This is page numbers 2895 - 2924 of the Hansard for the 18th Assembly, 2nd Session. The original version can be accessed on the Legislative Assembly's website or by contacting the Legislative Assembly Library. The word of the day was mandate.

Topics

Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Thank you, colleagues. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, fast forward to January of this year. The standing committee on social development held a public briefing on child and family services. The Minister told us that the audit results were unavailable because of technology issues. He also said that trying to reproduce the audit would require him to go back and do a significant amount of work which he was unwilling and unprepared to do. What he did do was compile recommendations, and presented them as a letter to the committee. I am assuming that the audits for the 2016-2017 are now complete. I will be seeking assurance from the Minister that he was able to gather all the necessary data to monitor the provision of child and family services and to address any deficiencies the audit revealed. Masi, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Masi. Members' statement. Member for Hay River North.

R.J. Simpson

R.J. Simpson Hay River North

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Agriculture: where do I begin? I will start with the good. There is significant potential in agriculture in the Northwest Territories, not just as it relates to economy and employment, but also to food security and health. Right now, the demand for locally produced foods far outstrips the supply. To capitalize on this potential, we need to help current producers expand their operation, and help new producers enter the industry. The most urgent issues that must be addressed, according to producers, the Agriculture Strategy, and the revised mandate of this Assembly, relate to land, labour, funding programs, and training. Despite this urgency, there has been no progress towards resolving these issues and many producers are frustrated.

Access to land is probably the biggest impediment to sector growth. The land lease application process can take years, Mr. Speaker, and because each application is assessed on its own merit without clear guidelines, the process provides no certainty, predictability, and often ends in disappointment. However, this is a moot point in many cases because the cost associated with leasing land often makes it uneconomical for many types of agricultural use. Labour costs are also stifling growth and deterring new entrants. Under the GNWT's agriculture funding program, Growing Forward 2, the only agriculture-related positions eligible for funding are management positions at non-commercial enterprises. New entrants are further deterred by the utter lack of funding available for start-ups.

In communities without an established agricultural sector, consultations revealed that a deficit of local expertise, and a lack of training are also major barriers for new entrants. As luck would have it, a local farmer, Jackie Milne, not only took it upon herself to design a training program specifically for the North that is accessible to everyone regardless of education level, but also managed to get the feds to fund a physical campus for her Northern Farm Training Institute, or NFTI. NFTI has garnered recognition from former Prime Minister Harper, the federal Minister of Agriculture, the Assembly of First Nations, and even Hellman's. Yes, the mayonnaise people, to name a few. The campus is also internationally recognized and regularly hosts visitors from around the globe. In fact, Mr. Speaker, it seems like everyone is interested in NFTI except for this government.

Despite the fact that we need to train our residents, the Department of ITI has been refusing to provide funding to residents so they can attend NFTI since its campus was built. I will have questions on this and more at the appropriate time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Masi. Members' statements. Item 4, returns to oral questions. Item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Yellowknife North.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

October 3rd, 2017

Cory Vanthuyne

Cory Vanthuyne Yellowknife North

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize Fletcher Stevens. Fletcher is the owner and operator of the NWT Brewing Company and the Woodyard Pub which is located in the Yellowknife North riding. Welcome to the House.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Sahtu.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

Daniel McNeely

Daniel McNeely Sahtu

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to recognize my aunt sitting behind me here, the interpreter for the Slavey portion of the proceedings. Mahsi.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

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

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

Tom Beaulieu

Tom Beaulieu Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I too, would like to recognize the interpreters from Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh. First, Mary Rose Sundberg from Detah, and Dennis Drygeese from Lutselk'e. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Item 6, acknowledgments. Item 7, Oral Questions. Member for Nahendeh.

Shane Thompson

Shane Thompson Nahendeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question today is for the Minister of Health and Social Services. Mr. Speaker, I have heard a lot of positive things about the boarding home here in Yellowknife, however like most things, there are a few concerns that residents have raised, and I would like to raise them here today. Mr. Speaker, there are patients that have to stay in the boarding home long-term. Even some have resided permanently. Has the department looked at placing them in their own home without having short-term patients staying in their place? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Minister of Health and Social Services.

Glen Abernethy

Glen Abernethy Great Slave

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it depends on availability. The patient may sometimes have a roommate, sometimes have a room to themselves, however there are increasing periods of high medical travel here in the Northwest Territories which affects volumes. In some situations, patients may need to share the room. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Shane Thompson

Shane Thompson Nahendeh

I thank the Minister for his answer. I am a little disappointed that I have some constituents who are permanently there now and have to share the room. I was hoping that they were getting a little bit of privacy. Mr. Speaker, boarding homes have chauffeurs and drivers who deliver really great service. They are very friendly and very helpful, but the concern for some patients is they have to wait long periods of time to be picked up or get dropped off early for flights. What does the contract say about providing transportation for these patients, and does the department allow patients to use taxis and reimburse them for those costs if they don’t have access to the shuttle? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Glen Abernethy

Glen Abernethy Great Slave

Mr. Speaker, when an individual is staying at one of our boarding homes, the transportation is included in the boarding home contract, so they are compensated for providing that transportation. Transportation is intended or supposed to be provided to and from the airport, but also to and from appointments. If the Member has some specific incidents he would like to raise, I would certainly like to hear those to see how often that is happening. Maybe it is something that we need to look a little bit more deeply at.

Shane Thompson

Shane Thompson Nahendeh

I thank the Minister for his answer. I will follow up with him with the specific concerns residents have talked to me about. Like most places, food is usually an issue for some. The concern isn’t about the quality; it is about the traditional food. How does the department ensure the boarding room has access to traditional food that can be provided to the patient? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Glen Abernethy

Glen Abernethy Great Slave

Mr. Speaker, once again, the boarding homes are contracted to provide particular services: room, board, transportation. The boarding homes do try to have traditional food on the menu when that food is made available to them. In Yellowknife and Edmonton, by way of example, the boarding homes are run by Aboriginal beneficiary organizations, and I do know that they make an effort to provide traditional food and traditional menus. However, they are limited by budget and supplies not always there. As a result, they can’t always provide these menus on a regular basis, but I do know that they want to and they try as best they can.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Nahendeh.

Shane Thompson

Shane Thompson Nahendeh

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker, and I thank the Minister for that answer. It does clear up a little bit of concerns out there so I am able to share that with my constituents. Mr. Speaker, due to appointments and flight schedules, patients sometimes miss meals. How does the department ensure that the patients are fed? Do they get a food allowance to cover this additional cost that is put onto them, because the flights are not? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Masi. Minister of Health and Social Services.

Glen Abernethy

Glen Abernethy Great Slave

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, once again, if an individual is staying at a boarding home, meals are intended to be provided. However, if they are arriving late or they have experienced delays, light food is supposed to be available for them, so not a full meal but something that they can eat when they get there. This can include things like sandwiches, fruit, juice, cookies – we all like cookies – coffee, and tea, should they miss one of their regular meals. If they are in transit and they are late or they are travelling over what would be a normal meal time, they can claim up to $18 a day to offset some of the costs of buying food. If a patient experiences a delay due to circumstances such as weather, I do understand the medical travel end is willing and able to provide some reimbursement for meals. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife North.

Cory Vanthuyne

Cory Vanthuyne Yellowknife North

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we know that earlier in September, the Minister of Finance made a commitment that he would be instructing his officials to undertake a review of the liquor regulations to make them more transparent and more relevant. This is good news; we have a huge, growing tourism-based economy that – you know, I think it is time to do this. My question to the Minister is: can the Minister provide this Assembly with an update on what he intends to do with this review? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Masi. Minister of Finance.

Robert C. McLeod

Robert C. McLeod Inuvik Twin Lakes

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I have asked the official of the department to review the existing board processes and policies of the NWT Liquor Act regulations. In addition, the department will be reaching out to stakeholders as to how to modernize the board enforcement and decision-making processes to ensure they are transparent and fair. We plan on having the work completed for review by the next fiscal year. We do, however, plan on implementing the changes that we can make in the interim. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.