Item 2, Ministers' statements. Minister of Health and Social Services.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Good afternoon. The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged us all in many ways but none of us more so than within the Health and Social Services system. The protection of our residents is our number one priority. In order to meet the challenge, our system quickly mobilized a number of critical pieces that enabled our territory to respond effectively to the pandemic. We did this through the implementation of decisive public health measures and a coordinated approach to health services. We provided the necessary testing, tracing, and care to manage cases, and make best use of our limited health resources.

The public health measures and orders put in place by the Chief Public Health Officer and the diligence of our residents and businesses in following them has meant that we have been able to contain cases in the NWT. These measures have not been easy and have had a significant impact on everyone, but we have been successful in protecting our residents from the spread of COVID-19 and avoiding the return to more stringent measures.

Mr. Speaker, the expansion of territory testing and analysis within the territory has been critical in order to respond quickly to positive cases and implement the necessary care and safety precautions to individuals and community members. We now have rapid point of care testing capacity in all of our community health centres which can deliver initial results in as little as 15 minutes. Confirmatory testing is completed using the "gold standard" polymerase chain reaction testing, or PCR testing, methodology at the Stanton and Inuvik hospital lab sites, significantly improving turnaround times to an average of 24 to 48 hours.

Mr. Speaker, wastewater testing has proven to be an effective early warning system detecting COVID-19 in our communities. To date, we have implemented this testing in Yellowknife, Hay River, Fort Simpson, Inuvik, and Fort Smith. This surveillance program is a collaborative effort between community governments, Environment and Natural Resources, Municipal and Community Affairs, Health and Social Services, and the Public Health Agency of Canada. Wastewater testing has enabled us to detect COVID-19 in Yellowknife, Fort Smith, and Hay River.

When we identify positive results, public health officials begin contact tracing and implementing other essential public health prevention measures to manage the spread of COVID-19. We saw how this works last month as part of the public health response to contain the cluster of COVID-19 cases in Fort Liard.

When wastewater testing in Hay River picked up a positive viral signal, we launched a coordinated response that included enhanced sewage surveillance, targeted testing for people who had been self-isolating, and dedicated clinics and extended hours to test individuals for COVID-19.

When the source of infection was traced to Fort Liard, a rapid response team was immediately deployed to assist with contact tracing, self-isolation logistics, and other essential tasks to contain the virus and help protect vulnerable people.

Mr. Speaker, the responses to prevent exposure and transmission of COVID-19 among our residents have had unintended impacts on our mental health and sense of well-being. The Health and Social Services system is committed to assist residents to cope with these impacts through improved service delivery, community partnerships, and ongoing communications.

Some of the actions that we have taken to support individuals and families include providing short-term financial support to families who cannot get assistance from other GNWT programs and providing services to vulnerable residents in Yellowknife, Inuvik, and Hay River. We have also increased the frequency of our advertising campaign to raise awareness of the availability of key services like family violence shelters, community counselling programs, and help lines. To support residents with mental health or addictions concerns, we established the territorial COVID Navigator in partnership with 811 and ProtectNWT. The COVID Navigator can help residents connect or reconnect with the appropriate health and social services resources, including their local community counselling program.

Mr. Speaker, in closing, on behalf of Cabinet, I want to thank residents and businesses for staying the course, for following the public health orders, and for coming forward for COVID-19 testing when asked through the public health advisories. Our current success would not be possible without the commitment made by every resident of the NWT. I am impressed and inspired by Northerners. I also want to provide thanks to all the Health and Social Services staff. The response to this crisis is a testament to the hard work and dedication of all these professionals to protect the health and safety of NWT residents.

I am asking residents to continue to follow the recommended measures to keep us protected while we work through the vaccine roll-out. Please continue to practice the healthy habits that we know work to stop the spread of COVID-19. These measures include self-isolating when required; staying home if you are sick; getting tested at the first sign of symptoms; wearing a mask when you're out; washing your hands frequently; and keeping a safe distance from others, even if you have had your vaccine. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister. Ministers' statements. Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. When this government committed to establishing a polytechnic university, we did so with the promise that we would be transparent in the process. Guided by the NWT Post-Secondary Education Framework, there were a number of key documents released last fall that explain the process of transformation and those documents, the implementation plan and areas of specialization for the polytechnic university, continue to guide the process, but transparency does not stop there.

In October, we launched the Aurora College Transformation website to meet that promise of transparency and accountability, and visitors to the site can track the progress of the transformation. Today, I am pleased to announce another way to keep up to date on the progress of the transformation with the release of the first quarterly report. This report adds another level of transparency and accountability for partners, key stakeholders, and the public.

Mr. Speaker, the transformation process is a multi-year initiative that includes meeting 81 commitments and more than 100 milestones over the course of six years. The quarterly report released today tracks the progress of these commitments and milestones in the five focus areas of the transformation: academic program management, accountability, governance, operations, and recruitment and retention of students. The report illustrates the number of key milestones that were completed in 2020 and key milestones that are planned for the duration of the transformation. It shows how many milestones are completed, in progress, and not yet started, in addition to highlights from each area of focus. Indigenous governments, the public, our partners, and key stakeholders can expect to see this level of transparency and accountability in quarterly reports until we launch the polytechnic university. Between publication dates, those interested can track our progress on the Aurora College Transformation web pages to get monthly updates on specific milestones, on engagement opportunities, and to learn more about the transformation in general.

Mr. Speaker, 2020 was an important year for the transformation. Many critical milestones were completed and many key documents were developed and released. In 2021, there are two critical milestones scheduled, amendments to the Aurora College Act and the development of the first ever three-year academic plan. There is also a great deal of work taking place on the other 106 milestones currently planned. That is why we have created the quarterly report. With an initiative as important as the transformation, it is important to celebrate all of our successes.

Our commitment to transform Aurora College into a sustainable, effective, and efficient polytechnic university will provide more post-secondary education opportunities for residents, right here in the territory. Those opportunities will include increased access to learning in every community, laddered programming from literacy to upgrading to certificate to degree, and new programs in the coming years that are aligned with the polytechnic university's areas of specialization. All of these changes are to ensure that Northerners are first in line for in-demand jobs and that we can leverage our strong connections to land, tradition, community, and people.

Mr. Speaker, in addition, the successful transformation to a polytechnic university will result in significant and wide-ranging economic recovery for the NWT, including preparing Northerners for employment; supporting business by supporting changing labour demands; expansion of infrastructure; development of co-investment partnerships; focusing on finding innovative solutions to northern issues; and capitalizing on northern opportunities. The quarterly report delivers on our promise to be transparent and accountable. I hope that it will also help to deepen understanding of what the polytechnic university will mean to residents, to communities, and to the territory. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister. Ministers' statements. Item 3, Members' statements. Member for Thebacha.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today, I am going to talk about the NWT summer student program. Last year, the Government of the Northwest Territories hired far fewer summer students than they normally would in an average year. Last year, however, was not a normal year, given the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic forced the government to re-evaluate its hiring practices and partially restructure their human resource procedures. In essence, the government needed more time to prepare itself to operate under pandemic conditions. Therefore, the government hired fewer students so they would have a smaller workforce to oversee during COVID-19.

Mr. Speaker, the government has had only one year now to prepare itself for the large influx of incoming summer students. By now, I expect the government to have a concrete plan in place for the Summer Student Employment Program for 2021. During Committee of the Whole the other day, the Finance Minister mentioned that some job offers have already been sent out to potential summer student hires. This is very promising news for our students.

As I said in a Member's statement last May, COVID-19 or not, our students need to continue to be supported with employment opportunities and work experience. I realize that working in the public sector is not a shared goal for every summer student, but regardless, these summer student opportunities offer some level of employment choices for students in the NWT. Our students deserve every opportunity they can in order to find work to support their studies and transition into full-time employment within our workforce. Therefore, Mr. Speaker, I strongly hope that our government will maximize the number of summer students hired by the Government of the Northwest Territories for 2021. We must signal to our students that they are not forgotten and they are valued. I will have questions for the Minister responsible for human resources later today. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Thebacha. Members' statements. Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today, I would like to bring recognition to the Moosehide Campaign Day, which is now in its 10^th year since it began, to bring awareness to stand up against violence toward women and children. Violence against women and children in the North is 10 times the national average, and that is only what has been reported. Many instances go unreported for many reasons. The root cause of this violence against women comes from various impacts of colonialism, residential school trauma, lack of employment, housing, adequate health and mental health supports, education, addictions; I could go on. There are things my colleagues and myself have raised in this House during every sitting. Women and children in the North cannot seem to escape this trend. I am positive every one of us in this room, at some point in their life, has been witness to, knows someone, or even experienced it themselves.

Mr. Speaker, it is so common in Indigenous communities, it's almost considered normal. I would like to be loud and clear. This is not normal. We need to speak up for ourselves, for our women, and for our girls.

The Moosehide Campaign, as I mentioned, is to raise awareness, and its goal is to end violence towards women and children. Those who wear the moose hide square are taking the pledge to stand up and speak out against violence towards women and girls, to support each other as men, and to hold each other accountable, to teach our young boys about the true meaning of love and respect, and to be a healthy role model for them, to heal themselves as men, and to support their brothers on their healing journey.

Mr. Speaker, the Moosehide Campaign supports any effort to raise awareness and bring an end to gender-based and domestic violence across all sectors of society. I encourage everyone to take the pledge. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes. Colleagues, before we continue, I just want to remind Members to please ensure your devices and your phones are shut off. It's actually why I don't bring my phone in here. That goes for everyone. Thank you. Next, we have Member for Kam Lake.

Mr. Speaker, this year marks a decade since the annual Moosehide Campaign began efforts to end family violence through education, support, and healing. This week, I introduced you to Avery, a real NWT resident with a fictional name, whose story includes family violence. The NWT has the second highest rates of family violence in Canada, and the Department of Justice funds the men's New Day program to help men learn new coping mechanisms to improve their relationships with their partners and families. It is the NWT's only support service focused on men who use violence in intimate relationships.

Once run by the Tree of Peace Friendship Centre as an open drop-in support service, the New Day program was moved to the John Howard Society in 2017 following a $40,000 report commissioned by Justice on the state of the program. The report recommended that the program needed to be more fluid, more than just a curriculum, and that community outreach should be considered as part of any future program plans.

Mr. Speaker, I have three significant concerns. Program participation dropped significantly after its move to the John Howard Society; the dwindling New Day program remains this government's flagship support for men; and support programs cannot continue to solely exist in Yellowknife. Like many Members in previous Assemblies, I am concerned about the future of this program. John Howard's four-year contract with the New Day program ends next month, and there is uncertainty about its future.

In Avery's case, the family called the John Howard Society. They were told they needed to book an appointment, but before that, the participant had to be screened by a counsellor to be admitted to see a wellness counsellor. Men face stigma about seeking help, Mr. Speaker. Pre-screening seems to be an unnecessary barrier to those seeking help. If the family has gotten so far that they have convinced a father, husband, or son to get help, that should be all that is required for program admission.

Family violence is not isolated in Yellowknife. It is found in every community, in every income bracket, and sometimes behind curtains you least expect. I look forward to learning about the future plans for this program from the Minister of Justice. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Kam Lake. Colleagues, I just want to remind Members to please slow down. Our interpreters are having trouble keeping up. Just keep that in mind. Don't worry about the clock. We will always make time. Members' statements. Member for Hay River South.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think maybe we should all walk out of here, come back in, and start over.

---Laughter

Anyways, Mr. Speaker, this morning, as I sat in front of my computer thinking about my Member's statement for today, I reflected on a question recently posed by one of the media outlets. The question asked was: what are my priorities going into this session? I did not respond to the media. However, I will answer the question here.

Mr. Speaker, my priority has been, and will continue to be, the constituents of Hay River and those who reach out to me for support no matter what region they are from. The issue or issues each constituent brings to me is of importance to them; therefore, it is of importance to me. When I reach out to any one of you on the other side of this floor with a constituent issue, I would ask that you please take the issue seriously and, prior to your response, place yourself in their shoes.

When someone comes to me because they are about to be evicted from their home; find themselves homeless; have been on a housing waiting list for up to eight years and still holding out hope; cannot pay their rent or utilities; have no food for their children; being mistreated due to the colour of the skin; having their health issues dismissed by healthcare workers because of perceived notions; a P1 being overlooked for a job or promotion because management "does not want to see them fail," then find out it was filled with a P2, P3, someone's spouse or a friend from the South; employees crying because they are being bullied and harassed at work; losing contracts to southern firms because of a storefront office; losing a contract to a southern firm and hearing the standard government line that "we followed our policy and the process was fair" or your bid was "non-compliant;" receiving a Standing Offer Agreement and not receiving any work; contractors not being paid in the 20 and 30 days we established; these are only some of the real issues that matter to me.

We were elected to make a difference and solve issues that matter to our constituents. We need to start making change where it counts, and that change has to start at the grassroots level. I do not see that happening. Mr. Speaker, if we can improve the lives of our constituents and ensure our northern business are benefitting from government contracts and resource development, only then can we say we are doing what we were elected to do. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Hay River South. Members' statements. Member for Great Slave.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Since the beginning of this session, I've spoken a lot about the anxiety and worry that myself and our residents are feeling as this pandemic continues on. For myself, personally, I live alone and found the restrictions imposed over the last year, and particularly during the initial phase of the lockdown, very hard to adhere to as a single person. My social life, my human interaction, comes from people external to my household. When that was removed and even a hug from a friend made me feel guilty, the isolation that can come from living alone was only amplified. As I continue to address mental health issues in my role as an MLA, I've had numerous residents come forward to tell me that they feel the same, and some of these people are our teachers.

Many of our teachers come to the North from the South. Often, they are young, new to the profession, and have not spent a lot of time away from the bustle of southern cities or in locations as remote as they may find themselves in the NWT. Often our teachers rely on vacations and visits south to their families in order to recharge and maintain wellness, as is the case for a lot of NWT residents in general.

Given the nature of the work teachers do, they do not have the option to work at home like many of us. Their jobs require them to be in close quarters, sometimes under less than hygienic conditions, which, given a global pandemic, must be causing a huge burden of stress not previously felt. Just ask any teacher how quickly the common cold, or a flu, would rip through a school in pre-COVID times. Now that illness brings the possibility of death and, with it, a rise in anxiety for employees.

I already feel that teaching is an underappreciated profession. I have childhood memories of my mom on the picket line, in the pouring rain, fighting for a cost-of-living raise of 30 cents. Often, I watched her work into the night preparing lesson plans and spending easily one-quarter of her own salary every paycheque on supplies for her classroom. Teachers are dedicated. They care. In return, I want to show them that we care, too, and I will have questions for the Minister of ECE at the appropriate time regarding supports for teachers. Thank you.

Thank you, Member for Great Slave. Members' statements. Member for Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. One of the reasons I believe our Power Corporation needs a new board not made up of deputy ministers is because it needs a fresh look at its goals and objectives. Is it an ally in fighting climate change or a corporation determined to protect its bottom line, keeping our communities on diesel at the expense of our rate payers? Does its mandate include devolving energy sovereignty to Indigenous governments, or is it determined to maintain a public monopoly at all costs?

We have seen the Northwest Territories Power Corporation resist handing over control of power systems to communities. This is because, when a community increases its renewable energy capacity, net metering kicks in. Even if that community has 100 percent federal dollars, the NTPC is afraid it will lose ratepayers and the costs will have to be passed on to everyone else. This is not an easy decision to be made. It is a complicated fight, but I believe that NTPC has lost its vision in where it's going.

I would like to suggest another area for the NTPC to expand its mandate into: heat. The Northwest Territories Power Corporation in their act specifically includes district heating in the definition of "energy," and it is well within their mandate to provide heating as a utility. District heating is proven to work. It comes with cost savings, and it decreases emissions. However, the work needed here cannot be done without coordination. It requires thought from start to the finish. Even if a community gets 100 percent federal funding and connects all of the residences in that community to district heat, they would then need to hire multiple staff and operate and establish a utility. Mr. Speaker, especially in our underfunded communities, that is well beyond their mandate.

What we are left with is proven technologies that lower the cost of living for our residents, with no one willing to implement them. Private enterprise is not equipped, nor are they able to access the same level of funding. My point being that there is nothing more I have to do as a legislator to permit the Power Corporation to provide residents with district heating, a much-needed additional revenue stream for them, I might add. It is now a business decision by them. I know the City of Yellowknife would be very encouraged to put the pipes in the ground if the Power Corporation and the Department of Infrastructure would assist and find some way to take on the utility-management aspect. No one is better suited than the Power Corporation to do this work. I will have questions for the Minister about directing the NTPC to begin this work and start getting themselves and our communities off diesel.

Thank you, Member for Yellowknife North. Members' statements. Member for Nunakput.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It's hard to believe it has almost been a year, a little over a year, since this pandemic hit, and it has affected our people across the territory and across the world. Our medical systems are learning as they go. I want to acknowledge the good work the GNWT has done for coping in this crisis; 21,000 Canadians across Canada have lost their lives to COVID-19, not one in the NWT, and I thank God for that. I am pleased to hear from my constituents that the roll-out of the COVID vaccine in Nunakput went well on the first shot of inoculations going through the communities. Each community site was prepared for the roll-out. Nunakput communities were impressed by the preparedness of the vaccine teams. They documented the people and those who were given the shots.

Some Nunakput residents were experiencing a little bit of a sore arm a couple of days after it, but nobody reported any major illness or anything. Each Nunakput community has a social-sharing grapevine, Mr. Speaker, Facebook. Most residents have had time to get a shot and the vaccine available in their community. According to the HSS authority website, vaccine teams will be visiting again soon. The schedule is Paulatuk, February 16 and 17; Ulukhaktok, February 16, 17, and 18; and Sachs Harbour, February 18 and 19. The updated schedule does not include Tuktoyaktuk. Today, Mr. Speaker, I am asking the Minister about that. I want to encourage all my constituents and residents across the NWT to stay vigilant, limit social gatherings, and wash your hands. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Nunakput. Members' statements. Member for Monfwi.

Masi, Mr. Speaker. [Translation] I want to make a statement on caribou. The caribou management zone is an area where people are not allowed to hunt within this area, within this zone, and they move the zone every once in a while. Recently, the elders have been calling me, and they are saying, "Why is that zone getting bigger every year?"

It's getting really difficult to hunt in that area, so I have been getting a lot of phone calls from elders. When we look at this, our elders who had survived on the caribou, today, they still depend on the caribou, but some days it's very difficult to go hunting. These are the words that are coming from the elders, that I am bringing to you. The Minister of ENR, what kind of policies and acts do they have in place, and how are they going to work with the elders in the community? These are some of my questions I will refer to the ENR Minister. Masi, Mr. Speaker. [Translation ends]

Thank you, Member for Monfwi. Members' statements. Member for Frame Lake.

Merci, Monsieur le President. On January 11, 2021, there was a GNWT news release about our first progress report on our territory-wide approach to climate change. Unfortunately, there was not much to report, given the lack of progress over the last year. This may have been partially due to COVID, but it is also rooted in the faulty design of the climate-change approach from the last Cabinet that carries over into this Assembly.

As an example of the lack of progress, the decrease in greenhouse gas emissions last year was said to be a whopping 6 kilotonnes on total emissions of over 1,000, so less than 1 percent. Nowhere in the report does it say what the percentage of reductions was relevant to any baseline. The summary report claims that we are "generally on track" to meet the pan-Canadian framework target of reducing our 2005 emissions by 30 percent by 2030. However, at this rate, it is very clear we will not reach the target on time.

We still have an opportunity to shift course and join the growing international movement to save this planet from catastrophic climate change. The federal government signaled in its last Speech from the Throne that we need to move toward a net-zero target by 2050. This means that there are no new greenhouse gas emissions unless there are reductions in other areas of the economy, through actions such as energy conservation or efforts such as building retrofits or switching renewable energy for fossil fuels.

The carbon tax bill squeaked through last Assembly with a vote of 10 to 8 at second reading. At that point, I said, "I have consistently raised the need for an integrated approach to monitoring and public reporting of energy self-sufficiency, climate change, greenhouse gas reductions, carbon pricing, and the impacts on the cost of living, and this bill does not address that." The first attempt by our government to integrate reporting has not succeeded, in my view. There are few links drawn between the carbon tax retained, investment in greenhouse gas reductions from those revenues and other funds, and how all of this links to the pan-Canadian target. There are also very few details on how this government has actually changed its way of making decisions to better account for and integrate climate change. I will have questions later today for the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources as the lead Minister on climate change. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Frame Lake. Members' statements. Member for Nahendeh.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It gives me great pleasure to recognize Mr. Mike Gonet for receiving the 2020 Northwest Territories Hospitality Award. Mr. Gonet's commitment to tourism in the Deh Cho and the NWT did not go unnoticed by a lot of NWT residents who took advantage of vacationing in the NWT due to COVID this past summer. Today, I want to share my personal appreciation for the time and dedication that he and his staff displayed. I would like to emphasize the significance of him and his staff being recognized as one of the top operators in the NWT. The quality of life in the Northwest Territories would undoubtedly be diminished without selfless individuals like him and his staff, who take it upon themselves to provide an experience of the NWT that will be unforgettable.

I would like to share with you some of the comments that were shared in his nomination:

"A great big thanks to the welcoming staff at the park."

"Friendly and loving people, their welcome made the experience better."

"Well-kept grounds and friendly staff."

"Mike is just an all-around genuinely nice guy who is extremely hard-working and really cares and takes pride in his work."

Mr. Speaker, I had the opportunity of stopping in the Blackstone park a couple of times this past summer, and it was amazing how much work had been done to improve the park and make this day more enjoyable. During both visits, I witnessed Mike and his staff engage with park users to see if there was anything that they needed to make their stay much more enjoyable. As well, I heard from other Northerners throughout the summer about their positive experience with him and his staff.

Mr. Speaker, I'd like to thank ITI for recognizing the meaningful work that he and his staff did this past summer. I believe this will help bring more visitors next summer to see the hidden beauty of this park it has to offer, and given the experience firsthand of Mike and staff's hospitality.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to serve and represent them in the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories, and I cannot state my gratitude enough to justify the importance of excellent service they provided in the region and in the NWT. I'd like to ask you to join me and give them a big round of applause. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause

Thank you, Member for Nahendeh. Members' statements. Item 4, returns to oral questions. Item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery. Item 6, replies to budget address, day 6 of 7. Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.

Marsi cho, Mr. Speaker. As the Member from Hay River mentioned earlier, he had a few days to ponder. You think about what you are going to say that morning. A lot of times, you put together your statements. I had a few days to think about this, and I am glad I did. You have to remind yourself that our jobs are not a sprint; it's a marathon. We have to think about what we are going to say. Originally, there was some developments that happened in my riding I was very upset about. I thought, "You know what, I'm going to just take my time," and sure enough, some things happened. Some developments happened that happened for the better, and I'm glad they did.

Overall, I'm glad to see some positive changes for the North, for my riding of Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh in the past week alone as I mentioned. Overall, when I speak here today, that doesn't make my message any less pressing, but I still want a praising but firm address for our colleagues on the other side. As the Minister of Finance quite eloquently put it last week, we are pushing forward as a government with cautious optimism, and I agree with that statement.

Before I go into some of the politics of all this, Mr. Speaker, I want us to start off with a positive memory and positive thoughts. I think that's a good, important thing to do and not get into thinking and negative thoughts because that's not a place where we should go as leaders.

With that, not too long ago, I still remember as a kid going up to visit my dad, one could take off with their little ones in the summer right here downtown. For example, there was Raven Mad Days going on. You could hear the live music, kids running around doused in shaving cream. Those were good memories. There would be local businesses selling their goods. There would be food carts and artisans selling their creations. Really good memories. I know many of us are really missing those things such as drum dances. Drum dances around a bonfire, the camaraderie, talking with elders, talking with your friends, laughing, hand games, talent shows, and jigging contests up North. We miss those things that had happened. I hope we get back to that soon because that's community spirit, Mr. Speaker. Through that, I want everybody in the North to try to keep pushing forward, keep thinking positive because we're going to get back there eventually. I mentioned last year in an online address, we need to still continue to go along with patience and vigilance.

Going back to some of our political discussions, Mr. Speaker, I am happy we are starting to see some gradual changes in our policies in all our departments. Some notable changes that I've seen so far are some long-awaited changes coming through to our Business Incentive Policy and procurement policies, for example.

The main message I would like to leave my colleagues is we need a balanced approach when we look at this budget or any other budget. Listening to a lot of my colleagues in the room, when we write down our messages, we come from all walks of life. Our ideologies, we come from different political beliefs and backgrounds. I think, overall, we're starting to see some changes that we can agree on, and we're starting to get some consensus. That's very, very, very comforting.

There're some things I think we could still work on. I'm still genuinely worried about the economy because there's still some lackadaisical messages. We're still a little bit lazy, for lack of a better word, in terms of getting a plan, an economic recovery plan from our government, and we're still hearing it on this side of the House. We still need to find a clear plan. I am hoping that we can hear some solid timelines, some clear guidelines, something come up through the works eventually, like very soon because, the longer we wait, it will just be a detriment to our economy and our people in the North.

I'm going back a bit talking about the BIP policy earlier. Last year, I joked, sitting here in the House when I did my budget address that I thought it was comical that Walmart, an American company, was BIP listed. This is no longer funny to me anymore. It is a year later. There is something very broken with our system, with our incentive policies, if they exclude homegrown Indigenous businesses such as Denendeh Investments, for them giving excuses why they can't be BIP listed. Looking through that, I can't think of any other way than saying there's some racism, racist barriers there. There's no other way to explain it. You can't draw any other conclusion. We need to change that. We need to move away from that thinking. If there are people in our government that think that way, they don't need to be there anymore. We need to get rid of them. I'm really firm on that. I can't stress that enough.

Mr. Speaker, I'm hoping that our government tightens up our business policies and procedures when it comes to policies such as the procurement and the BIP processes. We need to be stricter with our policies and tighten up the wording for these directives, and they need to come from each and every department so they leave little room for manipulation or interpretation. We've got to close up those loopholes, period. If we stick to that road, we stick on that road, there will be more inclusion and less exclusion from our northern business and our people working in the North. Above all else, we need to stop economically leakage out of the territory. Keep territorial money in the territory, wherever we can and whatever we can.

Mr. Speaker, again, I'm going back to turn my attention to our Northern and Aboriginal businesses. In a few statements this past year, I really tried to drive home this message of, again, keeping the money in the territory. I keep thinking of this term. I don't know if it was ever brought up, but I was thinking about it when I was writing this, "territorialism." We've got to think about ourselves. I'm going to keep on saying it until I am blue in the face. We need to scrutinize every contract, every hire, every dollar from the public purse, and try to keep it here. We need to look after our own.

The key is you're not just to sort of help our people survive, but we need to see them thrive. We need to see our businesses thrive and not just keep our noses above the water. Right now, we're not going in that direction. Through all this in my research, I heard an interesting statistic from one of our business leaders that, for every dollar that the government invests into business, it translates into $7 into our local economies. That's huge. Through that, I thought about this more. The pandemic really is painting businesses into a corner. I don't want our government to put ourselves in a situation where it's basically an economic triage where, eventually, we're going to have to decide which businesses we're going to bail out and which we're going to let go under. I really don't want to go down that road and have that burden. I don't want that to be our legacy.

Mr. Speaker, the definition of free enterprise is when private companies compete for profit without government interference. I can tell you right now, because of this pandemic, the laissez-faire way of doing things or hands-off approach from the government has gone out the window, but I get it. I am realistic. We are doing this to help save lives through the COVID pandemic and to keep the number of infections down. To do that, I would like to tell our residents again, as mentioned before by one of my colleagues here, we all need to do our part to get immunized and follow directions from the medical experts.

Mr. Speaker, with that, what can we do as a territory to help our businesses, our corporate citizens in the North? One message I really want to drive home is to buy North. Over Christmas, you go out, you check your mail, and you see that little logo with the little arrow at the end, the Amazon logo. So many people found that it was just much more convenient. I know that there's a pandemic going on. They're afraid to go out and mingle, go out to the stores, and go to your local Northern or to places like Overlander. Those businesses are up North, and we're not doing that. I think, before we hit that click button to do our online shopping, we need to think about our mom-and-pop stores in the North, because these mom-and-pop stores are the backbone of the North. They create jobs. They help people put food on our tables, help pay their bills, and the more we click on the online shopping button to help out the southern firms, the more we are going to hurt our own people. I want to make sure that we do that. I am guilty of that, and I am going to do my part to do better in that department. With that, I urge all our residents to get out and go shop when you can, and just help our economy to keep chugging along because that's what we have to do. We have to keep persevering through this.

Despite all this, Mr. Speaker, I'm going to go on with our northern businesses. I do see some great opportunities for our territory. One opportunity I see is in remediation. Again, it's all about thinking through it and listening. I did hear my colleague from Frame Lake mention remediation this earlier in the week, and I do believe he is onto something. A lot of us don't agree with what he says, but he's been here a long time and he is onto something. In speaking with some of the business leaders in my riding, I was told that the NWT is poised to become a world leader in mine remediation. In Chief Drygeese territory alone, there are six abandoned sites along the Ingraham Trail that the YKDFN want cleaned up, and I did not even mention the Giant Mine remediation yet. Right now, the financial responsibility lies with the federal government under GNWT control as part of devolution. This is a great partnership opportunity, and I really hoping this can gain some traction in the life of this Assembly and get things going. Again, it goes back to jobs, training opportunities, contracts, keeping the money here.

Again, I mentioned I was quite angry about one item, and that item I was referring to was the Frontier Lodge. I'm going to move to the other side of the lake, Mr. Speaker. Last year, the LKDFN, Lutselk'e Dene First Nation, sent out correspondence to our government, to the Department of MACA in particular, to help get the lodge off the ground and operating for last year's season. These talks broke down. This is unacceptable. It took over a year to finally get some movement on this file to help get the lodge operating again. To give a bit of background for everybody, the Frontier Lodge was owned by an out-of-territory entity not too long ago. In December 2019, that ownership changed to the LKDFN. Prior to that, there were no issues in terms of permitting, licensing, and red tape to let them operate in peace. Since that changeover to an Aboriginal business, meaning the LKDFN, they were suddenly faced with permitting barriers and red tape. How do you explain this? Again, it just goes back to that discrimination piece. There is no explanation. It shouldn't take a year to get back to an Indigenous government for something that is fairly simple to fix. Overall, when I do my oral questions here, I think the Minister will give us some update. I'm glad we're starting to get things moving again in terms of that business, and we need to see that.

Again, everything always comes full circle. I mentioned in last year's budget address we dealt with the Depression in the 1930s. How did they dig themselves out of that? Infrastructure. The U.S. and Canada, they put all their eggs in a basket. They had to; they had no choice because of the stock market crash. They had to put their money into bridges. Sorry. My colleague from Nunakput just made me laugh. They had to put their money into bridges, highways, infrastructure, to keep people working, and it's all about trying to keep our economy moving along. If history has taught us anything, investment in infrastructure is a good thing. It will be good for short-term measures, but if it's done right, there could be some long-term opportunities through that.

With that, Mr. Speaker, I am hoping we can give our economic players a fighting chance, keep them in the game, and bring back our economy to vibrant state once again, to get back to life the way it once was, get our kids running around in the streets down in Raven Mad Days, covered in shaving cream, laughing, and seeing our local artisans and our businesses up and running again. It doesn't seem like it's going to happen right now, but we will get back there. I want to get that positive message out to our Northerners. I really believe we can get there. Marsi cho, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh. Replies to budget address. Item 7, acknowledgements. Item 8, oral questions. Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Minister of ECE. Yesterday, we had our economy theme day and I asked the Minister my first two questions, and I was so excited about the responses that I got that I accidentally omitted one of them, so here I am going to ask that question today. I would like to know: how will this transformation of the polytechnic grow space related to research in Inuvik? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes. Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and you can't blame the Member. I talked about new jobs that are being created in Inuvik and the great things that will be happening there as part of the transformation. Transforming into a polytechnic university means making research a bigger part of the institution. As part of the transformation planning, part of the work is under way, including building research capacity. Increased research capacity will come with increasing staff and expanding facilities. The college is already hiring three chairs; I mentioned one of them yesterday, the Climate Change Adaptation Research Chair located in Inuvik, as well as a chair located in Fort Smith and one located in Yellowknife.

The institution will really evolve under the governance of the board, but we are already planning for Inuvik to be, really, the research centre of the post-secondary. It will be where the most research capacity is, given what's already there. The Western Arctic Research Centre out of Aurora Campus is a remarkable facility, and I am confident that it will continue to be expanded in terms of staff and facilities going forward. There are already plans in place to replace the warehouse facility at the Western Arctic Research Centre with something bigger that is going to attract more research partners.

We've already gained partial federal funding for this, and we are looking for the rest so that we can get this work under way. In addition, the college is also working on implementing a research services team that will be tasked with building research capacity, both inside the college and among other potential partners throughout the territory, such as Indigenous governments, communities, industry, and non-governmental organizations. That's going to be a way to bring research dollars into the territory, not just for the college, but for everyone. The research team is expected to bring several more positions in addition to the ones I've talked about to Inuvik, as well as Yellowknife and Fort Smith.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Thebacha.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Can the Minister responsible for human resources tell us the total number of summer students who were hired for the summer of 2020? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Thebacha. Minister of Finance.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In 2020, we had 236 students hired as summer students; 228 of those were Northwest Territories residents. Thank you.

Can the Minister tell us if the Government of the Northwest Territories will be initiating any further holds on the hiring of summer students for 2021 as done in 2020?

We are certainly not planning on any holds, Mr. Speaker. We didn't plan on any holds last year. Unfortunately, COVID-19 did create unexpected challenges. Given where we are at right now, I certainly am happy to say that there is no anticipation of any holds.

Can the Minister tell us if she anticipates the number of summer student hires for 2021 to be greater than the number of hires for 2020? If so, can she provide us with an estimate as to the number of summer student hires so far?

I do certainly anticipate the number of student hires to be much higher. In fact, I hope it is a particular good year for summer students. I can say, as I mentioned earlier, there were 236 hires last year. Typically, we have upwards of 600 students who register for the program. Last year, we only had 460 who registered for the program. As of right now, there are already 205 students registered for hire. There are seven who have already been hired or pending, and we are only in early February. I do think the numbers right now are looking good and hopeful, again, that that will lead to a much higher number this summer.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Last year, I asked the Minister if the department of human resources would create a hiring contingency plan in the event of an emergency such as COVID-19. Can the Minister tell us what progress the department has made in this area, specifically regarding summer student employment? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The summer student program is very important tool that the Government of the Northwest Territories has to hire students, to introduce them to government work, to introduce managers to potential future hires as a recruitment tool, and a retention tool, as well.

As it was last year, Mr. Speaker, once the COVID-19 pandemic went through the spring and the summer and workers returned to their offices, we were able to bring some students on. As I said, 236 students were hired. It, right now, does depend on each department, what their needs are. What we are trying to communicate, again, number one is that it's for students to register for the program, but then also for departments to be able to communicate their own needs and to be conscious of the fact that we have a number of students who we want to have returning.

In short, Mr. Speaker, there's not a set contingency plan. It will, of course, depend department on department, and it depends on what may or may not come this summer. Right now, it is certainly our hope that we learned a lot from last year's process, and we learned a lot about how to get people back to work. Relying on that, we are looking forward to a good season. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Monfwi.

Masi, Mr. Speaker. [Translation] When I made my Member's statement, I commented on caribou management. I also mentioned the hunting zone and how difficult it is for people to go hunting. I would like to ask the ENR Minister a question. Before I ask that question, I want to say this question that I'm posing right now is coming directly from the elders. It's their words. [Translation ends]

When I first spoke about the mobile zone in my Member's statement, I would like to ask a few questions that have been outlined here by an elder in my constituency. First and foremost, they would like to know: when was the first mobile zone initiated or established, and who made that decision? Mr. Speaker, masi.

Thank you, Member for Monfwi. Minister of Environment and Natural Resources.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The mobile zone was established in 2015. It involved the Tlicho government and ENR. We looked at it. We also looked at having discussions in 2018. It started in 2015, and we have had further discussions in 2018 about the mobile zone. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The next question that another elder from the community asked is: this mobile zone keeps getting bigger every year, which makes it more challenging and difficult for harvesters to be out there and harvest food for their families. They're asking: why is it getting bigger every year when we have the opportunity to go out there? Basically, that's what one of the elders was asking. What's causing the increase in the line?

First of all, the perfect storm happened. The Beverly herd and the Bathurst herd and the Bluenose East herds kind of amalgamated together, so it was a concern. We also have our Bathurst collared animals out there, and so it has been impacted where everybody is. The Beverly, like I said, has moved in with it. What has happened is it's a similar size, but it has kind of moved into the east further, which has had an impact on the road and that. It's similar to last year, but it has been the perfect storm, and unfortunately, this is the situation that has occurred.

Obviously, the elders predicted what kind of answers the Minister was going to give. There are three herds. That means there was an increase in population of the caribou herd. That should allow us to harvest in that area, not discouraging us to hunt, Mr. Speaker. Another elder, because I spoke to a few of them, who called me just this past week, asked: how are the elders engaged and involved in the decision-making of this mobile zone? I understand there's the Wek'eezhii board, but elders are asking: how are we involved as elders? Mr. Speaker, these are the words of the elders.

Before I answer that question, I have to thank the Member for these questions. I appreciate that he's talking to the elders. They are our foundation. I have had the pleasure of just recently meeting the YK Dene elders and having a good conversation with them. I have made a commitment to other Members that, if elders wish, I am more than willing to meet with them. Moving forward, how was this developed? How were the elders engaged? The Tlicho government have meetings; they invite our ENR staff in there. They have that opportunity, they have that exchange, they hear their concerns, and then they are brought forth to us. The other thing that the Member talked about was the Wek'eezhii Renewable Resources Board. They represent the region and also the Tlicho government. We get information from them. We also get information from the chiefs and the grand chief and from the Member as well. I am more than willing to work with elders moving forward.

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

Masi, Mr. Speaker. It sounds like the elders should be all-inclusive. It sounds like there's only a handful of elders who may have been involved. The ones who were calling me have not been directly involved, and they want to be out there. Even at 70 years of age, they want to be out there with us. It's a bit of a challenge right now because every Tuesday, the boundary line changes. It's substantial right now and making it more challenging for us to hunt. Anyways, the next question I have is: with respect to community hunts or harvesting from the community perspective, what kind of options are available for a fuel subsidy or transport subsidy to MacKay Lake? That's the only area where we can hunt, so what is available to the harvesters in my region?

I thank the Member for that question. Good news: the Department of ENR has given $30,000 to the Tlicho Government to help the people in the riding, but it's just not for the Tlicho. We've also done the same thing with the YK Dene, the Lutselk'e Dene, and the North Slave Metis, so we've given $30,000. We found the money thinking outside the box, as the Member asked me yesterday, finding money to help that area. We are willing to get that money out there. Again, I think the Member talked about one thing, and I'd just like to say, for those elders who were missing, I'm more than willing to go on a tour with the Member to meet with these elders. It's educational for me. It helps me. I bring staff here; they get to hear it, as well. Because we need to make informed decisions and that's our traditional and local knowledge, and elders are a perfect avenue for it, so I'm more than willing to work with the Member to attend meetings with him. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are for the Minister of ECE. Has the department developed any sort of COVID-specific mental wellness training or supports for teachers and students to deal with the ongoing stress and fatigue of the pandemic? Thank you.

Thank you, Member for Great Slave. Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, ECE has developed, offered, and delivered a professional development training session on promoting mental health and well-being in the time of COVID, recognizing, as I've said before in the House, that there have been few professions as upended as teaching due to the pandemic. Mental health and counselling services continue to be offered for JK to 12 students, either in person, virtually, or over the phone. I will note that, in the early days of the pandemic, when students had to work from home, counsellors went above and beyond to try and contact students in any way they could. It obviously wasn't a perfect situation, but the efforts have been made throughout.

Teachers also, through their collective agreement, have access to a mental health program called Starling Minds and LifeSpeak. I just know from speaking with teachers around the territory that these are really valuable resources and they are well utilized. That's something that I know that a lot of teachers have relied on during the pandemic. There have also been virtual workshops and resources for education staff so that they are aware of and informed about some of the counselling options that they have because sometimes people think they don't have access when, really, they do. We want to make sure that everyone knows every avenue that they have. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I thank the Minister for that. I'm glad to hear that those supports are in place. I understand that confidentiality may be a bit of a factor, but can the Minister comment on whether or not they are seeing an increase in the number of teachers who are taking personal days or are going on stress leave as a result of COVID-19? Even if there is not specific data, maybe the Minister can speak a bit to any anecdotal evidence he is hearing to this.

There is no doubt that this has been a stressful time, and I'm sure that there are teachers who have been very stressed by this. There are different situations across the territory. I have spoken with teachers where it's not really an issue in their community or their school, but other ones are really feeling it. I have heard anecdotes, of course. I don't have any hard numbers with me right now, but we can work with human resources and the education bodies and get that information because I think it's important to know what the effects of this pandemic have been on our educators.

Thank you for that, again. My next question is a really easy one, yes or no: does the Minister commit to pushing with his colleagues for the teachers to be declared an essential worker and therefore be given the vaccine immediately as a priority group?

This is, of course, a decision of the Chief Public Health Officer, who has made clear that she makes decisions based on public health information and not political pressure. That being said, we are always advocating for our teachers. I'm happy to bring this to the Chief Public Health Officer again for discussion.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think I heard a yes in there for the Minister to go and advocate on behalf of the teachers to be getting the vaccine. My last question, again, is sort of repeating what was spoken in Committee of the Whole, but I would like to know if the Minister or his department is going to increase funding to the three local school boards here in Yellowknife in order to deal with their rising insurance costs. Thank you.

For those who aren't aware, school boards, there are schools in the territory that are not owned by the GNWT. Those are located in Yellowknife. They are owned by YCS and YK1, and because they are not GNWT assets, they are insured by the school boards. The school boards have been getting insurance through a cooperative in Alberta, a company that insures schools all over Alberta. However, given Alberta's recent history of floods and fires over the last number of years, which has been unprecedented, insurance costs have skyrocketed, and school boards have been paying, collectively, tens of millions if not over a hundred million dollars more a year in insurance costs. The school boards in Yellowknife were also insured by that company, which has since actually wound up. They had to go into the private market, so their costs have also skyrocketed. If those schools are uninsured and they burn down or they are damaged, it's on us to foot the bill to replace them or repair them, obviously, if there is significant damage that goes beyond regular maintenance. We can't have the schools uninsured, so we are working with the school boards to figure out how we're going to address this, but, of course, we are going to have to offer some sort of support. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Nunakput.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are for the Minister of Health and Social Services. Can the Minister tell me when the vaccine team will be coming back into Tuktoyaktuk? Because it's not on their scheduling to be visiting Tuktoyaktuk, on the upcoming schedule. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I thank my colleague for the question. The next round of vaccinations are going to be offered to the most remote communities with the least amount of healthcare infrastructure, and so that does not include Tuktoyaktuk. That is going to be scheduled separately, and at this time, we don't have a date to provide the Member for when the vaccine team will be in to his community. Thank you.

I think Tuktoyaktuk is pretty remote. It's 3,000 kilometres away. Anyway, it's a concern for me. We had a pandemic in 1914 that killed 5,000 Inuvialuit 18 miles away from Tuktoyaktuk. My elders are worried. I'm getting phone calls. Why are we put into that category? We have a road, yes, but we have to drive 148 kilometres to the hospital, one way. I really am recommending this Minister tell Ms. Kandola to get her staff into the community and put us on this list for getting these inoculations done. I have a card here from them saying we're seven days out on this immunization card, that the needles went into everybody's arm up in Tuktoyaktuk; seven days away, eight, so what's going to happen? It's not acceptable.

There are a few facts to bring into this conversation. The first is that our vaccine allocation was reduced by 38 percent, and as a result of that, we don't have as much vaccine as we did for the first shots. The second is that the immunity conferred by the first shot is 92 percent, so people who have had their first shot have almost as much immunity as the person who has had two shots. The final point that I would like to make is that there is a period of time where people can receive their second shot without any hardship to their first one, that is no loss of effectiveness, and that is up to 42 days. We have already spoken publicly about the fact that, because of the reduced vaccine shipments, some people will end up waiting longer for the second shot, but rest assured; there will be a second shot within that time.

When this 42 days is over and people do not get that inoculation shot for the second shot in Tuktoyaktuk, what? Do we start over for first and second needles again and we are waiting another 40 days?

We anticipate being able to give everyone their second shot within 42 days.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. No. Just in regard to that, if we are so short on inoculations for the community, we have people who never went and got their inoculation in the first go-around; we have some elders who were out of town on medical. Are they still able to get their inoculation shots when the next go-around comes into the community of Tuktoyaktuk? I need a date for the community. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

When the vaccine team returns to any of the communities, the people who did not receive the vaccine for the first time for any reason, whether they were not ready or they were not there or whatever, they are eligible to receive their first shot at that time. The complete vaccination schedule is available on the NTHSSA website, and the schedule goes until next Friday. Tuktoyaktuk is not on that schedule, but I am anticipating that, at some point early next week, there will be planning for the week of February the 22^nd and that the Member can promote to his residents the timing of the clinic in Tuktoyaktuk. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Deh Cho.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Diabetes-related complications can be very serious and even life-threatening. Properly managing blood-sugar levels reduce the risk of developing the complications associated with diabetes. Having a good diabetes program can help to prevent this or delay the onset of these complications. I know for a fact that there is no diabetes program, a dedicated one, for the residents of my community, as I had spoken about my personal experience recently. It makes me wonder if there are any available services in all small health centres and in all small communities. I plead on behalf of the many diabetics in the Northwest Territories. Can the Minister of Health and Social Services investigate to ensure that all small health centres are equipped to provide a diabetes program in all of the small communities? Mahsi.

Thank you, Member for Deh Cho. Minister of Health and Social Services.

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. I understand that, for people who have a diagnosis and not a brand-new diagnosis, there are blood tests that are taken at the health centres and that blood is analyzed at one of the hospital labs. The results are sent back to the health centres with a flag if there is an issue that needs to be followed up. That is my understanding, that that is the way in which diabetes care is provided to communities outside of the regional hubs. I can certainly confirm, if the Member is particularly concerned about Fort Providence, that the general rule there applies to his community, as well. Thank you.

Yes, I know for quite some time, even before the current Minister was the Minister, I had been expressing concerns with probably nurse practitioners in the health centre. Those are all of the complaints I have been receiving from residents, and I am not sure if there is anything related to my filing complaints that may have prevented my blood work that I did twice in that health centre from ever leaving the health centre or even being documented. That is my concern, and thus I ask for an investigation.

Plus, I have been asking for quite some time to have an evaluation program for all small health centres in all of the small communities because nobody really knows what is really happening in all those small centres, small health centres. Nobody is evaluating anything, any of the programs, if there are any, because I just spoke to a person on the phone this morning before showing up here. They are stating the same thing: there is nothing there; there is supposed to be somebody who is appointed to do it; they are just not doing it. I spoke to a nurse there myself, personally, and they said, no, they do not have a program. That is my concern. It could be the same in all the small health centres. There is quite a number. I just want the health Minister to say, "Yes, we will investigate and evaluate and look after the serious health concerns of the residents of the Northwest Territories." If she can't do that kind of work.

Thank you. I will take that as a comment. Oral questions. Member for Hay River South.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I was just about to email the questions to the Premier. Mr. Speaker, in the North, we have the "haves" and the "have nots." The "haves" are mostly government employees and those in YK or regional centres. The "have nots" are those mostly in the small communities. I would ask the Premier to tell those who are struggling when this government will seriously start to address the issues each is dealing with on a daily basis and when they can expect timely support to put a roof over their head and food on the table. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you. Honourable Premier.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I do always say that a society is judged by how we treat our most marginalized populations, and I do agree that our smaller communities are some of our most marginalized populations. In fact, a lot of the people who come to our capital city are from smaller communities and end up in homeless shelters and struggling in our income support systems and all kinds of systems that are not fair. It is close to my heart, and I am glad that we are looking at things. What are we doing?

Health: health has a community-based suicide prevention fund, money for them, peer-support funds for people returning from treatment. Expansion of homecare is going to happen. The Child and Family Services and the Healthy Family Program is going to be expanded, and there is on-the-land treatment funding. I do remember the Minister saying it was undersubscribed the last time she had spoken in the House, so I would really advocate for communities to access that funding if it is still undersubscribed.

Housing: dear to my heart, it's why I came into politics. In the last government, and I am confident that this government will do it, as well, there was a direction from the housing Minister at the time, who just happened to be me at the time, that homeless shelters need to be built in smaller communities. The majority, over 90 percent, of people in homeless shelters in our capital city are from smaller communities. In that government, we did build homeless shelters, I believe, in three, and hopefully that will continue. The hundred lease-to-own units, that is in our priorities. We do not own any property in Yellowknife; they are all apartments so that all of those would actually be outside of our capital city. That is a good news story. I did hear the Minister just talk the other day about dealing with the insurance and the land tenure for housing, which was always an issue, so that is something that will help our smaller communities.

The seniors' income threshold was just changed, one of the best things. I do remember an MLA saying in this House that a poor senior had a screwdriver stuck in their oil tank to be able to protect it. I'm not okay with that. That was changed. The housing Minister did a great job in changing that so only seniors get their own income, not their families', based on to determine if they needed help. Reducing the municipal funding gap is certainly going to help communities, as well. All communities that request have a surplus.

Education, child and youth counsellors, in partnership with Health, is a huge asset for our small communities. It's tough for children in the smaller communities. The northern distance ed program is going to be expanded to five communities in this government. That's huge. That's showed success. In Ulukhaktok, three students were able to graduate grade 12 and go South without having to do upgrading. It shows it works. I'm a huge advocate of that, as well.

The small community employment fund: in 2019-2020, there were over 750 jobs that were given. In 2021, there are 431 jobs so far to 32 communities. We're looking at getting daycares. Universal daycare isn't as easy as just saying it's free for people or for low-income people. We don't have daycares in communities, so that has been a priority of the education Minister to try to get the infrastructure to get those daycares in communities. Universal is only good if you have the services available. For the polytech, the Minister has talked many times about actually expanding and working with the 22 community learning centres, not only the three campuses, but what can we do with the community learning centres, which will help their people as well.

ENR has several new and enhanced programs to support harvesters and families getting out on the land, such as the grubstake's start up money to get people out on the land and the CHAP program for community harvesters. For the territorial protected areas, we're looking at the guardianship program, waste reduction, forestry programs, research and monitoring programs, firefighting programs; over 800 jobs in small communities.

Finance is going to do a BIP review, Business Incentive Policy review, that will maximize, as was stated earlier, to have jobs in the North, which will help small communities. The Indigenous government procurement policy that we are doing, it's my belief that, if we help Indigenous governments to help their people, we help our own government. That will help small communities.

Three large infrastructure projects, some Members are really fond of and others aren't: Mackenzie Valley Highway, the Slave Geological, and the Taltson Hydro. Those are projects that will bring jobs for people. We have the largest infrastructure budget in the history of Assemblies. Those jobs are hopefully going to be for northern people as much as possible.

Increase in the regional decision-making is a priority of ours. That will help to make sure that the regions are heard. The resource royalty-sharing within governments that sign onto devolution was not so great this year, but the goal of that was to put money into Indigenous governments so they could help their people.

Through that, Mr. Speaker, I know in the last government we always said to the federal government, flow the money through us and we will disseminate to the communities. We have taken a different stance in this government. We've talked with Indigenous governments and said, "We will be your partners." We will go to the federal government together, and if it makes sense, we will actually advocate for them to actually take their money to the Indigenous governments. Sometimes, of course, we need programs to support for our own, as well, but my belief, Mr. Speaker, is that if we do help Indigenous governments so that they can prosper and provide programs to their people, to their membership, it, in turn, ensures that all people, all communities, will actually have supports. It saves this government money.

Mr. Speaker, we have a long way to go, but I do think that this government is on the right track. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Just let me rephrase that question. No. Seriously, what I would like to hear from the Premier is when we can expect to see more public housing in the NWT. What I want to hear is a commitment that this government will support the private sector in providing housing in the market communities while this government focuses on the non-market communities. I believe that, in the market communities, most people can afford housing. In the non-market communities, I think we are dreaming if we think that the private sector is going to go there and do it. I think that's where our money should be going. I just want to know if we can get a commitment that we will look at that focus.

That question is outside of my portfolios, and I don't have that information for the Member on hand. As the question pertains to the responsibility of the housing Minister, I suggest that the Member redirect the question as required by the rules of the Legislative Assembly.

Thank you, Honourable Premier. Yes. Keep our line of questions to the appropriate Ministers. Member for Hay River South.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Another area, and maybe this isn't directly for the Premier, but since she is the head of this government, I will ask. One of the problems I see is that this government has said that there is no appetite to provide addictions centres in the Northwest Territories. What I would ask is: will this government commit to looking into developing a relapse centre to help those who need a place to go for a short period when they feel they need relapse and where they can receive some temporary support? Maybe they don't want to develop a full-blown treatment centre here, but on the street and talking to people, what they are looking for is something that is short-term where they can go. I talked to one of the Ministers the other day, and she indicated that people would go up to her and talk to her and just look for that support. They do that with me, as well. I would just like to see something where somebody can go for a short period of time. I hope that the Premier would be able to answer that question.

That question is outside of my portfolios, and I don't have the information for the Member. As the question pertains to the responsibilities of the Health and Social Services Minister, I suggest the Member redirect the question as required by the rules of the Legislative Assembly.

Thank you, Honourable Premier. Member for Hay River South.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just have one other question here, and I know the Premier can answer this one. I would ask the Premier what this government is doing to reduce the overall cost of living for residents in the NWT. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

That one does work more for the executive. The cost of living, we are not going to be able to reduce. The North is expensive. We're not going to be able to say that we are just going to get cheaper. Groceries are expensive here. Food is expensive here. Fuel is expensive here. Housing is expensive here. What we are looking at is programs to be able to support those costs of living.

The last government used to say that the best social program is a job. I never really agreed with that. However, I do believe that part of the best social program is having a job. If we can review our Business Incentive Policy, that will make a difference. The Minister of ECE is looking at doing a review of income support. That will make a difference. The housing Minister is working on how to be more accessible to people in the communities. That will make a difference.

I can't say that the cost of living in the North will be cheaper. I should say, though, if we can get people off diesel, that might make a difference, as well. We can't say that it's going to be the same price as the South, but we are doing as a government what we can to make sure that our programs, our services, address the needs of people, and addressing the needs of people means making sure that they can afford to live in the North. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Sorry, Mr. Speaker. I had my questions up here, and I just have some technical difficulties. If you can just go to the next Member, please? Thank you.

Thank you. Oral questions. Member for Frame Lake.

Merci, Monsieur le President. Good old paper. My questions are for the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, who is the lead on climate change. Can the Minister explain how the Northwest Territories could possibly be on track for greenhouse gas reductions to meet our national and international obligations when reductions last year were less than 1 percent of baseline? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Frame Lake. Minister of Environment and Natural Resources.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, ENR's the lead, but we have many departments working on this. Infrastructure is the one responsible for greenhouse gas. I do thank the Member for giving his questions up ahead of time so I am able to give this information here today instead of postponing it or telling you you'd have to ask another Minister.

In 2018, the Northwest Territories annual emissions were 1,230 kilotons, so we need to reduce our emissions by about 136 kilotons to meet our target by 2030. In 2019-2020, the first year of implementation of implementing the 2030 energy strategy, the Government of the Northwest Territories directly achieved approximately 6 kilotons of greenhouse gas emissions reduction. This represents a 4.4 percent reduction towards the GNWT target and have achieved mostly through energy efficiency and conservation investment. As our strategy continues to be implemented, larger and larger emission reductions will occur as large projects are funded and built which will more than likely bring online. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

That's great. That's more information than is contained in the actual report, but 4.4 percent in one year. We've got to reach the target in 2030. We're not going to make it, 2030. This government promised integrated reporting on climate change, but the first annual report failed to calculate how the carbon tax has impacted fuel consumption, greenhouse gas reductions, or even the effects on the cost of living. There are few links drawn between carbon tax and greenhouse gas emissions. Can the Minister describe how the climate change reporting actually integrates the carbon tax, the energy strategy, and the climate change strategic framework, and how he plans to include this information in future reports?

Our government released our energy and climate change strategy as we understood the need for them to work together to adapt to climate change and transition to a lower carbon economy. To this end, the climate change action plan annual report includes updates on relative activities from the energy strategy and the NWT carbon tax. Specifically, these updates can be found in the section on the goal number one, transition to a lower carbon economy. The GNWT has developed a plain-language overview report to update the public on climate change action. This report includes information on implementation of a carbon tax energy strategy and climate change strategic framework. We will continue to deliver an integrated, whole of government approach to tackle the challenges of climate change and energy efficiency in our territories.

I fully recognize that COVID has obviously affected our ability as a government to address a number of important policy areas including climate change. The federal government and many others around the world are moving to a target of net zero by 2050. Can the Minister tell us when our government is going to review the less than ambitious pan-Canadian framework target and adopt net zero as part of our economic recovery approach and to deal with the climate emergency?

Again, this is information that I had to get from the Department of Infrastructure, and I thank the Minister and her staff for it. Under the 2030 energy strategy, GNWT committed to a full review after five years. The strategy was released in 2018, which means review will occur in 2023. This will provide enough time to properly re-evaluate the strategic objective to ensure that they represent what is achieved, given new technology and opportunity. These reviews will involve public and stakeholder's input. This input will both inform the future review of the energy strategy and future GNWT decisions on emission reductions.

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

Merci, Monsieur le President. I want to thank the Minister for that. Clearly, we're not going to make the target. The Auditor General of Canada chronicled how our government's last two plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions were dismal failures, and the current one is certainly heading in that direction, too. The Auditor General said that a lack of leadership, policies, and legislation to give ENR the proper authority was largely at the root of the problem. What specific Cabinet decision-making tools or requirements have been changed to ensure government is taking climate change, the climate emergency seriously. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

I believe the GNWT is fulfilling its mandate to show leadership on the climate change by being one of the first Canadian jurisdictions to take a consistent and systematic approach to ensuring meaningful consultation on climate change decisions in all departments. In December 2020, Cabinet and the Financial Management Board decision-making templates were revised to incorporate consideration of climate change mitigations and adaptation factors, including Executive Council decision papers, financial management submissions, joint Executive Council/Financial Management Board decision papers, and legislative proposals. Mr. Speaker, I can honestly tell you: during those conversations, we've heard the Member, we've heard the public, and we're trying to make sure the Executive and all departments make decisions based on climate change. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, I've got paper now, so I'm good now. Just in line with my reply to the budget address, I mentioned the Frontier Lodge, so I had some questions for the Minister of MACA. I'd like to just start, at least hear from the Minister, just to give us a quick update because I know there was some developments, and just to let the public know what the rest of us know what the latest developments are? Marsi cho.

Thank you, Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh. Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. With the application that has been submitted, we had identified some complications with that. We haven't received a number of lodges throughout the Northwest Territories that needed to be, that were sold, and that ended up leading into required legislation and amendments to accommodate those sales and those transfers. My department has reached out to the owner, and they have been in correspondence. Also, correspondence has just been sent out to them yesterday, and then, also, acknowledging them this morning, as well. I will follow up with the Member with their current status. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Yes, I look forward to hearing some of that correspondence from this morning. I will table here shortly, the Chief of the LKDFN wishes to meet with her department. I wonder if I can give that to the Minister to follow up and meet on that?

Absolutely. I will be available to meet with the Member and with the leadership, as well. This, actually ignited a different approach that we would have to look at this as an example of how we are going to be dealing with lodges outside of the municipal boundary and also looking at the acts and regulations that it had affected as a result of the sale.