This is page numbers 5601 - 5648 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 public. View the webstream of the day's session.

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Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Yes, I appreciate the Minister's point on that. On October 31st, she stated that the department was then working with Norman Wells and Enterprise. Could she tell us what happened with those negotiations or with those meetings? Thank you.

Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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The Chair

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you. Ms. Kapraelian.

Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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Kapraelian

With the case of Norman Wells, we are in the process of licensing a family day home in that community, and there is interest again from a parent group. There is a facility that has been identified through the town that is available. We are working with that group to see if we can license a childcare centre in that community, as well. That is one of the 11. Then, in terms of Enterprise, they have an after-school program. They do not have childcare for zero to three, but they do have a licensed after-school program.

Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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The Chair

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you. Ms. Green.

Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Thank you very much for that information. The Minister just mentioned Fort Liard and Tsiigehtchic, so what progress is being made there to provide licensed childcare? Thank you.

Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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The Chair

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you. Minister.

Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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Caroline Cochrane

Caroline Cochrane Range Lake

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Fort Liard is now operational, with a licensed daycare provider. Tsiigehtchic was open for a total of one month and, at this moment, is having some internal issues, I would say. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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The Chair

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you. Ms. Green.

Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Yes. Thank you very much. That is very disappointing, obviously. The previous Minister of this department decided to allocate the bulk of the bilateral funding from the federal government to training staff and giving grants to staff to supplement their wages. Can the Minster tell us what uptake there has been on the increased number of scholarships and grants available to people training as early childhood development staff? Thank you.

Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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The Chair

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you. Minister.

Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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Caroline Cochrane

Caroline Cochrane Range Lake

Thank you, Mr. Chair. To clarify, the bulk of the money from the bilateral wasn't all put into training. It was given out through a variety of early childhood intervention programming. Of the money, I think that it was wise of the previous Minister. It is not only about getting licensed childcare; it is actually having the credentials. The Minister before me realized that was an issue, and so instituted the change to the one-year early childhood development program from one year to actually a two-year program and moved from 10 scholarships to 30 scholarships. At this point, my belief is that there is 19 scholarships that have been accessed through this program. Thank you.

Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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The Chair

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you. Ms. Green.

Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Thank you. Just to clarify, my understanding was there were 30 scholarships per year. Is the Minister saying that there are 19 per year, or 19 over what period of time? Thank you.

Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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The Chair

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you. Minister.

Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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Caroline Cochrane

Caroline Cochrane Range Lake

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I do need to clarify my last answer. The last time I had seen a briefing note, it was 19, but we are actually up to 26 now. The total number of scholarships is 30 scholarships available a year, and we are at 26 as of today. They are given out in the fall. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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The Chair

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you. Ms. Green.

Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Thank you, Mr. Chair. It is good news that people do want to take up this training. I wonder, without opening additional daycares, what all these additional trained early childhood development staff workers will be doing. What is the outlook for employment in this field? Thank you.

Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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The Chair

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you. Minister.

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Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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Caroline Cochrane

Caroline Cochrane Range Lake

Thank you, Mr. Chair. There is a high demand, actually, for people who are licensed, who have the qualifications for early childhood development. I know that from personal experience. My previous job before I came into the Assembly, I operated a non-profit organization that had a daycare facility. Of that daycare, only one person had the qualifications, which leaves daycares in jeopardy around supervision of children, around capacity of getting people, and parents' concerns.

Is it okay that we have children in licensed daycare providers' homes that we are paying good money for, that the government is supplementing with taxpayers' money, and that they don't have the training that is necessary to provide appropriate early childhood intervention? I think this is well-spent money. I know that, in Yellowknife alone, our demand is huge. I am hoping that, in every community, people not just see daycares as babysitters, because they are more than babysitters. They are our hope for the future. It is early childhood development versus babysitting. Therefore, we need to advocate that people get trained in this and that we have qualified people. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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The Chair

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you. Ms. Green.

Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Thank you. I appreciate the Minister's passion for the training, and I agree that it is very important. What I just can't get my head around, though, is where these 26 new licensed staff are going to go. It is my understanding that, while there is lots of demand for childcare, there is not very much supply, so where does the Minister see these people going? Thank you.

Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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The Chair

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you. Minister, one minute on the clock.

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Caroline Cochrane

Caroline Cochrane Range Lake

Thank you, Mr. Chair. My hope is that a lot of these people actually return to their communities and offer licensed daycare provision, recognizing that not all daycare providers are licensed centres. We are also looking for the smaller communities to get licensed day homes. Then, of course, like I had said, there is always, in Yellowknife, a huge demand. The turnover is huge. Again, my previous experience is that a lot of people who do get the early childhood development go on. They look at other occupations. They move into schools. They apply for government jobs. They sometimes go into social work, my own background. The turnover is high, and we need to make sure that we have qualified people. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

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Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters

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The Chair

The Chair R.J. Simpson

Thank you. Thirty seconds, Ms. Green.

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Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Yes. The mandate commits the department to create childcare that is available and affordable by showing us a plan about how that is going to be achieved. Could the Minister update us on the status of that plan? Thank you.