This is page numbers 1055 - 1110 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.

Topics

Caitlin Cleveland

Caitlin Cleveland Kam Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Conclusion

This concludes the Standing Committee on Social Development, Report on Long-term Post-pandemic Recovery: Recommendations to the GNWT.

Recommendation 7

The Standing Committee on Social Development recommends that the GNWT provide a response to the recommendations contained in this report within 120 days. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Kam Lake. Member for Kam Lake.

Caitlin Cleveland

Caitlin Cleveland Kam Lake

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes, that Committee Report 13-19(2), Standing Committee on Social Development Report on Long-Term Post-Pandemic Recovery: Recommendations to the GNWT, be received by the Assembly and moved into Committee of the Whole for further consideration. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Kam Lake. The motion is in order. To the motion.

Some Hon. Members

Question.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? Any abstentions? The motion is carried.

---Carried

The report will be moved into Committee of the Whole. Colleagues, we will take a short recess. Thank you.

---SHORT RECESS

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Item 7, returns to oral questions. Item 8, acknowledgements. Item 9, oral questions. Member for Thebacha.

Frieda Martselos

Frieda Martselos Thebacha

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In previous private statements to the Justice Minister, I made statements regarding Indigenous staff members within corrections not having a neutral mechanism to air grievances. Staff are sometimes terminated before the issue is even dealt with by the Union of Northern Workers. My question is: how is the Minister and her department going to deal with this type of injustice to our Indigenous public employees? Is this what accountability and transparency in the Department of Justice looks like? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Thebacha. Minister of Justice.

Caroline Wawazonek

Thank you, Madam Speaker. There are well-established processes within all of the public service that allow people to report wrongdoing to their supervisors and managers. There are also processes in place that allow for whistleblowing through an agreement that we have so far. There are different ways that people can go about reporting what they perceive to be wrongdoing, and certainly, Mr. Speaker, all unionized employees are encouraged to engage in their unions, specifically to corrections.

Mr. Speaker, this is a challenging work environment, which is why already, earlier in January, we established a connection, a working group between justice and human resources section. They do have a work plan in place. There were some delays in terms of some of the rollout that was expected to happen this spring and some of the responding measures that were expected to happen this spring, but I did check back in with corrections, and it is my understanding that they are now back on track to have some very specific human resources work done so that they can continue to improve that workplace for its staff. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Frieda Martselos

Frieda Martselos Thebacha

As a former Chief, I've seen first hand the mistreatment of Indigenous peoples by the RCMP, the courts, and the corrections system. As mentioned in my statement, I have seen countless cases of police brutality, along with more severe punishments for Indigenous people and greater rates of incarceration for Indigenous people, too. My question is: does the Minister believe that a review of our courts, corrections, and policing systems are needed in the NWT, and, if so, what would that look like?

Caroline Wawzonek

Caroline Wawzonek Yellowknife South

Earlier today, a number of MLAs spoke very passionately about systemic racism, its presence, and its reality in Canada and in the Northwest Territories, and no department is immune to that. The Department of Justice isn't immune to that. As far as a review, an overall review of corrections, courts, policing, no, Mr. Speaker, in my view, that's not the direction that we're intending to go right now. It doesn't mean we don't have a lot of work to do to improve the systems that we are within. There are certainly a lot of efforts underway already to increase engagement with individual communities, with Indigenous communities, to reduce the over-incarceration of Indigenous people, to improve the connections between RCMP and Indigenous people. This is something that is really system-wide, Mr. Speaker, and at this point, it's not a review. I think we've had a lot, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Missing and Murdered national inquiry, and frankly, the Royal Commission on Aboriginal People is going back to 1996. We know what the solutions are. They are out there. We just need to start acting on them. Mr. Speaker, what it's going to look like is that we have to start looking very meaningfully at what those recommendations are and start to actually take some steps to achieve them.

Frieda Martselos

Frieda Martselos Thebacha

In a recent CBC interview, the Premier discussed potential ideas to help improve the RCMP and its relationship with the communities it serves. With respect, Mr. Speaker, I want to recall some previous conversations with the justice Minister regarding a lack of enforcement on drug dealers and of the RCMP interactions regarding concerned citizens. I was told repeatedly that the RCMP is a separate entity and that it's arm's length from our government. My question is: since our Premier and our Member of parliament are now weighing in on RCMP activity, can the Minister clarify what role and responsibility our government holds in preventing the use of excessive force and police brutality in the Northwest Territories?

Caroline Wawzonek

Caroline Wawzonek Yellowknife South

The RCMP are the police force in the Northwest Territories by virtue of the Territorial Police Services Agreement. That is an agreement that we have through the federal Department of Justice, given that, indeed, the RCMP are a national police force. As such, we don't have operational control over their operations. We don't necessarily have the right or ability to direct, for example, who is hired, who is placed where, or how investigations are conducted. That said, Mr. Speaker, we do have the ability, through that agreement, to do what is called the Minister's police priorities. We do support having the RCMP in the communities, acting on those priorities to have community policing engagements.

While we are not directing the operations, we do have a role in engaging and directing the overall direction of the police within the Northwest Territories. As far as continuing to hold the police accountable, all are a number of avenues that individuals can take to report behaviours that are inconsistent with the values of the Northwest Territories, values of Canada, and values of the charter. I would certainly encourage anyone to continue to use those avenues, and we will continue to use our avenues to engage and ensure the priorities of the RCMP match up with the priorities that were espoused here in the House.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary, Member for Thebacha.

Frieda Martselos

Frieda Martselos Thebacha

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In a recent interview, the Prime Minister said he would be seeking feedback from all Canadian Premiers about how to improve policing across Canada. My question is: what recommendations, if any, will our government be giving to the Prime Minister about how to improve policing in the NWT and reduce police brutality on residents? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Caroline Wawzonek

Caroline Wawzonek Yellowknife South

I believe our Premier's already spoken quite forcefully about the importance of this initiative and about the importance of looking for options to increase trust between law enforcement and citizenry. Mr. Speaker, there are a number of programs already underway and initiatives underway, not the least of which is the First Nations' Policing Program, which, through a lot of advocacy through the Department of Justice, they have been able to add five positions to a regional cohort here in the Northwest Territories with the hope that, with more people on the ground, more officers on the ground, it will better allow them to engage with communities and have presence in the communities.

Mr. Speaker, though there is much more that we can do in my view, in my view, again, as I've said, there are recommendations within the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women. There are recommendations in the TRC. We should be looking at those recommendations and being strong advocates with our federal partners so that they are acting on them and so that they are helping us to fund the actions that are being recommended. Mr. Speaker, I will be taking, certainly, another look at them and looking at where we can help advocate for those changes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Hay River South.

Rocky Simpson

Rocky Simpson Hay River South

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The questions will be for the Minister of health. Over the last few days the community of Hay River has been swirling with rumours that the NWT border is going to be thrown wide open as of Friday and that anyone will be able to enter the NWT. It's going to be a free-for-all. Can the Minister of Health and Social Services please outline what is going on with the border at this time? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Hay River South. Minister of Health and Social Services.

Diane Archie

Diane Archie Inuvik Boot Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We have come to the realization that the border restrictions we had in place were restrictive and possibly in contravention with the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms as it relates to mobility. We have adjusted our policies accordingly. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Rocky Simpson

Rocky Simpson Hay River South

Can the Minister confirm who will be allowed into the Northwest Territories under the new border rules? Can anyone just come in to the NWT now? Is it going to be a free-for-all, or do we have different people identified?

Diane Archie

Diane Archie Inuvik Boot Lake

The new order is primarily focused on people who are looking to move into the Northwest Territories and are starting or looking for a job in the Northwest Territories and students who may want to study at a post-secondary institution. Leisure travel in the Northwest Territories is still prohibited. If you do not have a job offer, a letter of acceptance from a post-secondary institution, or a signed-off statutory declaration along with an approved self-isolation plan from Protect Northwest Territories or an exception for a family reunification visit for compassionate grounds from the Chief Public Health Officer, you will not be allowed to travel further in the Northwest Territories.

Rocky Simpson

Rocky Simpson Hay River South

Can the Minister tell me how allowing more people into the NWT will keep the people of the NWT safe? That is a big concern in the South Slave, and I would like a nice, concise answer to that question.

Diane Archie

Diane Archie Inuvik Boot Lake

The one thing I do want to make clear to your constituents and to the residents of the Northwest Territories is that the requirement is: self-isolate for 14 days in a designated community is still in place for the revised order for residents returning to the Northwest Territories and for people looking to move into the Northwest Territories. Once a person is in the territories, it's very clear that the Chief Public Health Officer's authority to restrict travel in the Northwest Territories is in play. If you do not have an approved self-isolation plan in place, you will not be allowed to travel further in the territories. If your proposed self-isolation plan is not approved and you cannot come without an acceptable alternative, you will be expected to do your 14-day self-isolation in one of the four GNWT-operated self-isolation centers. Residents will be kept as safe as they are now. It's not a free-for-all at the border.