Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Responding to COVID-19 has been hugely challenging for our territory and the world. It has changed the way we socialize, work, and live our lives. Northerners have been quick to adapt, and everyone deserves credit for their efforts. As a result of our swift and aggressive response to COVID-19, through the implementation of strict public health measures and border restrictions, the NWT has been the most successful in containing the spread of COVID-19 in Canada. According to Emerging Wisely, the need to gradually and safely ease our restrictions has always been part of the plan.
As COVID response technology is improving and becoming more available, it is time to develop a strategy to emerge from our bubble. In engineering, we recognize that no project can ever be designed to 100 percent safety as the cost is too high and the design generally impractical. Likewise, when it comes to the NWT and COVID, the cost for 100 percent safety has been our economic and mental health.
Measures have been in place for over a year; travel restrictions, self-isolation protocols, and physical distancing are our reality. The cost of this new reality has been the loss of small business; an increase in substance abuse; and greater incidents of violence and mental health issues. What this is telling us is that we need to strike a better balance between managing the risk of importing the virus from outside of the territory and allowing people to be with their friends and family and businesses to operate.
We should be exploring options such as requiring travellers to produce negative COVID test results upon arrival. This could then be followed by a shorter isolation period, after which a second negative COVID test could be taken to clear the individual. While this may seem risky, it is a calculated risk that we must be willing to take. If we chose to continue to accept a very low risk of COVID infections, we are choosing to accept mental health, addictions, and domestic violence issues.
Residents need access to southern family. Many grandparents have yet to meet their grandchildren. People shouldn't have to make choices between their job and being with a dying parent, or between cancer treatment and the fear of isolation. Stigma, fear, and an adapting healthcare system are causing people to go undiagnosed and untreated for illness.
I recognize that navigating a global pandemic, especially while many jurisdictions are heading into a third wave, is a complex challenge. Therefore, I urge utilizing a science-based approach to easing restrictions with clear criteria, dates, and key milestones so that we can create a balance between the risk of COVID infection while protecting people from social harm and saving the economy. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
