Thank you, Minister. Member for Monfwi.

Masi, Madam Chair. I really enjoyed the Minister's statement on listening to the community and the people, basing their decision on their community's needs. That's a real, true statement and a very powerful statement, and as Ms. Martselos alerted to, thinking outside the box. Those are discussions that we need to have at this level. We're a government level. We need to be thinking outside the box. I would like to thank the Minister for that.

I do have a couple of questions, Madam Chair, more specifically to Chief Jimmy Bruneau School that's been highlighted here. As you know, there's been a major retrofit, 1995. It's been 25 years. That school is older than me, over 50 years old. Probably, one of the older schools in the Northwest Territories. It is deteriorating. We met, the Minister and I met with my leadership back in January, I believe, and there's a future request for the replacement of the school. Not a retrofit, replacement. That's why I highlighted the statement that he's made, and it is 50-plus years old, Madam Chair. Those are discussions that need to take place.

That's a long-term investment, but at the same time, this bus garage has been in the books for quite some time now, I believe. It's been a real issue with the bus garage. Since the 70's, we've been commuting students from Behchoko, Wha Ti to Edzo on a daily basis. The bus garage has been a real issue and challenges. My first question, Madam Chair, are we going to be waiting for a new school to be before we deal with this garage, or are we going ahead with our garage, retrofitting the garage? That's a separate building. I'm not sure if that work has been done.

Also, before I forget, Madam Chair, I believe O'Reilly may have touched on this, on the demolition. We talk about contracts. Obviously, the contracting issue is a major issue, now. We have been closely monitoring that. It must be northern and locally beneficial. I want to make that clear today, that, if my school is coming down, obviously, we don't want southern contractors to come out and build schools for us. We have the capability in the North, so I want to make that clear.

My first question is: the school, we're still working on it with the Minister, but the garage part, I'm just curious. Is it going to go ahead, or are we going to wait on a new school? Masi, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Member for Monfwi. Minister of ECE.

Thank you, Madam Chair. For those who don't know, the background of the school is that it is an older school. According to the technical inspections, with the retrofit, it could stand for another couple of decades. However, the Tlicho Government have strongly expressed their, I don't even want to say "desire." They have said there is no other way to do it. They want a new school in Rae, in Behchoko. In the old days, ECE may have just said, "No, we are going to retrofit the school in Edzo." That's how the school got there in the first place. The federal government put the school there against the wishes of the community. Now, 50 years later, we have this opportunity, perhaps, to right a historical wrong, and so we have agreed to work with the Tlicho Government to try and access some federal funds, or some funds from somewhere, so that we can facilitate the building of a new school in Behchoko.

We are not there, yet, not by a long shot. The future of that bus garage might hinge on that. Perhaps I can hand it over to my deputy minister who is more familiar with this, and she can give us some details on the Member's question. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister. Deputy Minister Mueller.

Thank you, Deputy Minister Mueller. Member for Monfwi.

Masi, Madam Chair. I knew that was the answer, but I had to put it on the record. The Tlicho Government and myself and the Minister will have to deal with the school replacement. It's a clear message from the community, not just the government, but the community, for a new school to be replaced.

Daycare is in the residence wing. I'm not sure what is going to happen with the daycare. We have so many students in there. That's one area that is part of the wing that is going to be demolished, apparently; demolition. The old school residence has been very well used over the years, since the 1970s. It was used for trades programming, residences for students in outlying communities. Apparently, it's no longer in use, for future use. Was there engagement with the community to get rid of the residence wing, or has that decision been made by the department, to say, "Due to it being unsafe, we're going to tear it down"? Because there were talks, and even the chairperson of TCSA was talking about potential trades programming in that residence wing. I'm just curious: has that been considered? I just need the latest update on that, Madam Chair. Masi.

Thank you, Member for Monfwi. Minister of ECE.

Thank you. I'd like to hand it to my deputy minister.

Thank you, Minister. Deputy Minister Mueller.

Thank you, Deputy Minister Mueller. Member for Hay River South.

Thank you, Madam Chair. First of all, I would like to say that we know education in the smaller communities is sometimes somewhat wanting, so I am pleased to hear that we are constructing and building schools in the smaller communities, northern communities. I know that these buildings will provide an appealing learning place and also a safe place to encourage indoor sports and other activities. Hopefully, it will help with any social issues, as well.

I think it's important to note that this government exists because of our Indigenous peoples and our Indigenous population, so we have to ensure that they are provided with infrastructure just like Yellowknife and the regional centres, as well. Sometimes, we may have to give up a little bit in the bigger communities so that the smaller communities have an opportunity, as well. I am very pleased to hear that the Minister is actually listening to the people and placing the students first. That's, I think, what people were expecting from this government, and so it is heartening to hear that.

One thing I'm curious about, though, is: you talked about hearing from the communities on the buildings themselves. I'm wondering how much input they maybe had in the design of the building to ensure that it meshed with possibly their learning style. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Member for Hay River South. Minister of ECE.

Thank you. The deputy minister would be happy to speak about that.

Thank you, Minister. Deputy Minister Mueller.

Thank you, deputy minister. Member for Hay River South.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I just want to make one comment, and that's with respect to the power doors accessibility in Kakisa. I'm glad to see that in there, and I think that's got to be taken into account in all the schools because, in the smaller communities, I think they're forgotten about. There are people that need that access, and this is a good start. Hopefully, it's built into all future schools. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Member for Hay River South. Does the Minister have any comments?

Sure. Thank you. I appreciate that observation. We can't give everybody everything, but I think that what we have to give everyone is access. Both the department and myself have prioritized these types of projects where we can ensure that everyone has equitable access, regardless of what your circumstance might be. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister. Any further questions? Committee, do we have any further comments on this section? Seeing none, I'll call the page. Education, Cultural and Employment, junior kindergarten to grade 12 school services, infrastructure investment, $30,148,000. Does committee agree?