, we don’t have a chair at the moment, so how will that position be filled?

My understanding is that all of the boards that have vacant appointments, they’ll fast track the appointments. The Gwich’in Land and Water Board has total members of five. They need three for a quorum. There is one current vacancy of a chair, one appointment expiring in the next year on November 8, 2015. With the fast-tracking of board appointments, we expect that it will be business as usual.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In follow-up to my Member’s statement today, I have questions for the Minister of Health and Social Services. In a budget document that we have just been considering during this session, there is an item under program detail called residential care, adults and children, and that number of $45.807 million is for children and adults who are receiving care for an extended period of time to meet their physical, emotional, spiritual and psychological needs, and it includes such things as long-term care facilities, group homes for adults and residential care both inside and outside of the Northwest Territories. I believe that there is also a supplementary appropriation being proposed to actually cause that number to go higher.

I’d like to ask the Minister of Health and Social Services to break down that number, if he could, between northern and southern placements.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The Minister of Health, Mr. Abernethy.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The budget for ’14-15 was $17.6 million for southern placements, and that covers 69 adults and 37 youth.

I think everybody would agree that that is a very substantial sum of money that this government pays out to southern facilities for the care and keeping of Northerners.

I’d like to ask the Minister of Health and Social Services, when is the last time that repatriation opportunities for some of these 69 adults and 37 children were contemplated and considered by his department? Thank you.

Last fiscal year the Members actually requested that we do that work, and the director of territorial services did conduct a review of all the individual files of all of our residents who happen to be in the South looking for similar conditions or similar treatment requirements so that we could repatriate a block of individuals. Unfortunately, the cases are so unique and so many of them are of such high demand we weren’t

able to identify a similar group that would be reasonable to repatriate.

But I will say that we do review the files of our individuals biannually to see if there is any opportunity to repatriate the individuals whether or not or regardless of a similar condition where we can repatriate a block of individuals at one time. Thank you.

I’d like to also ask, in the facilities that we do have here in the Northwest Territories, could he tell us on any given day, like today, are there vacancies available in those facilities, or are we completely maxed out and couldn’t it be that referrals that are made to the South are actually, in fact, because there is no room in the facilities we have here? Thank you.

I’d actually have to have the department do a bit of an analysis. There are so many facilities that we support, whether it’s hospitals or the type of facility that the Member brought up in her statement, I couldn’t say for certain what our vacancy rate is on those.

I will say for an individual to be eligible for out-of-territory placement they must meet specific criteria. One of the following: they must have a diagnosis of a mental illness or a traumatic brain injury; a genetic disorder or a significant development or physical disability; they must have a serious emotional, behavioural, psychological or medical needs that can’t be met here in the Northwest Territories; they must require a higher level of care or services that are not available in the Northwest Territories; they must require residential or institutional services as the result of being declared not criminally responsible, and this is something we work on with the Department of Justice; or they must require regular psychiatric hospitalization services, services that aren’t available here in the Northwest Territories. If we can deliver it here in the Northwest Territories, we do, and if we don’t have the capacity, we do have to ship our residents south from time to time.

As I said, the director did a thorough review of all the files and we were really looking for an opportunity to bring a bulk or similar-type conditions north, keep the money in the North, employ in the North. But given the huge variety and the different conditions, we weren’t able to find a like condition or patients with similar conditions that could be accommodated in a facility here in the Northwest Territories. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Abernethy. Final, short supplementary, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Specifically with regard to group homes for adults and children, are there any vacancies currently available here in the Northwest Territories in the group homes that already exist? It only makes

sense to me that if there is no vacancy, the tendency would be to have to send them to southern placements. Thank you

I’ll commit to get that information on our current vacancies. They change from time to time. But once again, I go back to my previous comments about the specific individual conditions that an individual must have and it’s for services that aren’t available here in the Northwest Territories, you have to meet those conditions. So if we can provide it in the Northwest Territories, we do our best to provide it here in the Northwest Territories. Unfortunately, we do have individuals with incredibly high needs, 24/7 care that we can’t meet. We don’t have the expertise to provide those services here. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Abernethy. The Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. My questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services. About four years ago a child from Trout Lake could not get authorization for a medevac plane for a serious illness. The grandparent was deeply concerned, not to mention the stress of the mother. He consequently chartered his own plane because the child’s lips were turning blue.

While in Fort Simpson, the doctor said, “It’s a good thing you brought her here,” because she had a case of severe croup, potentially life-threatening for a child without medical attention.

Can the Minister of Health and Social Services explain exactly how the new Med-Response would handle a situation like this? Would it be the same, or would they be able to make a call for a medevac that will save a life? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. The honourable Minister of Health, Mr. Abernethy.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Prior to the implementation of Med-Response, a nurse in a region, regardless of the region, would call a physician who was associated with that particular region. For instance, in the Sahtu, if there was no doctor available, and Simpson, they would call the medical director who may be located in another province, which was often the case, who may not have known exactly the current status of our air ambulance team. Now with Med-Response, rather than trying to figure out who, a CHR or CHW in a community like Trout Lake, they would actually call one number in the Northwest Territories. On that number they would have air ambulance dispatch, but they would also have direct access to health professionals who can make decisions and provide immediate diagnosis

and direction to the CHRs in the communities, which in the case of that child would likely have resulted in a much quicker time for an air ambulance to get into that community and get the child out.

The bottom line is the CHRs and CHWs throughout the Northwest Territories as well as all nurses in our health centres have a number to call that will give immediate access to health professionals, whether it’s an emerg doc, pediatric doc or any other specialist, plus NPs and, at the same time, have the air ambulance dispatcher on the phone at the same time so they can all make a united decision together. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am very pleased to hear the explanation from the Minister. Of course, this is not the first time the residents of small communities had to call their own plane because a medevac was thought not to be necessary.

I would like to ask the Minister about what assurances and successes has the department had to date, because they have been up and running since November, I believe. What assurances and successes have they had to date in responding to emergencies? Is there documentation or evaluations in place or contingency checks on the effectiveness of the Med-Response system? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Since November 30th we have been in a soft launch phase, which is basically a trial phase to work out some of the bugs that we assume would come in with this new state-of-the-art program. We wanted to make sure that we got it right. We have only just recently gone live and we continue to evaluate. There is actually an evaluation mechanism in place to monitor the calls and help us continually improve and evolve as the times change.

In the test phase we coordinated 698 clinical consults from all the authorities; 351 were air ambulance flights. We were actually – and this is, I think, incredibly good news – able to coordinate one aircraft to pick up two patients from different communities, both going to Edmonton, and we used the same aircraft to get them down there, so we were actually able to combine our resources and get some serious benefits.

Also, during the test phase, there were nine different situations where a health practitioner from a community called into the Med-Response unit believing that they needed an air ambulance, but once they received full consult from doctors and specialists in Yellowknife they were able to avoid the need for air ambulance. So we were able to reduce the number of air ambulances that have actually been dispatched. We have been able to get economies of scale by having a pick-up of more than one patient and we have been able to provide significant clinical advice and consults to our

communities when they are in need. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am pleased to see some of those results and, as well, it’s about restoring the confidence of the people in the smaller communities that our system will be there for them. Further to that, how will they augment the training for community health workers to work and learn this new system? I would suggest perhaps bringing them to Yellowknife to see the facilities and to meet some of the staff of the new Med-Response centre that they will be dealing with, hopefully not on a daily basis but it is always good to have a familiar face when you’re on the phone, especially in times of emergency. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

At this time there hadn’t been plans to actually bring professionals into Yellowknife to see the facility. What is important is the dialogue that occurs between the health practitioners in the field and our Med-Response team. We have put together some documentation manuals to help individuals understand the terminology and how things work. I do take the point; it would be good for our employees to see them become more familiar. I will certainly work with the department to explore training opportunities to ensure our staff are as familiar as possible and have an opportunity to be effective with the use of Med-Response. So we will certainly look at opportunities for training. Thank you.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I noticed that the Med-Response system is not open to the general public. Maybe the Minister can explain that. In previous emergencies and times of distress, not only the health care worker was calling the regional centres but the family themselves wanted to hear the answers from the nurse in charge or whoever’s in charge while they wait however long for the medevac and that kind of stuff.

What kind of public information is out there to help families in times of distress? Perhaps it will complicate things if everybody is phoning, but what does the Med-Response system see for the public? Thank you.

The Med-Response is not a public program. It’s a program for the staff to help coordinate the internal workings of the system to make sure our staff on the front line have the information they need. They will be able to transmit or translate any of the information received from professionals on the line to anybody who happens to be in their health centre or health station. It’s not open to the public. The public aren’t expected to call that number. It is a functional, internal process that helps coordinate all health services in the

communities when required by the health practitioners in the communities. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Abernethy. The honourable Member for Range Lake, Mr. Dolynny.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I described the revealing back-story that gave rise to a recent CBC request for daycare inspection reports. Instead of seizing the opportunity to demonstrate compliance with the law, the department put a hefty price tag on information that is freely and publicly available in many other jurisdictions. My questions today are for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.

In 2010, in response to the Auditor General’s criticism on daycare inspections, the department said it was short on staff. Can the Minister indicate what has the department done to address the staff shortage since 2010? Thank you.

MR. SPEAKER: Thank you, Mr. Dolynny. The honourable Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Lafferty.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Since the Auditor General’s recommendations came out, we have done a considerable amount of work following through with those recommendations. Within my department we have increased the number of regional early childhood consultants to better serve the small communities. We also created and hired a territorial inspection coordinator. Those are just some of the key aspects of how we remedied the situation. Mahsi.

Can the Minister indicate what significant improvements have been made in daycare facilities since the Auditor General’s unsatisfactory grade in 2012? Thank you.

HON.

As I stated earlier, we have made significant improvements within my department on the recommendations that were brought to my attention. We are in compliance at all levels. All annual inspections are completed in all licenced daycares and all the day homes in the Northwest Territories. Those are front and foremost done by my department to follow through with all the inspections that are happening. It’s in place, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

My question was: What significant improvements are there? We still didn’t hear what they were. Can the Minister clearly assure the public, does the department have corrective actions and plans for daycare facilities which were found to have blocked fire exits, uncovered electrical outlets and chemicals within reach of small children? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

All these inspections are completed, and if there were any deficiencies found during the inspections, they were followed through with by early childhood consultants who are in regular contact with the contractor and also in communication with the licenced operators.

We’re doing what we can to work with the operators so there’s a safe environment for our children in care, and also my department is working very closely with the regional health inspectors, as well, and not only that but the fire inspectors to ensure compliance with all the regional centres and the community centres as well. Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Dolynny.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. “Doing what we can” seems to be a common response these days. The governments of Alberta, Quebec, Ontario and Nova Scotia provide online links to daycare inspection status reports or the reports themselves. Clearly, ATIPP is not a barrier to this transparency.

But to the question, will this Minister follow suit and make daycare inspection reports freely and publicly available? Thank you.

Since that information came to light in my department, we have been working very closely on ways to share relevant inspection information in a format that allows parents to make informed decisions on child care while, at the same time, protecting the privacy of child care staff. My department is also committed to making inspection information available to the public, and this will be available starting 2015-16. We’re making improvements within our department and we’re moving forward on that. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, Mr. Moses.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’ll follow up with questions to the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment on my Member’s statement.

I’d like to ask the Minister if he in fact is familiar with the Canadian Education Association and the Ken Spencer Award for Innovation in Teaching and Learning and if any of those programs that this organization has awarded, if he’s looking at ways to better our education system through these programs. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Moses. Minister of Education, Mr. Lafferty.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. This is one of the national awards that have been recognized throughout the Northwest Territories, and I’ve been trying to get some more information on that since the Member addressed that information to me. We are doing what we can as a department to recognize those talented individuals or organizations in the Northwest Territories. We’re working with those organizations to make some sort of recognition and even go further beyond that. Mahsi.

I mentioned that the East Three gardening program in Inuvik is doing some great work and they want to do some more innovative thinking in terms of how they’re going to grow veggies and create produce for lunch programs in Inuvik. I want to ask the Minister if he’s familiar with that program, have talks with the East Three staff and look at how they can support them so they can purchase these materials and continue to build on their national successes that’s been recognized so we can help them and support them in getting the materials that they need to continue with this program and the successes that they’ve shown.

Obviously, ECE supports healthy foods in our school system. The growing program, obviously, we’ve heard just recently, as well, and we believe and support innovative thinking. How can we have those vegetables in our school system as possibly part of our lunch program? So, we’re open to those ideas. I have to work with the local DEAs and DECs, if they’re acceptable to that initiative. I need to sit down with my counterparts and see where we can go from there, but this is a brilliant idea that we should carry forward.

This program has helped students engage. It’s helped with attendance. It’s given them nutrition so that they can excel in school work. They’ve got a really great program that I don’t think has to be reinvented, and it’s something that’s unique and brought forth from the local people and is something that can be forwarded to the schools.

I’d like to ask the Minister if he’d be willing to work with the staff who developed this program and take it out to the regions and to the schools so they can develop their own programs and have the success that Inuvik has shown and has been recognized nationally. Will he be working with the schools to create some type of framework that they can take into the schools, as well, and help other schools in the success of attendance, healthy eating and education?

When we talk about healthy foods, obviously we provide funding towards this initiative as well. Approximately $650,000 we distribute on an annual basis for healthy eating programming in the Northwest Territories. We give the funding directly to the

schools, so it’s part of their initiative. There is already funding in place. My department will be working with the organization on how can we best move this forward as well. We have to keep in mind that we have to deal with all the schools across the Northwest Territories as well. Then again, there is funding in place already, and we will continue to more forward working with the school boards.

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Moses.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Can I ask the Minister whether or not he would review the funding policy in terms of this healthy nutrition program so that students in regions that have a higher population will get more funding so that they can feed a higher percentage of the population in the school? Will he review that based on population size?

As I indicated earlier, we’re open to some ideas on how we can generate funding, based, obviously, on students. Currently, it’s based on students. Those are discussions that we need to have with the local organizations and also the DECs and DEAs as well.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to follow up on my Member’s statement from earlier today with questions for the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources.

The grain harvesting practices throughout North America have been a windfall for the snow goose. As we’ve heard, large amounts of waste grain left in fields after harvest has made them fatter, enabling them to survive better and lay more eggs when returning to Arctic nesting grounds. This has caused overpopulations to where hunting can no longer control them and habitat destruction for all wildlife including caribou is the result.

I’m wondering what plans the Minister has to address this growing snow goose overpopulation disaster.

Thank you, Mr. Bromley. The Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There are no imminent plans at this point. I have listened to the Member’s statement with interest and I will be following up with the department.

Thanks to the Minister. I appreciate that follow-up. As I mentioned, this issue was highlighted 20 years ago. I know the Minister is about as long in the tooth as I am with this

department. With an NWT proposal to address this issue and benefit our people at that time, yet almost every province and state in concert with their federal government have recognized both opportunities and need and acted to try and address this issue, we, who are holding the solution in our hands, have done nothing.

I’d like to ask the Minister if he has any ideas why, given the clear benefits, the many opportunities for our people and the likelihood of international financial support to implement the simple actions required, again, why have we done nothing?

I think the key question, of course is, is there something we can do? The Member has raised a good issue. I’ve been Environment Minister now for quite a number of years and I must confess this is not one of the issues that has been high on the priority list that I’ve been aware of. Now that it’s been raised and the Member has provided the history, I will restate my commitment to go back to the department and see what options there are to try to address this issue and look at some of the suggestions and advice provided by the Member.

Again, I appreciate the Minister’s commitment and I am happy to work with him on that to provide any background and resources there. There is clear opportunity for northern benefits here, as I mentioned, including halting the habitat destruction, providing modest local employment in a remote community that has need of that and addressing the issues of high cost of living and food security in many of our communities that are in most desperate need.

I’m asking the Minister one last time, in his considerations, will he commit to providing committee with a full accounting of the cost and benefits of the management action called for today?

Yes, I will report back to committee on the results of the discussion with the department. I will make sure we go back and look at the documents the Member has referred, and we’ll look to what we think is possible and share that with committee. We will be happy, of course, to appear before committee to have a further, more detailed discussion.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Bromley.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I, again, appreciate the Minister’s return there. I just mentioned that I focused on eggs today. The same thing could be true for the birds themselves which are a well-known source of nutritious food, and so I just ask the Minister that he include the possibility of harvesting the birds. The Sachs Harbour hunters have had a lot of experience with them and are fully capable of answering this need if directed and provided with the support. I’ll leave it at that.

Yes, we will ensure that we look at not only the eggs but the harvesting of some of the birds as the Member has suggested.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. The Member for Hay River North, Mr. Bouchard.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In follow-up to my Member’s statement on the new health centre, we’ve been informed that there is going to be a new maintenance system.

Can the Minister of Health tell me how this new system will roll out when the new health centre is opened?

Thank you, Mr. Bouchard. The Minister of Health, Mr. Abernethy.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In keeping with the direction provided in 2010 which basically established that PWS would be responsible for providing operations and maintenance services to buildings owned and operated by the GNWT, eventually when the building is completed, the maintenance of the new facility, the boilers and structural maintenance will be done by Public Works and Services. We in Health and Social Services believe that there are a number of residual functions, maintenance functions that should be retained by the authority and by the health system, maintenance specific to technical equipment and other factors in the authority and in the new building.

We have been working with the authority. We have been working with Public Works and Services to identify what some of those residual functions will be. We’re really not going to finalize that list until we start moving into the new building to see what some of the actual realities of being in that new building are. In the meantime, we’re also going to keep the existing H.H. Williams open for a period of time because the extended care residents will stay there until such time as we’ve done the upgrades to Woodland Manor.

We know that Public Works is going to be doing the maintenance. We have approached the staff to see if any of them are interested in moving over to Public Works and Services, if they could be part of that structural maintenance team. But in the meantime, we still have the role for the maintenance staff that we have to maintain the existing buildings in that authority as well as to maintain the existing authority.

We have a bit of time to work through the details with our staff, and we have been working with the union and the Hay River Health and Social Services

Authority to find the most reasonable and appropriate methods to resolve these issues.

I’m not sure. I have some questions about those statements the Minister just made that he’s talked to the authority, he’s talked to the employees, because at my last constituency meeting those weren’t the comments coming from all those people and the fact that they don’t know where this plan is coming from.

Is there a set plan, and if not, we’ve been asking for a plan for over a year. We built the facility in a year and a half and now we’re looking for the plan in one year. Can we get a plan going forward of how this is going to lay out for the maintenance? We have people that have their jobs on the line. They’re questioning whether their jobs are on the line. Can we get this plan going forward as soon as possible?

I have confirmation from the authority that they have been in contact with the staff and they have articulated that the structural maintenance and the boilers and whatnot of the new facility will be done by Public Works and Services and that they’ve asked the staff if any of them are interested in transferring over.

We have been working closely with the Department of Public Works and Services who will ultimately have the big picture of maintenance responsibilities for all of the government assets here in the Northwest Territories. But at the same time, and I want to continue to articulate, not all the functions need to be transferred to Public Works and Services. There are a number of residual functions that we’re attempting to quantify at this point. Once that is fully quantified, we’ll be in a far better position to articulate what the health and social services needs are and what functions are truly going to be with those in Public Works and Services.

I will commit to working with Public Works and Services to put together a more concrete sort of analysis so that we can share that information with our employees in the authority. Thank you.

Will the Minister commit to giving me some of that documentation? He says they’ve consulted with the employees. They consulted with the authority, because at the meetings that I’ve had they don’t know where this maintenance project is going. They know that between Public Works and them having responsibility, but there’s nothing defined, nothing laid out. Like I said, there are employees’ jobs that are being considered, and without the information people are making up stuff and people are thinking that there’s going to be job elimination. So, we need to get this plan forward.

Will the Minister commit to getting me that information? Thank you.

I’ve already committed to working with the Minister responsible for Public Works and Services as well as Hay River Health and Social Services to put together the information that we have so that it can be clearly articulated to the Member as well as to the residents of Hay River who think they may be affected by these changes in infrastructure in Hay River. Thank you.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Can the Minister give me an indication of when this plan would be available and talk to the people, because the people want to know sooner than later. Can we get a date or even a month when this would be available? Thank you.

The new hospital in Hay River, as the Member has indicated, is moving along smoothly and we anticipate to be moving staff over in the near future. We will get the information to the Member and to the individuals who are potentially affected before the move is finalized. Thank you.