Masi. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife Centre.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I also have a question about this Aurora College functional review. We know that the Teacher Education Program and the social work program have been put in abeyance pending the strategic planning exercise that was going on. So will these programs now be in the functional review, or is their fate going to be captured by this strategic plan? Thank you.

Masi. Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. All programs will be part of this foundational review moving forward. We did put them in abeyance. We have heard from Members in this House about, instead of cancelling it, why do not we fix it? So this gives us an opportunity to look at those programs, get some recommendations, work with the college, work with senior management at the college, continue to hear from residents, to develop and implement and support these programs that we offer to our northern students and our northern residents. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

My concern is that putting programs into abeyance is sort of a self-fulfilling prophecy for their extinction, meaning that, if instructors and students know that the program has a finite life, they won't continue on with it. They will move on to something else. Can the Minister assure us that this one year abeyance will in fact only be one year?

What this foundation will review, it will look at these programs again. It may result in some good changes, positive changes. As I have said in this House as well, when we had all the students here that came to the Legislative Assembly, one of the indicating factors about these two programs that we were reducing was that for the investment that we were putting into the programs we weren't getting the results and the outcomes that we wanted to see or that we would like to see. I encouraged the students to focus on their studies, graduate to completion, be part of the public service here in the Northwest Territories, and I continue to encourage them to do that. After a year, after this foundational review has taken place, we will see what the results are from that foundational review. I cannot make a commitment until that review is done.

I appreciate the Minister's good intentions, but he is scolding these students like they are bad children. What we have here are, in the most cases, mature students coming from other communities who have lots of commitments in their lives as care for their children and their parents and so on. It is not a matter of them not sticking to it. It is a matter of them being able to engage in this work at their own pace.

What I would like to think is that the Minister isn't looking at an all-or-nothing solution, but he might look at more flexibility, as he wants in the grade school system, to ensure these students succeed, if that is one of the possibilities the functional review will look at. Thank you.

Masi. Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Of course, that is what this foundational review is going to look at. It might even revamp into a whole new program within the social work area or even in the education area or based on our Skills 4 Success Action Plan, it can provide more program services within our three campuses as well as our learning centres.

The Member is saying that I am scolding these students, but I am trying to encourage them to graduate and become educated residents in the North so that they can become part of our public service and also teach and help our students in our smallest communities. Thank you.

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Hay River North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have questions for the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources. They are related to the consultations being done on the NWT Energy Plan and Climate Change Strategic Framework. The Hay River consultations are taking place this Wednesday and Thursday. For those who don't know, it is a two-day workshop, and there are a couple of hours in the evening when the public can come in and participate.

On multiple occasions, I have asked the Minister of ENR to ensure that small businesses are specifically included in this consultation. When I look at the list of invitees, I see six GNWT departments, a federal department, non-profits, NGOs, municipal governments, Aboriginal governments, and two private businesses, neither of which, I am sure, are actually a small business. Independent, small businesses are among the hardest hit by energy costs and utility costs, especially given our aging infrastructure. Why aren't small businesses being invited to the recent consultations? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Minister of Environment and Natural Resources.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the format for each workshop included an invitation meeting during the day and then there will be an open session during the evening of day one. The regional Chamber of Commerce, they were invited to participate at the workshops.

The evening event is open to all residents and businesses including chamber staff, board members, local business, and community residents. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I heard the Minister say that it is open to Chamber staff and board members. Luckily in Hay River, the Chamber has sent out the invitation to their actual membership, so there are small businesses that will be attending. That is just by accident and not by design. I would like to ask the Minister what the engagement has been like in past workshops? Has there been a lot of attendance and input by them?

In the other previous meetings that they have had, the same format was used for all six workshops that they have had across the Northwest Territories. There is an opportunity, I think, through some written submissions that they can make their issues known. There is an opportunity in the evening sessions, as well, to make their issues known there again.

I know that it can be tough if you are an entrepreneur, if you have a small business, to get away from work for two full days to attend one of these. In addition to the written submissions that you can make, I know that one of the Aboriginal governments has a schedule conflict and is getting a private one-on-one consultation. Has the department made this kind of consultation available to small businesses as well?

The Member is correct. There was a scheduling conflict with one of the local Aboriginal governments. They were given an opportunity to have some input. We have had no requests from any other business or any other Aboriginal governments for some one-on-one time. That is what I know so far. I am sure there is opportunity if there are some scheduling conflicts to meet with our folks. Again, I go back to the written submissions and the evening sessions where they just have to take the evening off and provide some comment on how this is going to affect them.

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Hay River North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will make sure to advertise the fact that they are accepting written submissions. In the past, Arctic Energy Alliance and ENR have worked together on programs for small businesses to cut some of these costs. Is ENR looking at continuing these energy conservation incentive programs for small businesses, and if so, how is the input of small business being received? How are they being directly engaged on this? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Department of Public Works and Services is responsible for overseeing the funding of the Arctic Energy Alliance. I will work with my counterpart to see what type of incentives that they have and what they will continue to provide. I will work with the Minister of Infrastructure to see what their plans are to continue this program.

Masi. Oral questions. Item 8 written questions. Item 9, returns to written questions. Mr. Clerk.

Masi. Returns to written questions. Item 10, replies to commissioner's opening address. Item 11, petitions. Item 12, reports of standing and special committees. Item 13, reports of committees on the review of bills. Item 14, tabling of documents. Honourable Premier.

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document entitled "2016-2017 Annual Report on Implementation of the Mandate of the Government of the Northwest Territories." Thank you, Mr. Speaker.