Please be seated. Mr. Speaker, Members of the Legislative Assembly, good afternoon. [English translation not available.] Mahsi. Thank you. It is always a great pleasure to be in this great hall, this great Chamber, and to be in the presence of such an amazing team who works diligently for the betterment and for the quality of life for all Northerners.
It gives me great honour to announce that a new deputy commissioner has been officially appointed by the federal government. Our new deputy commissioner is Mr. Leonard Kenny from Deline in the Sahtu region. Mr. Kenny will be officially sworn in on Tuesday, December 17th. We applaud this appointment and send congratulations to Mr. Kenny and his family.
I believe that we are the first government in Canada to have such a large proportion of women elected to a Legislative Assembly: nine women of 19 Members. You have also chosen a woman to serve as our Premier for just the second time in the history of the Northwest Territories, the only female Premier in Canada. Congratulations, Premier Cochrane.
It is extra special during this festive busy season that we take the time to stop and feel grateful and to give thanks. I say with a grateful heart, mahsi cho to each and every one of you, along with your staff and the Legislative Assembly staff, for your hard work for all of the Northwest Territories residents since the October election.
Last, but not least, I wish you all the love and joy of the holidays along with the festive season. I wish you the gift of quality time with your families and loved ones, to share family values and traditions. I wish you all good health, happiness, and hope for the coming new year.