This is page numbers 5553 - 5574 of the Hansard for the 18th Assembly, 3rd 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 climate. View the webstream of the day's session.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Frame Lake.

Kevin O'Reilly

Kevin O'Reilly Frame Lake

Merci, Monsieur le President. I want to thank the Premier for that response. I don't think that committees are going to cut it. There has been one new committee established. The standing committee that reviewed the Climate Change Strategic Framework asked for a climate change act, some real action. That is not what we have.

While we have the students here in the gallery, we need some new leadership, vision, and action to deal with the climate change crisis. What would the Premier like to say to our youth to instil hope and confidence that the NWT is doing its part to meet the climate change crisis? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Bob McLeod

Bob McLeod Yellowknife South

Addressing climate change is a priority of the 18th Legislative Assembly. Within the life of this government, we have developed both a Climate Change Strategic Framework and Action Plan, which is linked to our work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through the energy plan. The Government of the Northwest Territories is now poised to take real action over the next five years and make progress on our transition to a lower-carbon economy, improving our knowledge of climate change impacts, and building resilience in adapting to climate change. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife Centre.

Question 715-18(3): Climate Change Crisis
Oral Questions

May 24th, 2019

Page 5565

Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are also on the climate, and they are addressed to the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources. Given the recent scientific studies about the rate of change, the accelerated change of the climate, it is now being referred to as a crisis. Does the Minister consider the current state of affairs, with the warming of the planet, a crisis? Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Masi. Minister of Environment and Natural Resources.

Robert C. McLeod

Robert C. McLeod Inuvik Twin Lakes

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I stated before, we have seen the effects of climate change, especially up in the Beau-Del, long before the rest of the country, and I do believe that we are getting to the point where it is becoming a crisis. We see that. I have said before that, in the Delta, we see ground falling into the water. You look around in the Beaufort and Tuktoyaktuk at the erosion on the shore there; that demonstrates the effect that climate change is having on the North. We recognize that.

The short answer to the Member's question is: yes, I do believe that this is serious enough to be considered a crisis. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Thank you to the Minister for that response. During the consultation on the 2030 NWT Climate Change Strategic Framework, some people suggested that the GNWT create a climate change secretariat, such as exists in both Yukon and Nunavut, to oversee all climate crisis-related work, rather than compartmentalizing responsibilities in one department. Why did government decide to not take this advice?

Robert C. McLeod

Robert C. McLeod Inuvik Twin Lakes

Through a jurisdictional review of the climate change programs in Canadian jurisdictions, ENR found that, regardless of the organizational structure, the most important factors in their success were leadership and the authority to act. The GNWT, we believe, has accordingly taken a leadership role on climate change in the territories and organized itself so that climate change is considered at all levels of authority. As the Premier has stated before, at the director level, the ADM, DM, and ministerial committees have been established, and the leadership structure will focus government efforts to implement and report on the Climate Change Strategic Framework and to assist with the development and implementation of the 2019-2023 action plan. We also recognize the importance of working with our partners as we move to the implementation phase of the Climate Change Strategic Framework. To this end, ENR, we are actually exploring opportunities, approaches to coordinate the guidance work, such as through the establishment of a climate change advisory body.

Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

I appreciate the answer. I guess I would prefer to see a somewhat independent office looking out for climate change rather than having the government do this directly. I feel that the results may be more credible, but it is what it is, I guess, at this point. I mentioned in my statement about taking a whole-of-government approach to procurement, screening it for how it is mitigating or making worse the issue of climate crisis, and I am wondering if the government is prepared to institute a whole-of-government procurement policy that takes this full-cost accounting into account.

Robert C. McLeod

Robert C. McLeod Inuvik Twin Lakes

That is a very timely question. The GNWT recognizes the importance that our government can play on influencing the market for the goods and services that we procure. Following engagement conducted in 2017-2018, ENR worked closely with the communities on the development of an NWT waste resource management strategy. The strategy is anticipated to be released in the coming month. As part of this strategy, goal number four focused on actions to greening government. Greening government means making decisions about what we buy, how we manage our assets, how we run our business to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, energy, water, and solid waste.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife Centre.

Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It sounds like this waste strategy may go some of the way towards answering this question. My final question is whether the government has any interest in reviving a program such as the One-Tonne Challenge that focuses on personal action and accountability. Does the government have any interest in drawing citizens individually into this, beyond taxing them with the carbon tax?

Robert C. McLeod

Robert C. McLeod Inuvik Twin Lakes

Again, we know the crisis that we are in with climate change, and I think the public is becoming more and more educated as we become more and more educated. Our youth are taking steps to become more and more educated, and I think, through that process, there will be a lot of people doing that on their own, reducing their carbon footprint and how they do business. If it's an initiative that could help us address the situation that we are in, then I think it's incumbent on this Assembly. I say "this government." When I talk about the government, I am talking all 19 Members. It's something that this Assembly can look at and possibly get behind and promote and see if we can make that initiative come to be. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

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

Tom Beaulieu

Tom Beaulieu Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh

Marsi cho, Mr. Speaker. In my Member's statement, I spoke of a former Member of the House talking about coerced sterilization in the NWT. Following that statement, there was an article written in Windspeaker publication which described a GNWT program where coerced sterilization victims could come forward to begin an inquiry if they believed they were wrongfully sterilized. My question for the Minister is twofold: how long did the program run in that time; and, in that time, how many women came forward? Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Minister of Health and Social Services.

Glen Abernethy

Glen Abernethy Great Slave

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As a government, we acknowledge that the abhorrent practice of performing sterilization procedures upon Indigenous women under a forced or a coerced circumstance took place in the Northwest Territories in the past, long before any of us were in this House. I personally condemn the practice, as I know all Members in this House must, of coerced or forced sterilization. As a government, we take seriously the accounts that have been shared by residents. I would really like to commend the individuals for their courage in sharing their stories and bringing forth this issue.

Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, at this time, I do not have the precise information on the number of women who came forward under that GNWT program that was offered in 1998. It was a number of years ago. However, I would like to reconfirm that this government will always take seriously and respond to patients' accounts of forced sterilization. With respect to the information from the 1998 program, I will do my best to get that information and share it with the Member, as well as other Members of this House.

I would like to acknowledge once again that I agree with the Member that such practices are a violation of medical ethics and of a patient's rights to information and informed consent, so I thank the Member for raising the question.

Tom Beaulieu

Tom Beaulieu Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh

I would like to thank the Minister for that response. Mr. Speaker, in December 2018, the federal Health Minister responded to an issue of coerced sterilization by inviting all provincial and territorial Health Ministers to participate in a taskforce on cultural competency in healthcare. My question is: what was the department's response, our department's response, to the call, and are we participating?

Glen Abernethy

Glen Abernethy Great Slave

The federal government has formed a working group to look at ways of embedding cultural safety and humility into the design and delivery of healthcare services in Canada. This working group, as a note, will not deal directly with forced sterilization as part of its mandate. We do support the federal government's efforts to collaborate with provinces, territories, Indigenous groups, and national provider organizations on measures to improve cultural safety in the health system. We are participating in that working group. The GNWT is also committed to working with Indigenous governments in the Northwest Territories in our efforts to improve cultural safety here in the Northwest Territories.

As the Member knows, we have come forward with a Cultural Safety Action Plan to help us address the issues, the very real issues, around cultural safety that do exist here in the Northwest Territories, and we are determined to do our work in a culturally respectful, fair, and equitable way for all residents. We will ensure that any commitments made through the participation in the FTP working group align with our existing work here in the Northwest Territories in this area.

Tom Beaulieu

Tom Beaulieu Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh

I do acknowledge and recognize the good work done by this department, our Department of Health and Social Services, on the cultural competency. I would like to ask the Minister about the federal task force and just a question asking the Minister if there is a current status since the task force was formed or, if not, then would the Minister provide a current status to the House once that status is available?

Glen Abernethy

Glen Abernethy Great Slave

It's my understanding that the FTP working group is intended to be a forward-looking body that will examine ways of embedding cultural safety and humility into the design and delivery of healthcare services throughout the country. They intend to share information about initiatives and promising practice under way across the country, which is one of the reasons we are sharing the work that we have done. It's also intended to identify opportunities for collaboration between provinces, territories, and other bodies.

To date, Mr. Speaker, a draft terms of reference has been developed by the working group, including identifying some guiding principles. This, once again, is a federal document and federal initiative. As a first step, jurisdictions will be reaching out to their Indigenous partners to see if the Indigenous governments are interested in participating in the working group, and that engagement will hopefully be done soon.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Oral questions. Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.

Tom Beaulieu

Tom Beaulieu Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to thank the Minister for that response. Can the Minister advise us if it's very clear to the practitioners that forced sterilization is not something that can and should be done in the NWT? Thank you.

Glen Abernethy

Glen Abernethy Great Slave

Today, compared to when this activity was occurring, we have best practices and additional checks and balances in place to ensure that patients are given alternative options before referring a patient to sterilization procedures as part of pre-op. Today, it's also our best practice that patients are again asked if they fully understand the nature and the consequences of the procedures that they may be wishing to undertake, as part of ensuring the patient has provided informed and knowledgeable consent before the procedure is actually done. Additional supports can and could be offered, such as counselling, given that this procedure is permanent and irreversible in all situations. Yes, our practitioners know. Our practitioners understand the realities, and our procedures have changed radically since 1998, when that study was done by the GNWT. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.