Item 2, Ministers' statements. Honourable Premier.

Mr. Speaker, the Government of the Northwest Territories has a moral and ethical obligation to root out racism in our institutions. This obligation extends beyond the overt, visible, and obvious acts of hate and violence that we can easily see and condemn. It includes the subtle, hidden, systemic racism that persists in legislation, policies, and practices.

Systemic racism is real. It exists in the Northwest Territories, and it exists in our government. Some of our institutions, policies, and practices continue to disadvantage or discriminate against black, Indigenous, and people of colour. We continue to see examples of people facing discrimination based on their national origin, race, religion, ethnicity, and culture. It is an uncomfortable truth, but one that we must fearlessly acknowledge and confront if we want to change.

Mr. Speaker, the mandate of the Government of the Northwest Territories 2019-2023 identifies implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as one of our priorities. Done within the constitutional framework of Canada, this work will advance reconciliation, but it is not possible if we do not acknowledge and take tangible steps to eliminate systemic racism.

The United Nations' declaration sets the stage very clearly, "that all doctrines, policies and practices based on or advocating superiority of peoples or individuals on the basis of national origin or racial, religious, ethnic, or cultural differences are racist, scientifically false, legally invalid, morally condemnable, and socially unjust."

The Government of the Northwest Territories is taking steps to ingrain these principles into our legislation, policies, and institutions. In December, we announced the results of our work with the Intergovernmental Council: an innovative legislative development protocol, the first of its kind in Canada, that provides opportunities for the collaborative development of land and resource statutes and regulations for the Government of the Northwest Territories and Indigenous governments.

Mr. Speaker, the decisions we make as a government must reflect our commitment to reconciliation and the affirmation and advancement of Indigenous rights and self-determination. We must foster constructive and respectful government-to-government relationships with Indigenous partners and seek ways to advance reconciliation, recognize and affirm Indigenous rights, and support expanded program and service delivery. We also continue to respond to the calls for justice in the Final Report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, and the calls to action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada.

Mr. Speaker, we are firmly committed to addressing systemic racism in the Government of the Northwest Territories. We are committed to learning from the mistakes of the past, and moving on from colonial and outdated ways of thinking. We must embrace the principles of the United Nations declaration and the principles of anti-racism in the way that we approach all of our mandate commitments.

There are some instances where the path forward seems more obvious, like when we talk about settling and implementing treaty, land, resources, and self-government agreements or in our ongoing work with justice, education, and health; but we must also be vigilant in everything that we do, to ensure we do not inadvertently continue to perpetuate the past.

This Cabinet has and continues to update the way we review, discuss, and consider the items that come before us. Mr. Speaker, we have formalized and strengthened the presence of gender and diversity in our financial and policy decisions. I encourage every Minister and every Member of the Legislative Assembly to embrace the principles of the United Nations declaration and the principles of anti-racism in every decision that you make.

When I worked in social services, I could see the impact that systemic racism has, and eliminating it is a cause that I fully endorse. I do this knowing that the path ahead will be long and difficult. Undoing years of systemic racism against Black, Indigenous, and people of colour will take time. Change will be incremental, but I am determined.

I know there is a lot of great work happening across government, and I look forward to my colleagues sharing examples of the work they are doing to address systemic racism. I am encouraged and inspired by the progress being made, but I acknowledge there is much more to do. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Honourable Premier. Ministers' statements. Minister of Finance.

Mr. Speaker, the Government of the Northwest Territories is committed to providing a safe and inclusive workplace for all its employees. This includes educating our public servants on how racism can manifest itself in the workplace. Racism is a belief in a hierarchy of human value. It is a belief, conscious or unconscious, that some people are worth more than others. Racism is easy to see when it takes the form of specific acts of hate and violence, but systemic racism hides in plain sight. It is the kind of racism where the power of one racial group is exhibited and upheld over others in institutions, including schools, law enforcement, healthcare, and a workplace.

By contrast, anti-racism is about acknowledging the inherent privilege held by certain racial groups over others. Anti-racism is about speaking up when you see racism in action and educating those around you about the benefits of diversity within our communities and workplaces. It is about yielding positions of power to those who are otherwise marginalized, advocating for policies that break down systems of oppression, and promoting not only equality but equity. In addition to the work under way to implement mandatory cultural awareness training, the Department of Finance will launch an anti-racism campaign.

The Department of Finance will launch this anti-racism campaign to run between March 16^th and April 21^st that will encourage all GNWT employees to challenge their beliefs and attitudes around racism. The goal of this campaign is to encourage employees to learn about anti-racism so they can take steps to stand against systemic racism and stand up for marginalized persons within our communities. We recognize that, in order to eliminate systemic racism in the NWT, we must build a culture of anti-racism within the public service.

[English translation not available]

Thank you, Minister. Ministers' statements. Minister of Health and Social Services.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise today to voice my commitment as Minister of Health and Social Services, as a Member of this Legislative Assembly, and as a resident of the Northwest Territories to address racism in all its forms in the NWT Health and Social Services system. Throughout the Northwest Territories, the Health and Social Services system works to provide quality services for all NWT residents: care that is respectful, responsive, and accessible. However, research shows that Indigenous peoples experience a disproportionate amount of negative health and social outcomes in comparison to non-Indigenous people. It is our responsibility as a government to address this inequity directly by making sure that all aspects of the Health and Social Services system are culturally respectful and safe for Indigenous peoples. This also includes respecting Indigenous understandings of health and wellness and finding ways to accommodate traditional healing in our system.

Mr. Speaker, leadership at all levels is critical in taking the steps necessary to address racism in the Health and Social Services system and is essential to sustain it. The need for coordinated leadership is one reason I appreciated the opportunity to participate in recent national dialogues to address Anti-Indigenous Racism in Canada's Health Care Systems. The meeting included 500 people from across the country and offered a powerful opportunity for governments and organizations to listen, reflect, and consider ways to advance this work at the national, provincial, and territorial level.

Mr. Speaker, the Department of Health and Social Services established a division dedicated to addressing Indigenous health disparities and included a priority focus on cultural safety eight years ago. Staff conducted research and worked collaboratively with Indigenous residents, knowledge holders, and leaders to set our strategic vision to meet our overall goal of ensuring that clients and their families feel safe, respected, and free from racism and discrimination when they access our Health and Social Services system.

Mr. Speaker, in 2019, the department advanced this work with the release of the Cultural Safety Action Plan. Grounded in community voices, the action plan took a "nothing about us without us" approach. Over 30 meetings were held across the NWT over about nine months. The action plan includes 27 actions organized under four key themes:

• create an organizational culture of cultural safety;
• strengthen staff capacity to deliver culturally safe care;
• honour traditional knowledge and healing approaches in care; and
• improve client and community experience.

Mr. Speaker, since the release of the action plan, the department has worked to pilot 13 cultural safety training sessions. The pilots included content on Indigenous medicine teachings, Indigenous experiences of residential schools and inter-generational impacts, and understanding racism at interpersonal and systemic levels. Approximately 225 Health and Social Services system employees participated in these pilots.

The department is now developing an NWT cultural safety framework, which will be reviewed by the Indigenous Advisory Board and Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Leadership Council. Once finalized, I will share it with Members.

As a final point, Mr. Speaker, we've heard that cultural safety and anti-racism work must be led by Indigenous people. Much of the work that I have just outlined will be led by a new cultural safety and anti-racism unit dedicated to leading our system's efforts to embed cultural safety and anti-racism into the fabric of our Health and Social Services system. The existing team is comprised almost entirely of Indigenous staff from multiple nations and regions in the NWT. As the team expands, we are committed to ensuring that positions are open to applicants from any community in the NWT and that the senior positions are all filled by Indigenous staff who have been mentored and supported to take on leadership roles to advance this work.

Mr. Speaker, we have done the research and the collaborative development with Indigenous peoples and communities in the territory to set our strategic vision and the action plans to guide this work. Now, the focus is on embedding cultural safety and anti-racism in a meaningful and sustainable way to achieve our vision of a territory where Indigenous peoples, families, and communities enjoy physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health and wellness. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister. Ministers' statements. Item 3, Members' statements. Member for Hay River South.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We only have to watch the news; it is often charged with stories of racism. The last four years of government in the United States has shown us the reality of racism when it is allowed to rear its ugly head from the shadows without consequence. It showed us what happens when those inner feelings and beliefs that one is superior are allowed to surface and be liberated. People are now finding racism acceptable, and some are wearing it as a badge of honour.

Mr. Speaker, the enthusiasm of the racial divide in the United States spilled over into Canada and charged both sides of the debate. We as Canadians, although more accepting, continue to have a facet of the population that believes racism in Canada is exaggerated and that everyone has the same opportunity and is treated equally. In the NWT, we as Indigenous people know this, in fact, is not reality.

The NWT is predominantly Indigenous peoples. We have a government that is predominantly Indigenous, and we still fall short in the make-up of our workforce, in our education levels, in our access to business opportunities, and treatment when seeking medical and other services. This shortfall can be attributed to a number of reasons, with racism being one of them.

For some of us who have been in the North longer than others, we have seen and experienced the effects of what racism can do, both subtly and in its extreme form. When we look at the statistics related to the number of Indigenous children going into foster care, the number of Indigenous people being incarcerated, the number of Indigenous people who are victims of violent crimes, the number of missing and murdered Indigenous women, we see a pattern that proves our system continues to fail Indigenous people. This failure commenced years ago through racist government policy.

Mr. Speaker, how do we eliminate racism? Realistically, it will never be resolved, but it does not mean we give up the fight to lessen the harm it causes to those on the receiving end. As individuals and as a collective, we need to speak up against racism when we see or hear it, listen to others if we are to understand their pain, be respectful to others as one day it may be you looking for the same respect, be accepting, and, most importantly, be willing to help others. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Hay River South. Members' statements. Member for Kam Lake.

Mr. Speaker, employment opportunities, programs and services, and education and training are concentrated in regional centres in Yellowknife. In short, we are an economically and socially uneven territory. To access healthcare, social supports, training, education, and employment opportunities or to flee living arrangements that risk safety or sobriety or to move home to reconnect with family, we first ask Northerners to commit to homelessness. The Northwest Territories Housing Corporation community residency policy requires people to live in a community for varying lengths of time up to one year before adding their names to the community's housing wait list. It can then take years to get to the top of the list and some might say a lifetime. The Housing Corporation stipulates that no local housing authority or organization shall set a community residency requirement that exceeds one year, that the policy must be applied to all applications, and that it is not fair to apply a policy to only some applicants and not others.

When we talk about migration to and from small remote northern communities, we are almost exclusively talking about Indigenous people and their ability to move within the territory for access to healthcare, education, family reunification, and home. Putting your name on a housing wait list could mean a path to safety, a road to opportunity, connection to children in care, or a journey home, and the cost of putting your name on a housing wait list should be an NWT healthcare card. This policy drives the demand for shelters, overcrowding in public housing, forces people to remain in unsafe living arrangements, risks child apprehension, holds people back from accessing education, prevents family reunification; the list goes on, Mr. Speaker.

Twenty-eight of our 33 communities are considered non-market-rent and are dominated by public housing, so if you want to live in a community, your housing option really is public housing. If you want to move to a market-rent community and do not have the financial means to access market rent, the options are couch surfing or a shelter. This means families cannot stay together and boys over 15 stand to be separated from their parents. There comes a time in the life of a policy where we need to cut our ties. That time has come, Mr. Speaker. It is time to cut ties with this policy that inadvertently does more harm than good and time to prioritize the opportunity, health, and safety of all Northerners. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Kam Lake. Members' statements. Member for Great Slave.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. One of the priorities for the 19^th Legislative Assembly is to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. This declaration establishes a framework of standards for survival, dignity, and the well-being of Indigenous people around the world. In the colonial state of Canada, systems were put in place during the formation of the country that mainly benefit the European or white settler. When a process or organization has racism embedded in its very structure, this is known as systemic or institutional racism. Systemic racism is often found in large institutional settings such as schools, healthcare, and the judicial and policing systems. It is different than individual acts of racism. Systemic racism puts Black, Indigenous, and people of colour at a disadvantage before they even start by rigging the system against them.

People of colour are underrepresented in the public service in Canada, and according to Statistics Canada, 23.9 percent of Black Canadians fall below the poverty line and are considered low-income. This is twice the rate when compared to white Canadians, at 12.2 percent. Indigenous people have a higher rate of incarceration in Canada, representing around 26 percent of inmates in correctional facilities, but only 3 percent of Canada's total population.

Systemic racism in our healthcare system creates a dangerous situation for Black, Indigenous, and people of colour when trying to receive treatment or care. It is well documented that health outcomes differ for non-white populations. A tragic situation highlighted lately by the numerous cases in the media of people dying due to being turned away by the system or from having their illness overlooked based on their race. In October, nothing spoke more to the horror of that racism than the video recorded by Joyce Echaquan, a 37-year-old Indigenous mother of seven in Quebec. Joyce's last moments on earth were spent listening to the nurses who were charged with her care, who had sworn an oath to help her, disparage her with racist comments about her worth and intelligence.

It is crucial that the GNWT adopt a culture of continuously reviewing and analyzing its policies and practices for racial bias, in all departments. This is not just an issue that can be dealt with by human resources or the Affirmative Action Policy alone. It must be a whole-of-government approach with education at its core. The GNWT needs to update its hiring policies to include tangible targets and realistic action plans that will lead to actual change and not just lip service. Accountability must be part of this policy, or we will never see a GNWT that is reflective of the people it serves. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. What is systemic racism? All I could find as a definition was that it is also known as institutional racism, a form of racism that is embedded and is normal practice within society or an organization. It can lead to discrimination in criminal justice, employment, housing, healthcare, political power, and education, among many other issues. It is an unconscious bias. We have the Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action and the MMIWG National Inquiry Calls for Justice that are all evidence of Canada's systemic racism on Indigenous people of this land.

We cannot deny that Indigenous people in this territory have been victim of this, Mr. Speaker. Over the past year and a half, since being elected to this House, my colleagues as well as Cabinet colleagues are challenged with changing the way we do business and ensuring that policies are made to reflect the people we serve, but it's very hard, Mr. Speaker, steering this ship in a new direction with the obstacles that we have. We have not enough money from our federal government to correct the past policies that were created to try to eradicate or assimilate Indigenous people that caused more damage.

Mr. Speaker, I will give credit where it's due. I'm glad that this government, at least so far in the Beaufort-Delta, is hearing the people and now has created the position of a regional Indigenous wellness coordinator. This position will assist in educating staff on cultural safety programs, oversee elders and residents, and lead the organization in incorporating Indigenous culture throughout. I am very happy to hear this, but again, this is just a start. There is much more that needs to be done to correct the damage history has caused to the Indigenous people of this territory. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have spoken before about systemic racism existing within government policies and laws, police departments, and other public institutions. However, today, I would like to discuss systemic racism in a slightly different but equally significant context.

Mr. Speaker, I recently had a personal experience of systemic racism in Yellowknife, which occurred last month on February 1^st at the NWT SPCA. I had been searching for a puppy for a number of months at that point and decided to stop at the SPCA to see some new puppies that had just arrived the day before. When I entered the building, the staff I initially interacted with were great. They treated me very well. They gave me a small tour of the dogs, and even introduced me to a puppy, which I was very interested in adopting. I asked the staff if this puppy was still available, and they said, as far as they knew, she was, since she just arrived less than 24 hours prior.

However, the mood and attitude of this situation came to an abrupt halt when an individual in upper management at the SPCA entered the room. I turned to her, told her my name, and asked if the puppy was still available for adoption. Then, without any introduction on her part or any greeting at all, she pointed and quickly and coldly said, "That dog is already spoken for." Then, without another word, she immediately turned around, left the room, and never came back. Right away, I felt very odd about that interaction. It was a very unfriendly and micro-aggressive response. I considered going to the board of directors, but felt it wouldn't change much. As a Dene woman, I know what racism looks like and feels like, and in that moment, I strongly feel that I experienced systemic racism.

I've shared this story with a few people already, and the response has been mixed. Some believe me, but some are skeptical. Some people seem completely unconvinced that any racism occurred, and they would rather find excuses on behalf of the individual in question. Maybe she was having a bad day, they say. Maybe she was busy in that moment, they say. I'm sure that most Black, brown, or Indigenous folks who hear this story will know the feeling I'm describing. Not all racism or racist behaviour is the same. Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.

---Unanimous consent granted

Mr. Speaker, not all racism or racist behaviour is the same. Some moments are more overt and obvious, while others, it's more subtle and covert.

In closing, I must state that I have nothing against the SPCA as an organization. I recognize the good work they do to help animals. In fact, I donate to the Fort Smith animal shelter regularly, and I am an avid dog lover. I am speaking about this because systemic racism takes many forms and can and does take place anywhere. Mr. Speaker, Black lives matter and Indigenous lives matter. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Dental services in the small communities: nobody likes having a toothache, Mr. Speaker, but many people across the NWT are having that because there are no dental teams coming into our communities such as Ulukhaktok, Sachs Harbour, and Paulatuk. Residents from my riding tell me that they haven't seen a dentist in the community since COVID-19 started last year. Measures are basically preventing dentists from travel into the communities.

In March of last year, we heard the dentists who are also not sure if they would be able to visit the communities because of the problem they may have with the time it takes the airborne contaminants to dissipate in the air with air exchangers in the health centres. In October, the government released COVID-19 standards for managing the infection risks to providing in-person dental care. Last year, we learned from the Minister of Health and Social Services that the department has been working on air exchanger requirements and infection control standards to resume dental services in the small communities. In December, the Chief Public Health Officer approved facilities to reopen in six communities to resume dental services, since we are waiting for the facility upgrades for COVID-19 safety protocols that are met in the communities.

Mr. Speaker, there are 27 communities in the NWT that do not have dental services right now, and teams that are unable to provide services, essential dental services. I come from a small community, very little space in our health centres, and the communities have a single room for centres that dentists can work in with patients with proper air handling units. Let's be clear, I appreciate the work of the front-line staff and Health and Social Services who work every day, and those who need emergency dental care, the travel that would work much, be appreciated.

Mr. Speaker, building upgrades and installing air exchangers, quality measurement of tools, it's not a 10-year project. It also costs less than flying people out of the community for emergency procedures. There must be portable units that we could look at. I'd like a commitment from the Minister to make a targeted effort to improve facilities immediately so that our communities, our small communities in the territory could have dental teams visiting and doing dental work and procedures in the community instead of flying them out. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Nunakput. Members' statements. Member for Deh Cho.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Systemic racism is alive and well within our society. It may not be physically prevalent but does hide behind closed doors and closed minds. Systemic racism is an action that is common to a system such as racism in society. As Indigenous people, we face systemic racism on a daily basis. Just the colour of your skin, the fact that you have a treaty number, the community you live in, the crowd that you hang around with, the people who you represent as a leader, those contribute to the harsh realities of systemic racism. This can happen at schools, stores, hockey rinks, even offices and other places we thought would care for our people. Sadly, this is failing on a daily basis.

Indigenous peoples are treated as second-class citizens in their own communities and on their own homeland. It contributes to the unjust, economic, and resource inequalities as seen for centuries and is still alive today. We are not to thrive but kept at bay with promises and more promises of a better tomorrow. Promises. United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, also known by its acronym, UNDRIP, seeks to recognize the right to self-determination, the right to self-government, freedom from discrimination, a stronger, more equitable future for Indigenous peoples. Are these actions able to wipe out systemic racism?

I would think not but, perhaps, to stem the divide. They could be incremental steps to recognizing that the Indigenous people do have a place in society. Mr. Speaker, these are important steps to curbing and destroying systemic racism in our society. Mahsi.

Thank you, Member for Deh Cho. Members' statements. Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.

Marsi cho, Mr. Speaker. Just listening to some of the comments of some of my colleagues, that feeling of exclusion, I could go on and on about my numerous encounters, those feelings that I have had throughout my working career and childhood. I will share you one of my first encounters.

Mr. Speaker, when I was about seven or eight years old, I visited relatives in Pine Point when it used to exist. My great-great-grandparents were busy with my relatives, and I was instructed to go to the nearby playground. I didn't think too much of it at the time, but I was so excited to jump on the monkey bars and play. That was until I was approached by two youth in their early teens. It was here I was given a hard dose of reality and my first real encounter with racism.

Mr. Speaker, I still remember as if this happened yesterday. I was told by these children: "You're from res, aren't you? You people are stupid. You should go shopping at the dump. You even know what two times two is? You can't play here." I didn't understand what "you people" meant at the time. I was very confused, hurt, and didn't get to play on those monkey bars because I was afraid. As always, Mr. Speaker, I went to my great grandparents who gave me this advice. They said: "My boy, you will run into hate, jealousy, and people who will judge you because of the colour of your skin and where you come from. You might not understand now, but when you get older, just be kind to everyone you encounter and speak straight with them. You don't have to trust them, but always be kind when you can, and do your best to get along with others. That is our way."

They also said, as I grow older, that I will no doubt encounter many people from all walks of life, and they were right. I was always told sternly before I left the house and flew the coop; they said, "Always be respectful and never ever make fun of other cultures." Mr. Speaker, I admit I don't always get this right, but I try to remember this and practice it as best I can in my day-to-day life. I try to instill these values to my daughters whom I hope will pass it on to their loved ones in the future.

Mr. Speaker, the point I'm trying to make is, the best way to deal with this scourge of racism is to meet head-on with respect, love, and education. Since then, up until this point in my working career, I've had countless racist encounters as I mentioned against both myself and towards my children, but I try to teach them as best I can. I can share countless other memories, but I won't. I would rather eschew these unpleasant memories to die with me, and all we can do from hereon in is to influence each other and treat each other with respect and kindness and be good role models and persevere through it. Mr. Speaker, how do we pass down these values onto our government? Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent from my colleagues? Thank you.

---Unanimous consent granted

Marsi cho, Mr. Speaker, colleagues. My constituent I spoke with recently, Ms. Laney Beaulieu of Deninu Kue, reached out to me in light of recent events in one of our communities. She's currently a student at the Western University in Ontario, and she pointed out a really powerful quote to me from Ibram X. Kendi, an American author and an anti-racist activist. "A policy is either actively trying to minimize the gap in the quality of life between marginalized people and the general public, or is it actively contributing to these disparities." This is a powerful statement, and I'm hoping that it sits with us for a while.

Mr. Speaker, I mentioned in my budget address that I firmly believe in policy reforms, that they need to be fair and they need to be easily delivered to our public service. The goal here being is that our directives are clear and all are as loophole-resistant as possible. This will be needed to dribble down from each of our department heads to ensure that the residents of the NWT get the very best out of our government.

Mr. Speaker, I'd like to finish off with this powerful quote by Chief Dan George. "The heart never knows the colour of the skin." I believe this, and I really hope this resonates with us all. Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. I will have no questions. I think for the most part, and for most of us, it will be a day of reflection, and I think only a few of my colleagues will have questions. Thank you.

Thank you, Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh. Members' statements. Member for Frame Lake.

Merci, Monsieur le President. The problems with sterilization of instruments and equipment at Stanton Territorial Hospital appear to be over based on a January 14, 2021, update posted on the Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority website. The issues began last July 23 when the hospital's three sterilizer units simultaneously started producing instruments contaminated by moisture. This means the instruments couldn't be considered sterile because moisture can attract bacteria. A series of eight public updates were issued beginning on July 24 and became much more regular and consistent after I pressured the current Minister. The health authority described efforts taken with the facility operator, Dexterra, Boreal Health Partnership, the Department of Infrastructure, and the sterilization equipment manufacturer. The number of sterile instrument packs produced has been increased, but there is no guarantee the packs are reliably sterile.

The authority reported that elective surgeries were cancelled, which caused enormous anxiety and sometimes physical suffering for many residents who were left waiting. The latest report indicates that all surgeries, including total joint replacements, are being allowed again although there continues to be some staining of towels used in the sterilization process. I will have questions for the Minister of Health and Social Services about the cause of the sterilization problems, whether the backlog of surgeries has been cleared, and whether we can prevent this happening again. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Frame Lake. Members' statements. Member for Yellowknife North.

Mr. Speaker, I am afraid of where our implementation of the Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls is heading. I am afraid it is heading down a road where far too many GNWT action plans end up, a road where some of the low-hanging fruit is picked off, but the larger systemic problems are left unaddressed, caught in an endless cycle of planning and consultation with no meaningful action. Systemic problems can't be solved with a series of minor tweaks to the systems that perpetuate the problems in the first place. Systemic racism is no different, Mr. Speaker. I question whether the GNWT, a government that has had an Affirmative Action Policy in place for over 30 years with little results, is even capable of making the changes needed most.

Mr. Speaker, our government's current work plan goes through each of the calls to justice and is going to assign them into three categories: those that can be implemented immediately, those that can be implemented within one year, and those that require long-term planning. I am afraid that the systemic changes we need most, the calls to justice that we need to address systemic racism, will fall into that third category of long-term planning.

There are a multitude of reasons for this. One, and probably the most significant, being money. All of us in this House know how tight government budgets are, and there is endless need when it comes to government dollars. We in this House could probably spend a billion dollars tomorrow and still find want for $10 billion more. Mr. Speaker, this is why, first and foremost, any action plan developed must be costed. If we don't head down the road of figuring out how much we can reasonably afford, it does not matter how great the action plan is how much long-term planning we do if we don't put the money behind our words.

Mr. Speaker, I know that planning work has to be done, but more importantly, work also has to be done that dismantles the systems and barriers that will get in our way. The inquiry interviewed thousands of people, spent thousands of hours already planning, and it gave us in this House direction in the form of 231 calls to justice. In order to honour the work they did, we must not shy away from the most difficult of those calls to justice. I will have questions for the Minister responsible for the Status of Women. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Masi, Mr. Speaker. It's only logical that Northerners undergoing addictions treatment do better when their treatment takes place here in the Northwest Territories. Regrettably, the government fails to understand this fact. That failure shows in the amount of money spent on southern-based treatment. I am talking about payments totaling as much as $2.3 million a year to six southern providers, which the North does without. Regrettably, that is not the only case of the government's failure on the addictions treatment front. Where the Department of Health and Social Services provides for on-the-land healing, it is also falling on its face. Let me explain, Mr. Speaker. At the urging of Northerners, the department has made $1.8 million available to Indigenous organizations wishing to offer on-the-land healing treatment. It's called the On the Land Healing Contribution Fund. Sadly, as of October 2020, only a couple of applicants have pursued this funding.

Mr. Speaker, it's not that communities aren't interested in on-the-land healing. It's that the department isn't bothering to promote this particular funding. It's that eligible groups aren't being properly encouraged. As a result, Mr. Speaker, Northerners are indeed missing out. It is so sad that this government is not being proactive on this particular, very important funding. These are just some of the words from the organizations that I represent, as well. Masi.

Thank you, Member for Monfwi. Members' statements. Item 4, returns to oral questions. Item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery. Item 6, acknowledgements. Item 7, oral questions. Member for Nunakput.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today, I brought up dental care in the small communities, especially in the community of Ulukhaktok. This past week, I have been getting calls at 4:30 in the morning and text messages on Messenger. People are needing dental assistance, and there's nothing happening. They go to the health centre. They are given Tylenol and penicillin to help them with the pain, but, Mr. Speaker, we need to get this sorted out. We haven't seen a dentist in the community since last year. When are we starting a start-up plan for the small community dental teams to come into the communities? When is that going to happen? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Just to begin, I would like to say that it's the Non-Insured Health Benefits program that offers dental services. The NIHB program uses facilities that belong to NTHSSA. Really, the responsibility here is with Indigenous Services Canada. They were the ones who suspended dental treatment service last March when the COVID pandemic lockdown began. What happened after that is that the Health and Social Services authorities, supported by the leadership council, requested that dental services not be resumed in health centres until a number of issues, including safety concerns that went beyond COVID-19, were resolved and there was an establishment of clear roles and responsibilities for the delivery of this service.

All of this inevitably led to a working group. The working group did its job and came up with a resumption of services plan. There are now six communities that are receiving dental services because they have newer health facilities that meet current air exchange and infection control requirements. Those communities, unfortunately, are not in the Member's riding, but work has not finished on this front. We are calling that Phase 1. In Phase 2, a working group has identified seven more communities where resumption of services might happen, depending on the assessment of the facilities in which those services would be offered. In this case, it is more promising for the Member's riding because it includes both Paulatuk and Ulukhaktok. Once again, the department will be doing facility assessments prior to the end of June and will then be developing a plan to resume services. Thank you.

I have a phase, and it's "phase right now." "Phase now." We need help. People are having to fly out. How much is it costing our government to fly people out into Yellowknife and into Hay River for the young children? Why can't we purchase portable units for those health centres across the territory? There must be portable units and some way to be able to provide that service. In regard to that, why is it taking so long? As a government, we have to cover the cost because I have a T in front of my healthcare number. They have to provide service. $38,800 a year we are provided for each resident in the community across the territory. Why is this service taking so long? One year.

At the Department of Health and Social Services, we really prioritize the safety of our patients. Where facilities were not meeting infection control and ventilation requirements, work could not be done in those facilities. This is not a long-term ban on dental services in these communities, but it's my understanding that teams are now working through potential solutions. The Member has mentioned a couple of potential solutions and maybe they are solutions, but nothing is going to happen with putting portable buildings into Ulukhaktok at this time of year. What is going to happen is that there will be this assessment done by the end of June and a plan developed then. Unfortunately, the residents of Ulukhaktok are going to wait longer for dental services to resume, but that is not because of a lack of money; it's because we want them to receive those services safely.

I am not asking for a portable unit, Mr. Speaker. I am asking for a portable air exchanger into the building, portable, being plugged in and able to provide service for dental, for air handling. I want commitment from this Minister, Mr. Speaker, in regard to improving dental care in the communities, all 27 communities and my four communities that I represent. We need help, Mr. Speaker. This has to be dealt with. We are not going to wait another year. It's costing this government numerous thousands and thousands of dollars to ship people out when they could do something simple, portable air exchange units. Is it possible for this Minister to commit to getting that done right away?

Among my many, many, many accomplishments, engineering is not one and so I cannot actually make a commitment to providing a portable air handling unit for the Member's health centres so that dental services can be resumed. What I have told him, and he is not satisfied with, is that there is an assessment that will happen within the next four months and a plan will be developed because, obviously, it is very important to a person's overall health that they have good dental health. The department does not argue with that. I know the Member is really big on "right now," but unfortunately, this is not a problem that lends itself to "right now."

Final supplementary. Member for Nunakput.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want a commitment. Government has to come. The six communities that get dental services, all the power to them. Our communities are hurting, and it always becomes the communities are an afterthought in this government. Is that the way we are going to keep on going for something like this under COVID-19? How many studies do you have to do? Get a portable unit; give it to the dental team; fly them in. We need help. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Generally, Ulukhaktok has two dental visits a year, so at this point, they would have missed two. My hope is that that's all they are going to miss. There will be two more dental visits in the next fiscal year. I want to just correct the perception that it's only big communities with dental services. The Fort Providence health centre, the Fort Simpson Health Centre, the Fort Resolution Health Centre, the Norman Wells health centre, and the Aklavik Health Centre have all had dental visits within the last two months. Thank you.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are for the Minister of human resources or Finance. What is the GNWT doing to eliminate systemic racism in its hiring practices? Will the Minister commit to setting numerical targets for the hiring of Black, Indigenous, and people of colour within the GNWT at senior levels of management, not just in entry-level positions? Thank you.

Thank you, Member for Great Slave. Minister of Finance.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I had indicated earlier in my Minister's statement, I have two things I want to say. Firstly, is rolling out a very express anti-racism campaign, really speaking to the idea of challenging all of our own mindsets about what is racism and what is anti-racism, as a starting point. That is just one small starting point. Getting to the rub of what I think the MLA is asking me about targets, Mr. Speaker, I have also spoken in the House frequently about the Indigenous recruitment and retention framework that is being developed and put into place over the course of this next fiscal year. It will include targets. The idea of even including those targets is exactly that, that it's more than just the entry level; they are targets that are going to apply to each department, that each department is going to have a responsibility for, but that it will be coming back to human resources so that there is an overarching approach to what is happening in each department.

Mr. Speaker, although this is the Indigenous recruitment and retention framework and we are starting there, this is meant to be really a change of mindset in the way that we are -- representative of the way people think about the government, the way people think about public service, and it's only a starting point. It is really meant to be one that is going to make us more inclusive and more representative of Black, Indigenous, and people of colour. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

All great news I am glad to hear. I just hope things go more quickly rather than dragging out. In our current Affirmative Action Policy, Indigenous Aboriginal men are not designated as a distinct priority group under that policy. Will the Minister commit to including this as part of the upcoming review of the Affirmative Action Policy, including the Indigenous retention and recruitment framework, and ensure that this should lead to ensuring that there is an increased representation within the GNWT itself for Indigenous Aboriginal men?

I have previously said we are going to take a review of the Affirmative Action Policy. Those reviews have been done many times and many ideas brought forward. There does need to then be collaboration on all sides of the House about bringing forward the actual changes and seeing them through. If, in the course of that review, it's brought to our attention that Indigenous men are a group that requires some specific attention over and above Indigenous persons generally and over above Indigenous women, I am open to receiving that feedback. For the time being, Mr. Speaker, again, I am going to say that going through that process of reviewing that policy is the direction I am going to go, and that is where we will see where that takes us. If, in fact, this is a group that is distinctions based, that requires specific attention. Then again, that review is underway.

I did not have the luxury of listening to the Minister's statement ahead of making my questions. Some of it might get a bit repetitive, but that never hurts, to repeat ourselves if we want to be heard. Often as MLAs, we hear of direct-appointment hires or non-hires for that matter, that seem to directly contradict the GNWT's own Affirmative Action Policy. Will a fairness review of direct-appointment hires be implemented as part of the new Affirmative Action Policy to oversee the ministerial appointments? What sort of corrections or sanctions will be built into the policy for individuals who do display racial bias in their hiring practices?

There are a couple of questions there, Mr. Speaker. I want to address the second one first, about people having sanctions for displaying racial bias in their hiring. There should not be racial bias in hiring. There should not be racism in hiring, and if that is happening, I want it brought forward. There are meant to be teams who work together. Human resources is involved precisely to ensure that the process is fair and that the policy of affirmative action is applied fairly and appropriately.

With respect to the first question, whether or not there will be some changes or a fairness review, again, Mr. Speaker, I made a previous commitment this session that the direct-appointment process is one that needs some information and some information-sharing, and I would like to bring that to committee. The direct appointments process right now has very specific rules, very specific targets of what is allowed and not allowed and right now actually achieves a higher percentage of affirmative action candidates than the usual hiring processes. All that said, though, to the extent that a fairness review should be part of it, that is still between the Affirmative Action Policy review that we are doing and the recruitment framework that we are doing. That is something that can be included in either one of those.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. One of the ways that I get my opinions into those types of policies, reviews, et cetera, is to bring them up here in the House. This one is a little bit more on the philosophical plane, but we often hear that increasing the population of the Northwest Territories is a great way for us to increase our revenues by upping the number of transfer payments that we get from the federal government. However, our priority is to increase our local employment and hiring and keeping with northern businesses, et cetera. My question is: does the Minister find that these two goals are somewhat contradictory to each other, and if so, how do you plan to address that in your upcoming affirmative action and other policy reviews? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I think that is exactly the kind of question that should be debated in the House, and I am pleased to have it brought to the floor and, frankly, pleased to have it come back, if necessary, for reconsideration or further discussion or debate. I don't think that they are necessarily in conflict with one another. I don't think they should be in opposition to one another. As a government, we want to do everything we can to ensure that Northerners have the skills, the training, the education, the underlying health, the housing, all of the parameters that are going to allow them to apply for any and every job in the public service. At the same time, I am well aware that, in this moment, we bring teachers, doctors, nurses, and various other professionals and individuals to the North to fill the positions that we are still not filling from amongst northern graduates.

I don't think they are mutually exclusive. If we're doing things right, we are creating a public service that is inclusive; we are creating communities that are inclusive; and we are building an economy that can grow so that everybody can be welcomed, so that every one of our graduates has a great job to go to, and so that people can continue to move to the North and stay here as residents, and not just come up as visitors. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are for the Minister of the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation. I am wondering if the Minister will commit to removing the community residency requirement that is currently used by local housing authorities and local housing organization in communities across the Northwest Territories? Thank you.

Thank you, Member for Kam Lake. Minister responsible for the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I hear the Member's comments about the residency requirement, but it does provide consistency for the Northwest Territories as to how we allocate units. We have a significant wait list, I do hear the Member on that. Looking at the tenants in the smaller communities, whether they are going off to school, fleeing a domestic situation, and they are wanting to return back to the communities, the Housing Corporation will work with those clients and there are specific forms and paperwork that they would have to complete and fill out just to maintain their housing unit in the smaller communities. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I had the luxury of listening to one of my colleagues, the Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh, earlier today, and he had a quote that actually works quite well in this moment in time: "This policy is actively contributing to the social and economic disparities of Northerners, and the harm currently outweighs the good." I appreciate the Minister's desire for consistency. I believe that this policy has run its course, and it's time to get rid of it. I am asking the Minister, in the interest of creating safe spaces for Northerners and ensuring that all Northerners have access to housing and returning to their home communities, if the Minister will please remove the community residency requirement currently used by local housing authorities and local housing organizations.

No, I will not commit to that. I will not remove the residency requirements for local housing authorities. We have to maintain and make sure that, if we have a housing list in one of our smaller communities and we have new residents coming into the smaller communities and they are able to get on the housing list while we have a housing list that has already existed, the Housing Corporation has to maintain consistency and maintain how we allocate the units at the local level. I do want to keep in mind that I do know that we have a wait list of 900. We need to get houses on the ground, and with that, we're looking at partnerships at the local community level. With that, the Housing Corporation has made a significant impact throughout the territory, and we are working toward putting houses on the ground; slowly, but it's coming along.

One of the things that the Minister referred to was making sure that she maintains fairness within the housing lists. The housing lists that are created are created on a first come, first served basis, and then people are prioritized within those lists based on their needs. I feel that, if it's based on need and it's based on first come, first served, you are still maintaining the integrity of the process, but what you're allowing people to do is to access education. You're allowing them to access healthcare. Maybe somebody has a child, and they need to come to Yellowknife in order to access inclusive schooling opportunities that aren't available in their home community. Potentially, somebody could be moving to Yellowknife in order to access Aurora College, or they could be moving to Inuvik for that same reason.

When we're going out to communities and we're talking to our constituents and we're wanting people to take advantage of different opportunities and to bring those opportunities back to their home communities, we also have to make sure that they have the housing available to do that. What I am asking the Minister is: how does she intend to get around this policy so that people can access different opportunities and bring them back to their home communities?

As an Indigenous woman who comes from a smaller community and has relocated outside of my home community and tried to look for career opportunities in order to become successful on my own and represent my people at this level, it had taken me to move out of my community. Returning back and looking at the housing wait list and looking at if I were to relocate, the Housing Corporation is not the only housing solution that is available at the community level. Right now, the Housing Corporation is working toward looking at our Co-investment Fund applications and encouraging Indigenous groups to come forward. Not only that; I do hear the Member talking about the domestic violence and the tenants who are wanting to pursue educational opportunities. The Housing Corporation has developed I want to say a formula, almost, an application process that, should the applicant be wanting to exit the community for a number of months, there is an opportunity for them to return and the house will be available for them upon their return.

The other thing is that I don't want to discourage local individuals from leaving their community to pursue other goals and other education opportunities and other positions and looking at that. I will be bringing this back to my department, but then, I'm not going to be removing the residency requirement.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Just listening to my colleague from Nunakput, I know that has been an issue that I have raised in the past on NIHB and dental services in the communities, and I know that NIHB pays 100 percent for people with a T and who are First Nation status, all the travel costs for dental, just from my past career. However, I do know that they have really stringent travel criteria for travelling for medical emergencies. That's one of the problems. Another problem is that, when they access emergency dental care, they don't have it, so they go to the health centre. They go there usually after hours or during regular appointments, and the staff don't always realize what the process is because, as a health practitioner in a health centre, it's a non-insured health benefit. It's not an insured service, so sometimes, they turn them away or tell them to call the Inuvik dental clinic, for my region. That's what usually ends up happening, and then it ends with that. Then we get the call.

My first question is: will the Minister have her department or her working group that she had mentioned reach out with NIHB to come up with a plan to allow for a quick and easy process to access out-of-community dental services, as needed, and possibly lightening up some of those restrictions, knowing that we haven't had dentists in over a year? They have bad teeth in the communities, and a lot of them are on wait lists for oral surgery. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes. Minister of Health and Social Services.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As the Member mentioned, this is an NIHB service and the travel requirements are their travel requirements. I do not have an opportunity to address those requirements. Thank you.

I just want to advise the Minister that the NIHB, actually, we have a department in Inuvik in the office, an NIHB office, that gives money to pay for travel for the travelling dentists, so we are kind of involved with this. I think that having that discussion at that table, again, I will ask the Minister to commit to having a discussion with that NIHB office about the travel restrictions and the criteria so we can access dental services for the people in the communities that don't have it.

I can have that conversation.

Thank you to the Minister. Will the Minister also have a discussion with the department in the emergency, because I know the last time the previous health Minister had made the commitment and said that there are instructions on how to access emergency dental service in the health centres, and just make sure that I can get commitment that there is this information in the health centres and the staff are aware of it?

I do not have that information at hand, but I can find it.

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

Merci, Monsieur le President. My questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services. The problem with sterilization equipment at Stanton hospital began in July 2020 and took almost six months to resolve. I do want to acknowledge that the new Minister certainly updated the public and myself more regularly when she took over the portfolio and did contact residents who were waiting, but I still have a basic question. What was the cause of the problem with the sterilization equipment, and has it been permanently fixed? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Stanton sterilization issue is actually two issues. The first is wet packs, and the other is mineral staining. I am going to talk about each one. Wet packs: once ideal humidity levels were achieved and sustained, the wet pack issue was resolved at Stanton, and that happened in the fall of 2020. As the Member said in his statement, the importance of this is that, if the instruments are not dry, they can attract bacteria, which would then lead to infection. This issue has been resolved.

Mineral staining is another issue, and it continues. The root cause is not yet fully determined, but sterilization and water experts who have looked at the situation believe that the staining is caused by mineralization in the water, specifically copper and iron. There have been very many investigations into this and how this water supply system can be adjusted so that the water no longer stains the fabric that the instruments are wrapped in when they are sterilized. There has been some improvement, and now the fabric has light-coloured stains, which are thought to be not an issue because the instruments themselves are not stained. What is really important to know is that we have a very rigorous quality-control process to do the sterilization of instruments that are used in surgery to confirm that they are, in fact, sterile and that people are not being infected by the instruments that are used in their operations. Thank you.

I want to thank the Minister for that. Of course, during the problems over the last six months, patients were often left in pain, and really, many surgeries were delayed. I just want to get some reassurance from the Minister whether there is still a backlog of surgeries and whether that has been cleared up.

At the time the sterilizer had to be shut down, there were 124 pending surgeries. They have now all been completed except for those people who asked for later dates in the spring. One thing that Stanton has done to address elective surgeries on the wait list, okay. I have to just start the sentence again. There came a point where they were not taking any more people onto the wait list because they had no idea when they could get through it, so there are an unknown number, unknown to me at this point, people who would have liked to have had surgery but did not get onto the wait list. What is happening now is that Stanton, instead of closing through March break, is open to catch up on any of those surgeries that did not make it even onto the wait list because the sterilization equipment was down. I hope that's clear.

I want to thank the Minister for that. It sounds like the backlog is going to be taken care of maybe before the end of March, and I really do appreciate that. These problems with the sterilization equipment, though, appear to have started soon after the new building was opened. Of course, this was a very large public-private partnership P3 arrangement, so I want to know from the Minister if she can tell us what the total cost of the investigations and delays were and who is responsible for these costs?

Just to clarify the timing here, the first hospital day was May 26, 2019, and the sterilization equipment functioned without any issues until July 23, 2020. That was the point at which they discovered that there were wet packs that were wet and material that was stained. What we do know is that Stanton has spent approximately $50,000 to date for equipment testing and consultant expertise. As a matter of fact, it could have been more but for the fact that the sterilizer manufacturer has been providing extensive support throughout this time, much of which has been provided at no cost. It's important for the Member to know that the materials, the equipment inside the building, is the responsibility of the NTHSSA and not of Dexterra, the P3 operator.

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

Merci, Monsieur le President. I want to thank the Minister for that financial information. Of course, finally, I think it's important to know whether the -- we have cleared up the backlog, but I just want to get some reassurance from the Minister that this is not going to happen again, so can the Minister tell me what the likelihood is that the problems will re-occur? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

The staff at Stanton would like to put this issue behind them, but unfortunately, this is historically a recurring problem that is most often occurring in April and May and aligns with the spring melt and the difference in the water chemistry. It has turned out to be a very unpredictable problem. It will appear and disappear, making it very difficult to investigate the root causes as much as we would also like to do that. What we have done, though, in preparation for this year's spring melt, is taken measures to mitigate potential future occurrences with the purchase of new equipment for the sterilization service in the form of new trays that will require less use of towels and fabrics. That should assist with the wet-pack problem, which is the problem that really reduced the number of surgeries. Thank you.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It seems we are going to have to bring the federal government kicking and screaming for them to actually come up with their action plan to implement the calls for justice for the Inquiry into the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. I am happy to see that the GNWT is rolling out their own action plan, but I have concerns about whether we will implement some of the most serious calls to justice in the life of this Assembly. My question for the Minister responsible for the Status of Women is: when are we going to see our action plan?

Thank you, Member for Yellowknife North. Minister responsible for the Status of Women.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Keeping in mind the principles that were set out by the national inquiry for the put through the final report, which included stating that we need to take a decolonizing approach, that we need to have the inclusion of families and survivors, that the conclusions should be self-determined and Indigenous-led solutions, I have decided, Mr. Speaker, that, when work that has been done to date, organizing, as the Member has already described earlier, organizing the work that is happening within the government already, that could be happening soon and that may take longer to happen, it is not good enough for the government to simply make our own list of what we are doing. We, in keeping with those principles, need to take that out to the Indigenous people, to the communities of families and survivors, and let them confirm if, in fact, us looking at ourselves is accurate. If what I'm seeing, where we think we are is actually accurate, they should be the ones. If we're going to do this right, they should be the ones that tell me, "Yes, you're right. You're doing okay here, but you're not doing okay there." We can't look at ourselves without going back out to those that we are hoping to be actually benefitting. As such, Mr. Speaker, instead of having it ready by June, by taking this additional step, I am expecting that the draft plan shall be ready by October. Thank you.

I hear what the Minister is saying, and I recognize we have to take direction from those who are closest to the plan. My biggest concern is: when I go through the plan and if I cost it in my head, it's millions and millions more dollars than we actually have to fully implement. I think this has been a systemic problem across the GNWT is that we often create great action plans but don't back them up with the dollars. Will the action plan that is presented at the new date be costed for each of the calls to justice?

Implementing all 231 calls to justice will, indeed, cost probably not only millions. It may well cost billions of dollars. That's not going to deter me from putting forward the implementation plan, the action plan, and, again, the draft plan because, again, the point to be is: it's going to be a living document that goes back out into the community, to the people who we're purporting to be serving.

No, it's not going to be a full costed plan. What I do intend to do is to try my best to subscribe to the principles that are in the final report and speaking to those principles, which is what they say very clearly is the foundation for all 231 calls to justice and really looking at way we do things, how we do things, and where we're going. Along the way, that can, then, filter back into each department as we prepare our business plans, different levels of government as they prepare their own budgets, looking at what we do already and where we need to go. While that won't necessarily be costed one by one, I do believe that, by laying all this out, we are going to be better placed to make better decisions about how we properly address the budgeting to achieve the things that are in that plan.

I'm hoping that the Minister, I'd like to get into the weeds a little. There are certain calls to justice that, no matter how much consultation or how much talk we have with people, simply costs money, and it's a yes or no. One example is calls to justice 4.5. We call upon all governments to establish a guaranteed annual living income for all Canadians, including Indigenous peoples. I've spoken numerous times about a guaranteed income in this House. Our current Income Assistance is neither guaranteed nor annual. Will we implement this calls to justice?

I watched as an advocate at the national inquiry, as the national inquiry struggled to be something that was built in a legal system and built in a government system, which is, in fact, the same system of legality and government that they were trying to address and to change, and it is a struggle. I can't say whether or not we, as a government or the national government, are ultimately going to implement this specific calls to actions or when or how.

What I can say and what I want to do is do what the national inquiry was calling on, which was to implement the principles, to look at the principles, and to apply them to every single one of the 231 calls to justice. That is not a small task, but we're going to do our best to lay that out in that spirit, to do it in a way that responds to the principles. It takes it out back out to the people who are meant to be served, to include the families and survivors, and to be decolonizing in our approaches, and then, rather than being stuck within the systems that we are still stuck in, do what I can to try to be thoughtful and progressive in how we put forward this draft plan.

No, I can't say whether or not we're going to address the specific one that the MLA has singled out. I'm not going to prioritize or hierarchize the different calls. We're going to look at the whole thing, and once we have that draft plan in place, it may well be that the individual families or survivors, Indigenous governments, may then say, "This is how you need to roll it out, and these are the priorities." At this point, Mr. Speaker, it's not for me to make that determination.

Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary, Member for Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think the Minister could have just said no. I've asked the Minister of ECE multiple times, and he gives me pretty clear nos on that one. I didn't expect a different answer there, but I'm going to try again with another call to justice: 5.6(4), guaranteed access to independent legal services must be provided throughout court processes as soon as an Indigenous woman, girl, or 2SLGBTQQIA person decides to report a defense, before speaking to the police, they must have guaranteed access to legal counsel at no cost. Mr. Speaker, I don't know how you can go out and consult with victims and they will not want free independent legal advice. There is really no one who is going to say, "No, I don't want that." This is a simple yes or no. Do we change our legal aid policy to provide legal services to victims of crimes? Are we going to implement this calls to justice? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am going to do my best to maintain the principles from the national inquiry which say, that you must look at all 231 of the calls to justice, that we have to take decolonizing approach, inclusive approach, a self-determining approach, a trauma-informed and cultural safety approach. I simply am not going to pick out one and give an answer right now, Mr. Speaker, of which one will or will not be implemented when or how. I am struggling, Mr. Speaker, with how to be decolonizing in the approach to the action plan, working within a system that is still the system that people were telling us is colonial. It is challenging to figure out how to create an action plan which is a thing that governments do. When that is something that is so historic and so built into the structures and the systems that we have, how do I go out? I'm sure that most survivors would like to have free legal advice. That seems self-evident. As far as an action plan that is meaningful in a response to the national inquiry and the totality of all 231 calls to justice, I am determined to try my best to go about differently how to create that draft plan, and that means not picking one out right now and not being premature about what that draft plan's going to look like or where one individual one of the calls to justice is going to fall. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In Hay River, we have a housing issue, so I'd like to ask the Minister of the Housing Corporation, when will we see a real plan to either put houses on the ground or some other solution to take care of a backlog wait list of those seeking housing? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Hay River South. Minister responsible for the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Housing Corporation is right now looking at retrofits in our smaller communities and abandoned units that we could bring back up to living conditions. We have expedited our plan right now for the RCMP units, but those are market units that are not specifically for residents of the territory. We also have a list of duplexes and units that are going up throughout the territory. I will have to provide that to the Member. I don't have that information with me on hand. Also, looking at the housing wait list, I am working right now with my federal counterpart for Canada. We, actually, just had a conversation this afternoon, just before this session. I'm quite optimistic about the outcome of that meeting, and I will keep my colleagues informed of the outcome of those discussions. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Ever since the high rise had the fire, what happened there was -- prior to that, the number of people who were considered homeless wasn't that great. However, since the fire and the closing of it, the number has substantially increased. What this increase has done is cost this government between $10- to $15,000 per month per person to house them temporarily. I'd like to ask the Minister: there was a working group. I'm just wondering if that working group is still looking at potentially having a high rise open and where they are with respect to communication and working with the owner of the high rise?

The last update that I did receive in regards to the high-rise in Hay River was that they did submit an application for co-investment to look at the deficiencies that are existing in the high-rise. There were a number of expectations to be met prior to that building being open. With that, I will provide the Member with an updated status on where we are with the high-rise in Hay River.

I was elected here by the constituents in Hay River South, but I am also here to ensure that people are provided the opportunity to have housing and other services. This isn't happening. This has been going on with the Housing Corporation year after year. My issue here is that I don't see an end to it. At some point, I am going to have to ask the Minister. I need something concrete. We keep hearing the same rhetoric, and we don't hear anything new. We hear about the smaller communities. We hear something about the larger ones, as well, but I need to be able to take something back to Hay River. What can I take back to them to give them some hope that we are actually going to have some houses?

Our scheduled delivery, we don't have any expectations for Hay River for this year. I just want to just inform the Member that we did address the homelessness issue in Hay River this year for the COVID response. We did respond accordingly and dealt with the homelessness situation in the community, as well. Conversations are still going on with the Hay River high-rise. Looking at other situations that do burden us from constructing in Hay River, as well, is that we need land. We need land to build. In Hay River, it's quite challenging, to be honest. Looking at those opportunities going forward, those discussions are currently happening, as well.

I do hear the Member, like every other community and region, as well, that housing is quite significant, but I will keep the Member updated, as we do have a couple of co-investment applications that are coming forward. Like I had said earlier, the conversation that I did have with the federal government, I am quite optimistic about those outcomes of the applications. I am very confident, and I hope I am able to make an announcement prior to this session ending.

Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary. Member for Hay River South.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There is a property in Hay River referred to as "Disneyland." It's a fairly big area. The houses have been removed, and my understanding is that was to be for senior housing. I would ask the Minister if she would look at talking to some of the private developers in town and see if they are interested in building something and using that piece of land. Otherwise, I don't see anything happening, and I am very concerned because the Housing Corporation is important. It's a big budget. If nothing happened, I am hoping that, at some point, the Premier will take a look at the whole issue and maybe take a look at the top management. Maybe we have to do something there, some changes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Putting houses in Hay River is quite complicated right now. There are other discussions that I will inform the Member about, as well. We are working with the community, looking at the vacant property that is there. We are looking at addressing the seniors issue there. That pretty much is the ongoing conversation in that specific community. We are really optimistic about the co-investment applications that are coming forward. I would really like to press on those, as well, because we were given a significant amount over the next three years to be addressing those applications and to making sure that they are successful. Once they are submitted to the federal government, the territorial government will receive them and were able to proceed with them. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I have questions for the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment. Procurement in the Northwest Territories is very important. It is something we hear about lots in this House and something we are hearing about lots in our meetings, as well. In the interest of that, I am wondering if the Minister can tell us if the northern manufacturing policy is within the scope of the procurement review that is happening within ITI. Thank you.

Thank you, Member for Kam Lake. Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment.

Mr. Speaker, yes. Thank you.

I hope questions like that happen in Committee of the Whole for ITI next week. Thank you. My second question is: time is money, Mr. Speaker, especially when you run and own your own business. I am wondering what the average time is between receipt of an application for the Business Incentive Policy and the northern manufacturers policy and confirmation of the application, as well, for the business owner.

I was looking for some information rather quickly. I can give an average, and the average is four to six weeks. I am not clear if that includes an application that is for both of those. I expect that it is. It may be that it is less complicated if it is only under BIP. Mr. Speaker, I should note it doesn't include a timeline if there needs to be further information, if an application is incomplete at the front end. As such, the clock would get stopped on the government end to allow a proponent to add to their application if need be.

Like I said, time is money. If somebody is trying to add something under either their Business Incentive Policy or trying to add something under the northern manufacturing policy, those timelines don't match up with a lot of our procurement timelines. If somebody is trying to do that, and it's taking two months, four to six weeks, potentially, for them to add that under, they are missing out on tenders. Every week, either I am notified about somebody missing out on a tender, or I am copied an issue to do with procurement policy, every week within my role representing the people of Kam Lake where there are a lot of business owners.

My next question is in regard to streamlining the process, in order to kind of help simplify those timelines. I'm wondering if the process for the northern manufacturing policy can be streamlined so that businesses aren't burdened by administrative demands of repetitive paperwork. What I find within the northern manufacturing policy is, if somebody, for example, manufactures coffee tables, they have to go back to ITI to say, "This month, I'm going to manufacture side tables." After that, if they want to then manufacture kitchen tables, they have to go back again. This adds a huge administrative burden to businesses. Instead of making kitchen tables, they're filling out paperwork asking to make kitchen tables and bid on government procurement for that. I am wondering if we can streamline this process with ITI to better serve northern businesses.

I want to say "procurement review" instead of simply saying "yes," because, really, the intention of the procurement review is to do exactly this, to look at barriers and to ensure that the barriers that may exist are brought to the attention of the government in a specific way so that we can identify the barriers broadly and systemically, not one by one, not solving one problem at a time for one proponent, but to truly look at having a system that is functional for everyone who is applying.

Again, the northern manufacturers policy is part of procurement review. I want to acknowledge that the Manufacturing Strategy is only barely a year-and-a-half or so old. I heard, in the course of doing that, that manufacturers are struggling with some of the systems. We are well aware of that, and that information is part of what has gone out in the discussion paper on the procurement review. Panel is well aware of it. I am confident that we are going to hear back from the manufacturers and have lots of good ideas of how this policy can be improved in the next few months.

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

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate that, and I am very appreciative that the government is going through this procurement review. We have been in House now for a year and a half. We are a year and half into our term, and I believe a lot of us came into this job wanting to reform procurement and make sure that we are retaining benefit for northern workers and northern employers. I think that this is something that we need to, as my colleague says, get on the ground sooner than later. We need to have results for the people that we serve, and we need to have results for the businesses that keep our communities afloat.

My next question for the Minister is: what are the service standards for responding to northern businesses and processing northern manufacturing policy applications? What kind of communication happens with businesses and what are the standards that ITI expects their employees to adhere to when they are dealing with an industry where time is money? Thank you.