This is page numbers 3221 - 3266 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 units.

Topics

Frieda Martselos

Frieda Martselos Thebacha

Mr. Speaker, would the Minister consider opening a satellite wellness and recovery centre that's related to the one in the capital but situated in a different regional centre in the NWT? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I am aware of similar requests for day shelter options in other communities, including in Hay River and in Inuvik and in Fort Simpson, but establishing this type of service in other communities would need to involve conversations with partners at the NWT Housing Corporation who are the lead on homelessness, taking as a starting-point that most of these services are required by homeless individuals.

Should there be a way forward to establish additional day sheltering programs, there would be an opportunity to use what we've learned running the temporary day shelter here in Yellowknife, as well as the sobering centre, and use that to create a template for approaches in other communities so that it becomes the centre here becomes a model for similar centres should the partnerships and the money materialize. Thank you.

Frieda Martselos

Frieda Martselos Thebacha

Mr. Speaker, if the government is unable to open a satellite recovery centre on its own, would the Minister consider partnering with Indigenous governments, or other communities and organizations, to open a separate standalone recovery centre? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'm absolutely open to the idea of creating a partnership in a community outside of Yellowknife to offer these services, however, there would still be the question of resources, where the program was going to be located and who was going to pay for it. So at this point, as I said, there is no plan for a new facility or for the additional resources that would be required. But if Indigenous governments or community organizations are interested in partnering in the provision of wellness services, I urge them to contact me. Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Final supplementary, Member for Thebacha.

Frieda Martselos

Frieda Martselos Thebacha

Mr. Speaker, has the Minister engaged with any Indigenous or community governments about any potential partnerships in building a recovery centre or aftercare facility within the NWT, specifically in any region outside of the capital? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, to this point no Indigenous government or community organization has contacted me about this idea. Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Great Slave.

Katrina Nokleby

Katrina Nokleby Great Slave

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services following up on what my colleague from Thebacha has been asking.

If we're waiting on the data from this wellness centre in Yellowknife as stated, then that puts the centres outside of Yellowknife into years, if not a decade, before that they would be constructed. How is the Minister and the department making this a priority given the need outside the capital for these services? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Great Slave. Minister responsible for Health and Social Services.

Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Yes, thank you. I take it that the Member is talking about buildings. We don't have any buildings on the books other than the wellness and recovery centre in Yellowknife. In Members decide that's a priority, they should bring it to the regular business plan process and pursue the resources necessary to build and operate it. Thank you.

Katrina Nokleby

Katrina Nokleby Great Slave

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, since I asked how this was going to be a priority, I guess the Minister's response is that it's not.

The next question I have is has the Minister contacted the federal government to advocate for the reinstatement of the funding for survivors of residential school trauma so that the face-to-face counseling is reinstated and the services can resume; and, if she hasn't, why not? Thank you.

Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, aftercare is a huge priority for me. I spoke about it endlessly as a regular Member, and I continue that passion in this role now.

I'd just like to clarify that the Indian Residential counseling Service is not, in fact, cancelled. The service has been reduced so that face-to-face counseling occurs less often, approximately every four to six weeks, and there are alternative ways t-to -- to obtain counseling between times using the phone and the internet and so on as constituent -- as residents are comfortable in and according to the technology that they have. Thank you.

Katrina Nokleby

Katrina Nokleby Great Slave

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'd ask that the Minister listen more carefully. I did not ask about -- or state that these services were cancelled. I asked about advocating for the reinstatement of the funding so that the services being more than every eight weeks or six to four is reinstated. However, I'm going to move on because I'm going to guess that I'm probably not getting answers to these questions either.

If we are going to be putting people on to virtual care and services, what is the Minister and department doing to identify and accommodate residents in small communities who require counseling but may not have access to the phone or internet or be comfortable with that method of delivery? Thank you.

Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Yes, thanks. I'm not a big fan of all the editorializing but I'm happy to answer the questions.

So most communities have a resident counselor through either the community counseling service or the child and youth counseling program. And in the event that they don't have a resident counselor, a counselor visits on a known schedule to provide those services.

I recognize from my own travels in the NWT that it's not easy in some communities to obtain enough internet connectivity to sustain a conversation, especially one that has video related to it, and that's a real impediment to the services that people receive. At this point, that is an issue that is beyond my department to solve. But we are keen to offer services to as many people in as timely a way as possible to preserve or enhance their mental health. Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Minister. Final short supplementary, Member for Great Slave.

Katrina Nokleby

Katrina Nokleby Great Slave

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And Mr. Speaker, I'm not a fan of the way the Minister speaks to me either but we can't always get what we want, can we?

Can the Minister please tell us how she actually advocates with the federal government for more money for supports for our people besides the FPT tables? Does she ever contact the federal minister outside to tell them what is going on in the territory? Thank you.

Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Yes, Mr. Speaker. I'll take that question on notice.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you. Oral questions. Member for Monfwi.

Jane Weyallon Armstrong

Jane Weyallon Armstrong Monfwi

Thank you, masi, Mr. Speaker. Question for the Minister responsible for NWT Housing. So first question is basing rent of someone's income discouraging people to work. Why are people who are working penalized with increased rent?

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Monfwi. Minister responsible for Northwest Territories Housing Corporation.

Paulie Chinna

Paulie Chinna Sahtu

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Housing Corporation tries to provide subsidized rent for the Northwest Territories. And I know that we can do better, and I know through the renewal that we do have that, you know, this is one of the policies that we will be reviewing as well. But the Housing Corporation right now calculates rent as low as 4 percent and 19 percent. Throughout Canada, it's 30 percent that is required for subsidized housing. So we're one of the lowest for the jurisdictions throughout the territory -- I mean, throughout Canada. But it doesn't stop us from reviewing that as well. Like, I hear the Member as well because we did get a number of tenants that had acquired the CERB funding as well, and it's really provided a lot of, you know, just different calculations this year, including the -- that funding that was received by the client as well, and I do hear the Member. The Housing Corporation will provide more communications to the local housing authorities and our service providers as well too. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Jane Weyallon Armstrong

Jane Weyallon Armstrong Monfwi

Thank you. I was not talking about CERB, but that's okay. And then at least they admit that, you know, they can do better job.

So I think with the -- with reference to the first questions, I know that there are leaders in the community, they would like to work with the Housing Corporations on drafting policy in this area as well. So second questions, with so many people living in inadequate housing, even those who are paying max rent, maximum rent, so we would like to know what's happening to the revenue.

Paulie Chinna

Paulie Chinna Sahtu

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just want to just inform, like, just the House and the Member as well too that the Housing Corporation's lowest rent that we collect is $75. And with the $75, we do have the utilities and utilities that are included in that rent as well too, property taxes and leases as well, and we try to work with the client to have affordable rent calculated in the Northwest Territories. And we are going to be working with the Council of Leaders as well too, that will have the opportunity to review our policies. So we do practice and encourage our engagements as well too with the -- with the Indigenous groups as well.

And I just wanted to comment on the CERB funding that I had identified, is that we see a really huge increase, rent increase throughout the Northwest Territories, and it is due to CERB. So there's a lot of assessments that are being done right now as well too to not include the CERB payments that were received last year. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Jane Weyallon Armstrong

Jane Weyallon Armstrong Monfwi

Okay, thank you. She didn't answer my questions. I want to know what happened to those people who are paying maximum rent, what happens to the revenue? That's what I would like to know.

But I am aware now that there are rent-to-own program. There are rent-to-own program in the communities. Can the Minister give us an update on how many people in the NWT are in rent-to-own program and when these tenants will become a homeowners? Thank you.