Mr. Speaker, I would like to welcome all Members back to the continuation of the second session of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories. I am looking forward to hearing from all Members during this brief sitting as we continue our work together to create a strong and sustainable future for the people of this territory.

Settling land claims is essential for creating this future for the Northwest Territories. Settled claims both advance reconciliation with Indigenous communities and create the foundation for social development and economic growth that can generate benefits for Indigenous people and all Canadians.

That is why it is so important for this Legislative Assembly to succeed at its priority of advancing, finalizing, and implementing land, resources, and self-government agreements, and that is why I have also made settling outstanding claims during the life of this Legislative Assembly a personal priority.

Our government has made a commitment in its mandate to work to resolve outstanding claims with the Akaitcho, Dehcho, NWT Metis Nation, and Acho Dene Koe.

We continue to make real progress at many tables, including in Tulita, where negotiators recently initialled a self-government agreement-in-principle. Other tables, however, have encountered issues that have slowed progress. Our government wants to change that, and we have taken steps we hope will ensure residents of regions like the Akaitcho, Dehcho, and South Slave are able to enjoy the benefits that settled claims are providing in other regions.

To help us advance negotiations in these regions, Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada Carolyn Bennett and I appointed two ministerial special representatives last year. The MSRs, one for the South Slave and one for the Dehcho, were mandated to speak to all parties to the negotiations and report back to us on current challenges and make recommendations for resolving them.

On April 5th, Mr. Speaker, Minister Bennett and I met in Ottawa with leaders from the Dehcho, the Akaitcho, and the NWT Metis Nation to discuss the reports of the MSRs and their recommendations. I am hopeful that the work of the MSRs will give all parties a path forward and lead to the resolution of these longstanding claims.

Mr. Speaker, the Government of the Northwest Territories is committed to settling these claims by taking innovative, flexible approaches that will result in fair and equitable agreements in these regions. I expect to update Members further on this issue during this session.

A predictable, efficient, and integrated system for making decisions about land use and development that reflects the interests and priorities of Northerners is another essential building block for a strong and sustainable future, Mr. Speaker.

Our government has made a commitment in its mandate to evolve our legislative, regulatory, and policy systems in order to advance the territorial vision of land and resource management in accordance with the Land Use and Sustainability Framework. Reviewing, updating, and modernizing this territory's land and natural resources legislation will be an important part of this work.

Mr. Speaker, we have long held that decisions that influence our territory's economy and environment are better guided and managed by the people who live here. The devolution of authorities over public lands, water, and resources gave this Legislative Assembly the power to update, align, and create new legislation for our territory.

Over the next several years, the Government of the Northwest Territories will be updating legislation and regulations in the areas of mining, land administration, parks, oil and gas, and water and environmental protection. We will be seeking input from Members, the public, and stakeholders, who will have multiple opportunities to shape and influence our work so it best meets the needs and priorities of the Northwest Territories.

Through these updates, we will create a made-in-the-Northwest Territories legislative model that ensures sustainable, responsible development, while respecting the rights of Indigenous people and the agreements we have reached with them.

Members will begin to see some of this work later in this session when the government introduces proposed amendments to the Environmental Protection Act. Work in this area will continue throughout the term of our four-year mandate as the Ministers of Lands, Environment and Natural Resources, and Industry, Tourism and Investment develop and bring forward proposed amendments to several acts in the coming years.

The Government of the Northwest Territories continues to make progress on the mandate adopted by the Legislative Assembly, Mr. Speaker. Of 200 commitments made by this government, 153 are in progress, seven are being planned, and 40 have been fulfilled.

Among the accomplishments guided by the mandate are investments and funding in areas such as infrastructure projects, film and the arts, family violence shelters, early childhood programs, and local housing organizations.

Several strategies and implementation plans have also been completed under the mandate, including agriculture and commercial fisheries strategies, the Recreational Leasing Management Framework, the Skills 4 Success Action Plan, and a strategic framework for mental health and addictions. We have also contributed to the development of the Canadian Energy Strategy and the Pan-Canadian Task Force on reducing diesel. To increase the number of women running for elected office, we have held our first campaign schools in Hay River and Inuvik and are currently evaluating our approach.

The mandate has also guided work to develop and expand programming in all the priority areas of the Legislative Assembly, including governance, cost of living, education, training and youth development, community wellness and safety, and economy, environment, and climate change.

The mandate was meant to guide the work of the Government of the Northwest Territories throughout the four-year term of the 18th Legislative Assembly. Mr. Speaker, several initiatives are on the horizon, and I am confident that we will remain on track to fulfill our commitments by late 2019. I plan to table a report later in this sitting that will provide Members with a more complete update on the status of our mandate commitments to date.

Mr. Speaker, while the mandate is the primary guiding document of our government, we cannot ignore the need to act when circumstances demand it, or fail to take advantage of opportunities to address other longstanding needs of Northwest Territories residents. The mandate also does not eliminate our obligation to carry on the typically expected planning and management work that any government must conduct.

Some of that extra work has been thrust upon our government by federal government priorities, including work toward the implementation of the Pan-Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change, and the development of a Pan-Territorial Sustainable Development Strategy. Work to support the legalization of cannabis and negotiation of a new healthcare funding agreement has also been driven by federal priorities.

Responding to emerging needs of Northwest Territories residents where we are able has led us to begin work on establishing a territorial 911 service, and ground ambulance and highway rescue services. We have worked toward developing a youth community wellness pilot program in Fort Good Hope, and to increase the Senior Home Heating Subsidy and Senior Citizen Supplementary Benefit.

Our government also stepped in when it became clear that there would be no commercial replacement for the marine shipping service of the former Northern Transportation Company Limited. This service provided an essential link to several small communities that would have been left with no affordable alternatives for receiving fuel, building materials, and other essential dry goods without our intervention.

Mr. Speaker, this sitting will be our last before we begin the review of the mandate as required by our Process Convention on Priority Setting. That review will be an important opportunity for us to make sure that the mandate set near the beginning of our term still reflects our shared priorities and the needs of Northwest Territories residents.

I look forward to hearing from and meeting with Members over the coming months as we consider whether our priorities have shifted, whether there are new challenges to be addressed, and what we can reasonably expect to accomplish together in the remaining two years of this Legislative Assembly. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Item 2, Ministers’ statements. Item 3, Members’ statements. Member for Frame Lake.

Merci, Monsieur le President. There has been a lot of shock and uncertainty over the closure of the Northern Frontier Visitors’ Centre here in Yellowknife. I firmly believe this could have been avoided through adequate and equitable support from our government. We have been without a visitors’ centre for 10 days now. A temporary home has been found, until summer’s end, at the museum. Now we need to concentrate on a longer-term location to support the large, growing, and sustainable tourism sector in Yellowknife.

Aurora tourism has soared from a $6 million industry in 2010 to $40 million in 2015-2016. A recent study indicates that our visitors’ centre boosts tourist expenditures by about $5 million annually. Our centre received over 50,000 visitors last year, far more than all of the other centres in the NWT put together.

It is inconceivable that Yellowknife would not have a tourist information and interpretive centre, and a world-class one. We must find a new permanent location. So who is to pay for that?

Figures supplied by the Minister show that visitors’ centres at the Highway No.1 border crossing in Inuvik and in Dawson are owned or leased by the GNWT. GNWT also pays over $100,000 for the staff and operating costs of each of these centres that are only open over the summer. Here in Yellowknife, the centre was owned by a non-profit society that received only $160,000 in GNWT core funding support last year, and it was open year-round, seven days a week.

This is not only unfair, it is poor support for this success story and economic diversification in general. The current emergency situation has been looming for years, with no effective or proactive support from this government. We can’t allow that to continue. We need to get to work now on costing and identifying funds for a new, permanent location, operated with GNWT funds. I will have questions for the Minister later today. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Members’ statements. Member for Yellowknife Centre.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this month, some of the Yellowknife MLAs and I have met with the three school boards to hear their concerns, and it is a long list of concerns. Today, I want to highlight just one that is common to them all, and that is busing junior kindergarten students to school.

During the last session, the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment said his department was, “working with education authorities to ascertain the incremental costs of providing transportation for junior kindergarten students, and will be undertaking a review of the busing component of the School Funding Formula.”

The education authorities have preliminary numbers of both the students who need busing and the costs of the buses. About 20 per cent of students will require busing, and the cost estimate is a mind-boggling $10,000 each per year. Just as a reminder, these are students who may be as young as three years, eight months.

The school boards receive money for busing from the territorial government, but about two weeks ago, the department informed the boards that busing JK students was not mandatory. It’s at the discretion of the boards, and so the cost is theirs. To put some numbers to this, JK1 and YCS are together looking at spending upwards of $500,000 on additional busing costs out of owned source funds. This, Mr. Speaker, is for a program that is “fully funded.”

The school boards are apparently going to have to make a difficult choice: either make additional cuts to come up with the money, or don’t provide busing. They shouldn’t have to make this choice at all. JK is billed as a grade of school. It should be fully funded, including busing. If busing isn’t funded, the program isn’t universal and low income families are barred.

It has long been apparent that JK has been grafted on to the school system as an extra grade without the necessary resources. There are no dedicated resources for inclusive schooling, none for Aboriginal and cultural education, and none for busing. This situation is unacceptable. I will have questions for the Minister. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Members’ statements. Member for Nahendeh.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to welcome everybody back and hope you all had an enjoyable few months either back at home working for your constituents doing committee work or as a Minister doing their work here back home.

Today, Mr. Speaker, I stand in the House to recognize my former constituency assistant, Leona Norwegian, known to everyone as Pearl. It is a bittersweet day that I recognize her today. If you know Pearl, you will recognize that she was never one for the spotlight. She was a person behind the scene and did not want the spotlight on her. Well, with her retiring away from political life, I want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Pearl Norwegian has served as a constituent in the Nahendeh riding for some 20 years. She has worked for the offices of former MLAs Jim Antoine, Kevin Menicoche, and now myself.

Pearl's devotion to the constituents of the Nahendeh riding did not go unnoticed. As the face of the riding, her friendly and open demeanour allowed her to be approachable, trusted by the public. Pearl is truly passionate about her riding and the six communities we represent. In her own way, Pearl was a counsellor, a confidante. She guaranteed advocacy for the less fortunate and ensured that no one’s concerns went unheard.

Mr. Speaker, Pearl’s years of constituent assistance in the Nahendeh riding has allowed her to get to know and care for two generations that have grown up throughout the riding. She was equally caring and kind towards our elders and youth. As an avid promoter of education and business within the riding, she also kept our constituents aware of opportunities and potential that they had.

Mr. Speaker, with her strong traditional ties and knowledge, Pearl had a high willingness to promote the culture and tradition of the Dene people. Her generosity was enormous and, whether it was for a wedding or funeral, no community feast goes without Pearl’s Papa’s fried bread.

Mr. Speaker, I’d like to highlight Pearl’s high commitment to her job. She displayed this commitment on several occasions, such as when she returned as a CA to assist me with the transition and when she took additional responsibilities for other former MLAs. I’d like to thank her for her time again. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Members’ statements. Member for Sahtu.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I, too, would like to welcome back the colleagues of the House and the guests in the gallery. Now that conclusions are given to the federal and territorial budgets over the last several months, on November 4, 2016, I highlighted the many strategies and plans of this 18th Assembly moving forward and the additional ones recently completed.

One thing is to have a plan or a strategy and the next thing is the implementation or phase 2 of it. Tracking and progress properly implemented of these plans and strategies will show results throughout the progress reports and with the labour of the departments for the publication and the many efforts in doing so.

Mr. Speaker, reflection of previous decisions is a strong element of good management and, by this, I look forward to working with the 18th Assembly on monitoring and tracking the progress of these strategies as we conclude our next half of the Assembly. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Members’ statements. Member for Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, devastating forest fires have had a major impact all over the Northwest Territories over the last few summers, altering the landscape and reminding us how vulnerable our campsites, cabins, communities, and other values are to forest fires. In my riding, assets have been threatened year after year. A 35-year-old lodge was destroyed along with thousands of hectares of surrounding trails and wildlife habitat within the last season.

Mr. Speaker, the Ingraham Trail has become home to an increasing number of year-round residents. It is heavily used by visitors to campgrounds and locals for recreational use. There are over 500 values at risk in the area that are vulnerable to forest fires. The popular Reid Lake campground, the Foster Family Coalition’s campsite called Camp Connections, and Highway No. 4 South have been closed on several occasions due to forest fires in recent years.

Mr. Speaker, ongoing drought conditions and the high to extreme risk of fires further highlight the need for a robust public communications plan, forest fire prevention measures, and emergency preparedness. I’ll give credit. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources has made progress in recent years on its website and social media platforms. The record-breaking 2014 fire season popularized Twitter as a public communications tool between the government and the general public, but there are still areas for improvement.

Mr. Speaker, what’s scary is that forest fires move very quickly and, in reality, ENR might not be able to respond in time to save properties. We have seen this in other jurisdictions as well as in our own backyards. We only have to think of Fort McMurray as the recent tragic example. We need to get the message out that there’s a responsibility on our owners to defend their properties against fires, but we have to be their partners and support them in doing that.

Earlier this month, ENR hosted an Ingraham Trail FireSmart barbecue where people could learn how to prepare for forest fires and reduce their risk. Commendable, but let’s do it more often. Let’s arm our residents with knowledge through excellent communication.

Mr. Speaker, ENR has dedicated and knowledgeable staff, a new air tanker fleet, and continues to develop forest fire fighting expertise. We need to ensure these resources are put to the best use and that lessons learned from previous seasons are fully applied in the future. I will have questions for the Minister of ENR at the appropriate time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Members’ statements. Member for Kam Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, a few short weeks ago, 19 students from across the territories took the role of honourable Members in the 15th Youth Parliament. This is an event that is a great way to engage our youth in our unique system of consensus government, civic participation, and assist them in becoming the northern leaders of tomorrow. I would like to thank the Legislative Assembly staff that was involved in this program and the staff who worked tirelessly for months in order to make sure Youth Parliament would come together seamlessly. I can say with great confidence you succeeded beyond all expectations. Well done!

During the week, the young leaders got to see how "the sausage gets made," splitting into two different sides of the Chamber, Cabinet and Regular Members, with one temporarily filling your very honourable shoes, Mr. Speaker. They got to learn the dynamics we face while working with the consensus system through writing Members’ statements, introducing petitions and, of course, debating on motions before the House.

The subjects before them were not just softball motions, Mr. Speaker. They instead took debate on serious issues such as the legalization and regulation of cannabis and a more vigorous teaching of local Indigenous languages in our education system. Throughout it all, I had the pleasure of Paging for these young leaders and saw these debates first hand. I must say they conducted themselves in a manner far beyond their age. I have no doubt we will be seeing a few of them in the years to come as important leaders of the North and Members of this Assembly.

I must note, Mr. Speaker, the greatest honour of the week was working with the youth member for Kam Lake, Ms. Anusha Sivakumar, who showed great ability and integrity when serving the people of Kam Lake in this Youth Parliament. I was inspired by Ms. Sivakumar and expect to see her making real change for Northerners in the not-too-distant future.

Mr. Speaker, Youth Parliament is a great program put on by our Legislative Assembly. It’s exactly the kind of program we need to engage youth in order to hear their perspective on the issues of the day which, as adults, we often ignore. We have a responsibility to listen, and I can say I heard them loud and clear.

I was proud to participate in the 15th Assembly, and will be just as proud to throw on a Page’s vest for the 16th sitting of Youth Parliament. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Members’ statements. Member for Mackenzie Delta.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it took a bit of work for me to get into Yellowknife from Tsiigehtchic in time for committee meetings and the start of this sitting. When you’re travelling to and from our small communities, especially during freeze-up and break-up, you have to be ready for anything.

Spring and fall make our rural and remote communities especially vulnerable to isolation. That means that communities that don’t have resident RCMP officers might be stuck without them, and with no way to get them quickly and in an emergency. The people of Tsiigehtchic have brought these concerns to my attention. Although they don't have a regular RCMP officer, they've also reported to me that having RCMP in town on the weekends is working very well. It means a lot to residents to have that support and to work on those relationships.

To build on that, Mr. Speaker, I hope the Minister can keep working with the RCMP “G” Division to ensure that, starting this fall, the community can also have resident police support during freeze-up and break-up. The Department of Health and Social Services already covers community services like this. At the moment, we have a resident nurse who stays in the community during those times. Making sure Tsiigehtchic residents have that RCMP support would mean a lot to the community. It would improve safety and community services, and it would enhance residents' access to justice and to services that other, larger communities already enjoy. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I will have questions later today.

Masi. Members’ statements. Member for Deh Cho.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, first, I'd like to welcome my colleagues back to the House and acknowledge my constituents, whether they're watching from home, listening on the radio, or sitting in the gallery.

Now, Mr. Speaker this is a short sitting, but there's a lot of work to do, so I'll get down to business. Mr. Speaker, the NWT Housing Corporation operates more than 2,400 public housing units in 30 communities. With our small population, think about just how many families those units serve.

Now, when you're in market housing, it might seem that something always goes wrong on Sundays or holidays, just when it's more difficult and more expensive to call a plumber or a furnace technician. When you're in public housing, though, it's even harder. Residents of the Deh Cho riding have come to me, seriously concerned that they are unable to access repair services after hours. If a furnace breaks down in the middle of the night in January and a family can't get immediate repairs, that's downright dangerous.

Mr. Speaker, families in public housing don't have money to spare. They can't simply pay out of pocket for urgent repairs. They can't even undertake major repairs to units, because they're tenants, not owners. The Housing Corporation is in the business of public rental housing in the NWT. To fulfill its mandate, it must provide after-hours services. This might be done through an on-call serviceman. Really, Mr. Speaker, addressing this problem would be a win-win: prompt repairs protect both tenants and the corporation's infrastructure investments. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Members’ statements. Member for Nunakput.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'd like to welcome all our colleagues back to the Assembly, and yourself for the warm welcome. Mr. Speaker, spring is a busy time for traditional hunters across the Northwest Territories. Spring hunting is also very important to the people of Nunakput.

Mr. Speaker, spring is when the caribou migrate north to calve, arctic char can be caught in large numbers as they swim from freshwater lakes to the Beaufort Sea. Traditionally, the lnuvialuit cut a hole through ice and fish with a net or jigger with a line and lure. The fish were then prepared and dried for the winter.

We know it is really spring when waterfowl arrive from the South. Geese are hunted along the coast and spring is a time to collect eggs. Mr. Speaker, before the 1900s the lnuvialuit had very little contact with outsiders and were a completely self-sufficient people. They lived entirely off the land and sea. Everything they ate, wore, built, hunted with, and used for daily activities came from the plant or animal life in their surroundings.

Mr. Speaker, the lnuvialuit, like all traditional cultures, saw themselves as part of the environment, not separate from it. The plants and animals of the Arctic are still respected in our communities today, and that value needs to be passed on to the next generation. Nutritious meat from the animals that are hunted and fish that are caught is still central to many people's diet, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, the Arctic landscape may look empty, especially to the people who are unfamiliar with it, but it is home to approximately 1,700 kinds of plants. When the snow melts, thousands of flowers and lichens grow on the tundra. Arctic summers are a time for berry picking. Mr. Speaker, subsistence harvesting makes a huge difference to people's health and well-being. Imported foods are expensive even in the southern parts of the Northwest Territories.

Pre-packaged and processed foods, like chips and cookies that are easier to transport, convenient and popular, especially with youth, aggravate problems such as diabetes, Mr. Speaker, but they are more affordable than imported perishables like fruits and vegetables.

Mr. Speaker, let's not forget where our traditional health foods are: on the land where our ancestors hunted. A traditional diet consisting of food from the land is healthier and less costly than a typical modern diet.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize all of my constituents who are out hunting this spring and the Indigenous peoples across the Northwest Territories who are keeping subsistence harvesting and our cultures strong. Quyanainni, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Members' statements. Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.

Marci cho, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, unfortunately, it has become a tradition of mine to do eulogies for the people who have passed from sitting to sitting in my riding. Today I have two such eulogies. I would first like to speak of Clifford Cardinal, who was born December 4, 1952, in Hay River and passed away on April 14, 2017, at 64 years of age.

Clifford had three brothers: Lloyd, the late Ross Cardinal, and Allan Cardinal, as well as three sisters: the late Stella, Clara, and Freda. Clifford was the son of Dora and Ben Cardinal. Ben Cardinal, I believe, was originally from Lac la Biche, where apparently a lot of Cardinals live, and Dora was a Beaulieu from Fort Resolution. Clifford was my cousin.

Clifford was a well-known individual in the community; a hard-working man. He went to school in Peter Pond, Grandin College, Akaitcho Hall, and went to school in Moose Jaw and Aurora College. Clifford was very well liked in the community and was very helpful to the elders in Fort Resolution.

Secondly, I would like to also acknowledge Harvey Mandeville. Harvey Mandeville was born on May 26, 1945; he passed away April 25, 2017. Harvey was the son of Adeline and Maude Mandeville. He was better known as Modeste Cho. His father was a well-known Metis leader for the Northwest Territories when the Metis Nation had first started in the NWT. Modeste Cho was one of the people that led the nation.

Harvey's wife was Lillian. Lillian was also from Fort Resolution, but spent many years down in Alberta. She had four children and Harvey had a son who lives here and attended the funeral. Herve was a long-time employee of the diamond industry, and Herve was 72 years old upon his passing. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Our condolences to the families as well. Members' statements. Item 4, returns to oral questions. Item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery.

Colleagues, please allow me to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery today. We have Mr. Anthony W.J. Whitford. As many of you know, Mr. Whitford wears many hats, many roles: former Commissioner, former Speaker, former Minister, former Member, former Sergeant-at-Arms, and Honourary Clerk at the table. Please join me in welcoming Mr. Whitford to the House this afternoon. It's always a pleasure that he is a visitor to this House. Masi.

---Applause

Welcome. Masi. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I usually don't recognize individuals from other ridings, but today I have somebody who I have known for a long time, Raymond Michaud, who was my supervisor when I was in Grandin College. I just acknowledged Mr. Clifford Cardinal had gone to school in Grandin, so I'd like to recognize Mr. Ray Michaud.

Also, I want an opportunity today -- it may be my last opportunity to recognize the translators, because I won't be in tomorrow. Mr. Speaker, I'd like to recognize Mary-Rose Sundberg and Dennis Drygeese, who are interpreting in the Denesuline and Willedeh language. Mahsi cho.

Masi. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Kam Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize Mr. Fraser Oliver, a constituent of Kam Lake and president of the NWT Teachers' Association. Welcome.

Masi. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Great Slave.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, members of the Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement, Northern and Remote Health Network, are with us here today. The foundation was one of two organizations to be highlighted in the federal budget for enhanced funding from Health Canada. This network meets twice annually to share success and develop collaborative approaches to share challenges in delivering healthcare in remote regions like the Northwest Territories.

I would like to welcome the following network representatives: Gregory Cumming, Stephen Samis, Laura Wessman, Sonia Isaac-Mann, Helga Bryant, Lynn Ryan-MacKenzie, Patricia Kyle, and Susan Gillam. I apologize if I have missed any of you. Welcome to the gallery. Thank you.

Masi. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Frame Lake.

Merci, Monsieur le President. I would like to recognize a couple of constituents: Pam Schlosser and Dean McInnes, who are both educators.

There are also some folks in the gallery from the Northern Frontier Visitors Association: Mr. Kyle Thomas is the chair of the board, and Ian Henderson is on the board as well, and Tracy Therrien is the executive director, and I believe some of her staff are here as well. I am sorry if I missed anybody, but thank you very much for joining us today. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Range Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'd like to recognize Annemieke Mulders, who is with the Northwest Territories Status of Women. Thank you.

Masi. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I, too, want to recognize a man of many hats, a resident of Yellowknife North riding, Mr. Tony Whitford.

I would also like to recognize and welcome from Yellowknife Glassworks, Matthew Grogono as well as Emily Lossner are both here today. I also want to recognize Yellowknife resident, professional development coordinator for the NWT Teachers' Association Amanda Mallon, and as well as Adrian Amirault is also a resident of Yellowknife North and the executive director for the NWT Teachers' Association. I apologize to anybody that I missed. Welcome. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Inuvik Boot Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'd like to recognize some of our executive from the NWT Teachers' Association. Our president, Mr. Fraser Oliver; Executive Director, Adrian Amirault; and our past president and past Canadian Teacher Federation vice-president, Ms. Amanda Mallon.

Mr. Speaker, together they have over 91 years of teacher experience in the Northwest Territories and I want to thank them for that. That is a lot of experience and a lot of hearts and minds that they've touched. Any other educators who are here joining us today, welcome. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Nahendeh.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would also like to recognize Ray Michaud, who is a former mayor of Fort Simpson and a very strong candidate for our region, and I welcome him here.

As well, Tracy Therrien, who is a long-term friend; we've known each other for a long time. Welcome to the Assembly along with everybody else. There are some former bosses of mine from the deputy minister's office, I'd like to thank them and welcome them here. Thank you.

Masi. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. If we missed anyone in the gallery, welcome to the proceedings. It is great to have an audience. Masi. Item 6, acknowledgements. Item 7, oral questions. Member for Nunakput.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, pertaining to my statement earlier, I have questions for the Health Minister. Mr. Speaker, my first question is: what food safety education is available to residents of Nunakput and across the Northwest Territories? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Minister of Health and Social Services.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we do have environmental health officers employed by the Department of Health and Social Services who can offer NWT food safety courses when requested by a community. They can go out and do that. They are usually waiting until they get at least 10 individuals who are interested in that course. However, we do know that, in some of the smaller communities, finding 10 individuals has proven to be difficult, so that can be offered by Telehealth as well, but we would need a request from the community that they would like that course provided and we can certainly provide it.

There are also a number of other training opportunities or training courses available online. They are available on our NWT Health and Social Services website. I would strongly encourage the Member to encourage his residents to review those courses and see if any of them meet their needs. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I appreciate the response from the Minister. It looks like we can work with Inuvialuit on that. Mr. Speaker, my second question is: what steps can be taken to make sure small businesses will pass food inspections and get local foods into local stores?

Currently local meat must be inspected to meet food establishment safety regulations in order to be sold in stores. The Department of Health and Social Services is working with ITI to set out a method for legal sale of locally harvested and grown foods. This method needs to ensure that food are safe, which I think is understood and supported by the Member and all residents so that it is safe and the residents will not get ill by eating the food.

My third question, and this may overlap with the previous answer, but: how is the Department of Health working to help small operators sell locally sourced meat products?

The environmental health officers are working with small operators and people applying for temporary or permanent food establishment permits to ensure the food they provide is safe. Providing for locally sourced meat products will require revisions to the Public Health Act and regulations, and it may require other regulations or amendments to be done, regulations and legislation that might exist in other departments, like ENR, Lands or ITI, so we would need to work with those departments to ensure that any sales or distribution of locally harvested foods is safe for the residents when it involves for sale.

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Nunakput.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I appreciate the response, and you mentioned ENR. Mr. Speaker, my final question is: how does the Health Department work with Environment, ENR, to ensure food from the land is safe and free from contaminants? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

We need to have a close working relationship with ENR, and ENR does conduct monitoring activities which include measuring the different types of contaminants that are in the environment as well as in wildlife. They also fund some independent researchers both locally and internationally who can do some measurements on some of the wildlife and land around the Northwest Territories. When that information is made available to Health and Social Services, if there are concerns of contaminants or there are concerns that the locally-sourced meat or other food might be contaminated, we will share that information with the communities and we will do public health announcements to let residents know what, if anything, what amounts can be consumed, what amounts should not be consumed. The Health and Social Services maintains information on a public website on this type of advice, so what people can eat, what they should not eat, and that is available to the public.

I would once again encourage the Member and all Members to share that information with their residents so, if they have concerns about food in a particular area or where food might be contaminated, they know so that they can adjust their consumption.

Oral questions. Member for Frame Lake

Merci, Monsieur le President. My statement earlier today focused on the need to begin planning and budgeting for a new permanent home for the new Northern Frontier Visitor Centre. Does the Minister of Tourism agree that it is inequitable and obviously unsustainable to expect the Northern Frontier Visitors Association to foot the cost of a Yellowknife Visitor Centre when centres in Inuvik, Dawson, and at the border are fully funded by GNWT? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would disagree with the Member that it is inequitable. We fund these different tourist information centres across the Northwest Territories based on different needs. Some are run by societies, some are run by local governments, some are run by contractors and such, and we base our funding on needs across the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am disappointed to hear the response from the Minister. He has provided the numbers, and I think they show otherwise, but the situation that we find ourselves in today with no visitor services in Yellowknife is unacceptable. Dedicated full-time staff have been laid off, artisans have lost an important retail outlet, and summer tourists will have reduced access to services. I just do not understand why we are in the situation that we are and that it is has taken this much to get the government to finally act.

Can the Minister explain what he and his staff are doing to find a permanent location for the Yellowknife Visitor Centre, and will this include GNWT finally picking up the cost of its operation?

As we dealt right now, we dealt with the short-term situation that has come upon the Northern Frontier Visitor Information Centre. They will be moving into the museum just down the road here in a short time, and we have assisted them with that along with the City of Yellowknife which has topped up some of their funding. In the long-term need, we have to sit down with City of Yellowknife and the Northern Frontier Information Centre and find out what is going to be the best practice going forward and the needs of this tourist information centre to serve the residents of Yellowknife.

I appreciate the response from the Minister, and am happy to help in any way I can, but we have got to move this forward very quickly so we have a permanent location in time for the aurora season. In the last sitting, my colleague from Hay River mentioned poor highway signage for the new hospital in Hay River, and the Minister had signs up the next day. What a great response, but there are virtually no signs on the highways into Yellowknife to help tourists find a visitor centre. Can the Minister of Tourism talk to the Minister of Infrastructure and commit to putting up signs here in Yellowknife so that tourists can actually find even a temporary location for the visitor centre?

I will look into the matter. We will have to consult with the City of Yellowknife as well because, depending on where the signage is going, some of it will be within the municipality. Anything along the highway system, we can certainly have a look at it and we will have that discussion and I will let the Member know.

Oral Questions. Member for Frame Lake.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker, and I do appreciate the response from the Minister, and I will be watching the highway very closely to look for those signs.

Over a week ago, the City of Yellowknife committed to an additional $17,000 in funding to support the transition of the visitor centre to a temporary location. In a news release dated yesterday, the Minister committed to "cover costs associated with the association's move to the new location and the interim storage of its assets." That is great; I appreciate that. Can the Minister confirm that these costs will indeed be covered from funding supplemental to the existing Contribution Agreement to the Northern Frontier Visitors Association, and how will this work? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Yes, the Member is correct. We are going to do the supplemental funding above and beyond what we already allocate to the Northern Frontier Visitors' Centre, and we have already allocated quarterly the money that they need to operate for the first part of this year. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Kam Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, Northerners know that supporting the development of the next generation of Northerners is a top priority for any government, and this one is no different. As Minister responsible for Youth, I would like to ask: what resources are available to the Minister to support young people, and how does the Minister formally engage with young people and learn their viewpoints, what kind of services they need to support their development? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Minister responsible for Youth.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We have a lot of different intergovernmental, interdepartmental programs that we work with other departments within the government, that provides a lot of program services. I believe I have been asked this question before in previous sessions, and I would be willing to share that information with the Member.

Just recently, I and the Minister of Health went to Camp Connections and spoke to about 60 youth on health, wellness, education, culture, and language, and wanted their views and their input. At the end of this week, we should be getting it. We also engage in schools, many different venues, avenues, different groups that are coming out of the schools, but we work within our government with the departments and our stakeholders to find out what is important to youth and work on addressing those challenges, those concerns, supporting the successes, as well. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Does the Minister have any information on how those consultations or interactions with young people have shaped government policy? Does he have a "what we heard" document that is kind of an ongoing tally of youth issues and youth concerns as we do with other stakeholder groups?

As we engage with youth, we always get feedback on how the programs are, whether we want to continue working to support those programs. The one in particular that we just attended earlier this week is an excellent one. Both I and the Minister of Health encouraged and challenged youth to come up with policies, come up with ways we can move forward into what we need to do as a government and the decisions that we need to do, and that is where it starts.

This is a new generation of our young adults that is going to be taking over our seats and other leadership in the community, and we want to get their feedback so we can make the appropriate changes.

So that was a no I heard from the Minister, but, that being said, the Minister is clearly quite engaged in this topic and clearly enjoys working with youth and listening to what they hear, so will he commit to establishing a youth council that will be a standing body for young people to participate in, not just in a youth parliament setting but year on year, and provide ongoing feedback to government programs and policy and allow the Minister to canvass young people on their ideas about what our priorities should be as a government? Will he commit to establishing that youth council?

Such programs as the Youth Ambassador Program, the one that we just worked with the Department of Health on, we engage youth from all 33 communities in the Northwest Territories. This one in particular we had a really good engagement, from 12-year-olds right up to 18, asking them what we need to do in terms of policy change, legislation change, programs and services that we need to provide. We will continue to work with the departments and our communities to address those.

It was not a no. We support our youth. The youth is our future, and anything that works in government, we need to hear from the youth because they are the ones who are living in a time that is a lot different from the way a lot of us have grown up in the past.

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Kam Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We all support youth. I think everyone here is very proud of the young people in our constituencies and our communities and the work they do, but I think it's key to actually establish bodies and policies that give youth a voice in government.

So, again, if not a youth council, why not establish a youth secretariat to better coordinate the government programs directed towards youth? Currently, they are scattered, as the Minister said, scattered throughout the public service. Why not have a youth secretariat to better coordinate those resources and so the Minister responsible has a clear sense of how those programs are working and can evaluate them against their success? Thank you.

Yes, we will take that information. We will have discussions, obviously, when we go before committee, and continue further to have these discussions and how we establish regional youth councils or even a territorial youth council. That is information we will look at, and we will bring it to committee to get feedback from committee moving forward. We will continue to evaluate the programs such as Back to the Trail, the program that I and the Minister of Health just attended, and see the successes and where we move from there. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Sahtu.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Earlier, I had mentioned strategies tabled by this government, and more specifically my question today is on the transportation strategy here, to the Department of Infrastructure. My question: since the last session, and more specifically, what progress has the department accomplished or done since the tabling of the federal government's budget this past couple of months? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Minister for Infrastructure.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Since the federal government has passed their budget, I and the Premier had the opportunity to go down there and talk to the Minister of Infrastructure, the Minister of Transportation, and also the Minister of DFO to figure out the plans that the government has laid out in their budgets. We have learned a lot of different things about different pots of money and how they are spread out through different ministries and the timeframe that has been laid out for these different pots of money. Our government will continue to work with the federal government to figure out the best way forward for the Government of the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Now that there has been some dialogue on the programs available to Canadians, more specifically on the application of the Mackenzie Valley Highway, has the Minister and the group had some discussions on a formula or financing plan on the programs available to support the Mackenzie Valley Highway application?

When we were down there talking to the federal Minister of Infrastructure and Transportation, which is two different pots of money, our understanding is the Mackenzie Valley Highway application is still there. It is still frozen until the federal government has figured out what they are going to do on bilateral agreements with the territories and provinces and Canada and how they are going to roll out some of this other infrastructure money.

When does the Minister expect to have a decision on the bilateral reviews and the decision on the application that this government continues to support as a priority for the Mackenzie Valley Highway extension?

My understanding with our conversation with the federal Minister is that decisions on most pots of money around infrastructure will be decided by fall of this year.

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Sahtu.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am very happy to hear that we are drawing near to a decision on the highway application that was submitted by the previous government. Will the Minister keep us informed if there is an immediate reply this coming fall? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

As soon as we hear something from the federal government, I will definitely let the House know. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Deh Cho.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, recently we completed the constituency tour, and it was a pleasure to have the Minister of the Housing Corporation view firsthand the concerns and issues that my constituents have regarding housing, so it’s appropriate that I ask the questions to the Minister responsible for the Housing Corporation. My first question is: where is the current process for public housing tenants who identify an urgent repair need after-hours? Mahsi.

Masi. Minister responsible for the NWT Housing Corporation.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In every community that we have a local housing organization, we also have a 24-hour emergency response system in place. When those systems are called on, the emergency is moved to a priority, taking precedent over any other scheduled regular maintenance that we’re doing. If the situation is deemed not to be a priority, then it falls within the realm of regular maintenance, but we do provide a reply within a week’s business time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Members in the Housing Corporation have often talked about training and employing local community-based skill workers to deal with day-to-day repairs and maintenance of public housing stock. What is the department currently doing to make this a reality in every community with public housing?

The Northwest Territories Housing Corporation recognizes that it is important to have accessible workers in every community, and so we do strive to do that. We do have in every community that has a local housing organization, a position for a housing maintainer, a maintenance worker, so if that position is vacant, then we do our best to fill that position as soon as possible.

This is not the first time I’ve heard the matter being raised before. It was actually important that the Minister hear this concern. Has the matter been raised during the corporation’s major policy review?

The Housing Survey that was conducted by the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation is actually to be tabled tomorrow. We’re really pleased to provide that. There were over 6,000 responses, and so, in all honesty, I do not know if that one particular – it wasn’t highlighted as a major concern, but I would like to state that when we were doing the tour, I did hear within the community of Kakisa that they had concerns about after-hours support. The difficulty within that community is, currently, we only have four home ownership programs and zero public housing in that community. Because we do not provide public housing or rental housing in that community, we do not at this moment have a local housing organization.

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Deh Cho.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, often we are asked this question. I will field this question to the Minister, as we were often asked, you know, ask the Minister on behalf of our constituents that live in public housing, whether it’s in Kakisa or the 33 other communities that we have in the NWT. What will she do about it? This, of course, referenced the need for after-hours service. Mahsi.

It is concerning if the Member has identified that he’s heard that in other communities that they’re not sure about how to reach emergency responses with the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation. It does tell me that we need to do a better job of communicating our services. Communications of our programs and our supports was identified within the survey, hugely stating that we need to do better on that. So, we will be doing a much better job of communicating the programs, the supports that we have in the future. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife Centre.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions are for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. Mr. Speaker, information provided by the department indicates that busing for JK is not mandatory. Could I just confirm with the Minister that this information is correct? Thank you.

Masi. Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I know our discussions with education authorities, we did have those discussions that it’s not mandatory and that education authorities have the discretion to reallocate some of the funding that the department provides to them to offset some of the costs that are associated with busing, so that will be up to the district education authorities as well as the education councils. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I’d like to ask the Minister why busing is mandatory for other grades, but it’s not mandatory for JK.

It’s not mandatory for any grades. As I’ve mentioned, it is at the discretion of the education authorities and councils to decide if they are going to reallocate for busing to provide busing services to their students. It is not mandatory for any grades at this point. However, Mr. Speaker, I can tell you that our department is committed and continues to work with education authorities to address the busing situation when it comes to junior kindergarten students.

We are talking about a great deal of money here in terms of busing in Yellowknife. We are talking about a combined total of $500,000 for Yellowknife Catholic Schools and YK1. This is not a small portion of anyone’s budget. What is the Minister going to do to offset that cost?

I am not sure where the Member is getting her numbers from. We still have to wait and see how many junior kindergarten students, four-year-olds, are going into the school program, and then we can continue to work with the education authorities to find a solution and find ways that we can cover the costs once those numbers are established.

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife Centre.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I’d like to advise the Minister that the figures come from the school boards. That is where they come from. So what I cannot get my head around is, if this is a universal program, if JK is a universal program, how can the Minister opt out of paying for it? Thank you.

In all respect, I believe the Member is mistaken. The department is committed to covering those costs once we find those costs, and we are going to continue working with the education authorities and councils to get those exact numbers, and we will be committed to covering the cost when we get those exact figures. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.

Marci cho, Mr. Speaker. I’m going to ask questions of the Minister responsible for the NWT Housing Corporation on aging in place. Mr. Speaker, I recognize that aging in place is important. I think we also recognize that aging in place for individuals in our housing is important. I would like to ask the Minister if there have been any discussions or plans put in place for having individuals age in place in their own home, in their own communities? Thank you.

Masi. Minister responsible for the NWT Housing Corporation.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Member is absolutely correct. There is a huge need for having support so that our seniors can age in place within their communities. The Northwest Territories Bureau of Statistics has shown that, although our population is slowly increasing, our seniors’ aging is increasing substantially. So, it is a huge priority for this whole government. We are working in partnership with the Department of Health and Social Services to provide the best care possible for our elders. Some of the things that we are doing with the Housing Corporation, we have care and mobility. We have programs specifically to deal with that, to help seniors so that they can stay in their homes as long as possible. We have actually just put in an extra $500,000 specifically for senior supports. We are looking at a different housing design to support elders to be able to stay with their family members. So we are looking at a host of areas that we can support seniors to age in place. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

One of the main obstacles to individuals applying for and getting loans to improve their homes, making their homes barrier-free or seniors friendly, is the land that the units sit on. So I was wondering if there has been any discussion aside from the Minister speaking to Health and Social Services. Have there been any discussions with the municipalities or the Lands Division on how individuals can access more than just a basic amount of money in order to improve their homes by dealing with the land issue?

As was said many times in this House, when we finish getting the results from these surveys, we would be doing a full program review. Some of the issues would be very simple to deal with, some would be a little bit more difficult, and some would be tough. Land tenure is still one of those issues that we are still struggling with to figure out how to do in an equitable manner. However, in saying that, we are working with municipalities and Aboriginal governments. We are rolling out a new program that will support them, to be able to provide homeownership programs within their communities as well, areas such as if they provide the land, then we would provide the material. So we are looking at other options so that we can access more land and provide more housing within our communities.

I am more or less talking about individuals who already own their homes. So what type of direct action has occurred between NWT Housing Corporation and perhaps the communities and regions -- whatever way the money will flow -- to try to get something going this construction year? We're moving into the construction season quickly here. I would like to know if there are going to be any units in the fall term, any units where a senior can say, "I think I have a home here that I can stay an extra 10 years," as an example.