This is page numbers 437 - 482 of the Hansard for the 19th Assembly, 2nd 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 going.

Caroline Wawzonek

Caroline Wawzonek Yellowknife South

The Department of Human Resources is constantly working to ensure that it is doing the best it can to be a representative workforce. To that end, as I've said before in this House in the last month, there are a variety of programs. They are continuously making efforts to be responsive as new ideas arise to be innovative. For instance, developing the building capacity in Indigenous governments program that is being worked on right now is one where it's helping to build capacity in communities with secondments between the GNWT and Indigenous governments.

There's a constant effort to find new and better ways to improve the workforce, not only in the GNWT, but in some of our partners across the territory. One of those tools is the Affirmative Action Policy. I have already offered to this House to give a technical presentation to standing committee to go through that policy, to consider reviews that have been done, and to engage in a dialogue with all Members of the House if there are ways that we can continue to improve that policy for the betterment of the Northwest Territories and the people of the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

The Deputy Speaker

The Deputy Speaker Lesa Semmler

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.

Steve Norn

Steve Norn Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh

Mahsi cho, Madam Speaker. I have a question for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, going back to my Member's statement on language. Can the Minister share with us what work is being done to having more official languages on NWT signs and landmarks? Mahsi cho.

The Deputy Speaker

The Deputy Speaker Lesa Semmler

Thank you, Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh. Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.

R.J. Simpson

R.J. Simpson Hay River North

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Currently, we have official language guidelines, and these guidelines lay out the signage rules for government buildings. In addition to English and French, exterior building signs are to be translated into the local official languages. For the main directory board signs, the ones you see inside, the official Indigenous language appropriate to the local area should appear before English and French. Currently, the department under the Indigenous languages action plan, there's so many different names here, I can't keep them straight, but the Indigenous languages revitalization action plan, essentially, there's a lot that's going to be happening within the next two years. I just looked at the guidelines, actually, and the copy I found was from before division, and it's my understanding that that is the most recent copy. Some of the work we're going to be doing in the next two years is updating those, as well as updating the regulations. Infrastructure is doing work to update their guidelines around signage on buildings. The standing committee, with the assistance of the department, is going to be looking at the Official Languages Act. In the next couple of years, there's going to be a lot happening in terms of updating the way we display Indigenous languages in the territory. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Steve Norn

Steve Norn Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh

Thank you for the response from the Minister. That's encouraging. I think, if our ancestors are watching, I think they would be very, very happy to hear that. My next question is: would the Minister be open to having an interactive "welcome" and "good-bye," so to speak, in all our official languages at our points of entry? What I mean by that, our visitors' centres and our border at the NWT-Alberta border as well?

R.J. Simpson

R.J. Simpson Hay River North

I am not quite sure what the Member means by "interactive," if that's the people working at the centres or if that is like a touch screen type thing. That would really be up to the Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment who runs those. I would definitely encourage it. I know that at the north of 60, for the 60th parallel visitors' centre, when you enter the park, we have the big sign, which is strictly in English, but then, as soon as you enter the park area, the sign includes all the Indigenous languages.

Steve Norn

Steve Norn Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh

Thank you for that response from the Minister again. Encouraging. My last question for the Minister goes to language workshops. It's applicable to all of our interpreters who are assisting right now as I speak. Can the Minister commit to having more workshops for our language interpreters, especially assisting with legal, medical, and scientific terminology in the life of this Assembly?

R.J. Simpson

R.J. Simpson Hay River North

The interpreters at the Legislative Assembly do an amazing job, and I'm sometimes in awe of all the languages that are spoken in this building. It is really like nowhere else. No other legislature around the world, I'm sure. To the Member's point, one of the additional actions that I discussed under the action plan is going to be updating the different terminologies. ECE is going to undertake that with Indigenous language experts and update the different terminologies for the legal terms, medical terms, et cetera, and are going to provide support to interpreters and arrange training opportunities. Just the kind of work that the Member is talking about is the kind of work that we look forward to doing in the next couple of years.

The Deputy Speaker

The Deputy Speaker Lesa Semmler

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Kam Lake.

Caitlin Cleveland

Caitlin Cleveland Kam Lake

Thank you, Madam Speaker. My questions today are for the Minister of Health and Social Services. I appreciate the Minister's opening statement in regards to the oral health strategy, and I'm wondering if the Minister plans to table an official report of where we are with the oral health strategy. Thank you.

The Deputy Speaker

The Deputy Speaker Lesa Semmler

Thank you, Member for Kam Lake. Minister of Health and Social Services.

Diane Archie

Diane Archie Inuvik Boot Lake

Thank you, Madam Speaker. The Oral Health Action Plan is currently in place, and it's in place until the 2020-2021 fiscal year. The outcomes are updated as the work progresses or completed. As this work progresses, and some of the work that's completed, as Minister, I am updated. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Caitlin Cleveland

Caitlin Cleveland Kam Lake

Will the Minister have her department undertake an assessment of the feasibility of allowing dental hygienists to practice without the oversight of dentists so that our small communities have better access to preventative oral healthcare?

Diane Archie

Diane Archie Inuvik Boot Lake

Under the current legislation, the dental hygienists are allowed to practise independently with only indirect supervision. Professional oversight is required. The direct supervision is not required, just the indirect supervision. Yes, we can look at the legislation.

Caitlin Cleveland

Caitlin Cleveland Kam Lake

I am very happy to hear a "yes" in response to that one. I am wondering if the Minister has an idea of a timeline in regards to that type of a feasibility study?

Diane Archie

Diane Archie Inuvik Boot Lake

Apparently, I need to go back here and just talk about the -- I'm going to go back to the Member's original question because I think I might have gotten confused here. We have an action plan. The action plan is currently in progress until 2021. The Member had asked if the dental hygienists can go unsupervised. They can go, somewhere around the question. The dental hygienist does not require direct supervision. They do require indirect supervision. The action plan that the Member is referring to that I receive updates, yes, we can provide the updates if that is what the Member and all the MLAs are requesting.

The Deputy Speaker

The Deputy Speaker Lesa Semmler

Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary, Member for Kam Lake.

Caitlin Cleveland

Caitlin Cleveland Kam Lake

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I am going to go back, as well, then. I completely understand that the act stipulates that there is a requirement that there is indirect supervision from a dentist. However, that means that a dental hygienist who wants to practise in northern communities needs to find a dentist who is willing to take them on under their wing, so to say, and that prevents people from being able to just go to communities on their own as a business owner and provide dental hygiene appointments or preventative healthcare to people who live in these small communities. What that will end up doing is driving up costs of dental care to people who live in Tuktoyaktuk or who live in Deline.

In order for us to be able to provide cost-effective, preventative oral health care in small communities, being able to remove that stipulation and expect that dental hygienists who are accredited and who are trained professionals can work without the supervision of a dentist is required. I am wondering if the Minister is willing to do a feasibility study to look at removing that from the act. Thank you.

Diane Archie

Diane Archie Inuvik Boot Lake

I can see some of the Members are pretty happy over there. I am not sure about a study, but it is something we will look into. Oral health in the communities, like I said in my Minister's statement, is very important. There was a question in the House by Inuvik Twin Lakes asking me last month: will the department look at establishing a territorial chief electoral health officer role? That is something our department is looking into. We need a position in place to be able to go. We look at some of our health centers, and the hygienist chairs are empty. I recognize that. Our department needs to go in and have a look at the system and see what is required within the legislation or perhaps make changes to it. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

The Deputy Speaker

The Deputy Speaker Lesa Semmler

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife North.

Rylund Johnson

Rylund Johnson Yellowknife North

Thank you, Madam Speaker. There has been quite a lot of talk about the Arnica project over the last weeks in this House. I am happy to hear that there has been a meeting, and it seems there is still some hope for this project to go through, although I am still a little confused on some issues. The Minister had previously clarified that they had not seen the CMHC report and, in fact, relied on CMHC. My question to the Minister responsible for the Housing Corporation is: has the Housing Corporation seen the CMHC application, and are they aware of the defects in that proposal?

The Deputy Speaker

The Deputy Speaker Lesa Semmler

Thank you, Member for Yellowknife North. Minister responsible for NWT Housing Corporation.

Paulie Chinna

Paulie Chinna Sahtu

Thank you, Madam Speaker. As of to date, we have not seen the Yellowknife Women's Society application. The application that the Member is referring to is a federal land application, and it is for federal funding. NWTHC is working with CMHC to work towards clarification on this funding that is available to the residents of the Northwest Territories. Right now, the application, I can't even confirm if it actually has been submitted. We have been meeting with the Yellowknife Women's Society, and we recently just met last week. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Rylund Johnson

Rylund Johnson Yellowknife North

It appears, despite multiple meetings and no shortage of questions here, there still appears to be some breakdown in communication. Will the Minister responsible for the Housing Corporation ask CMHC and the women's society to get a hold of that application and the response and make sure that they are aware of all of the shortfalls that were in the application so that we are all on the same page?