Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Good morning. I want to talk about COVID-19 mental health impacts across my riding and across the Beaufort-Delta. We're already living in isolated communities living in a harsh environment. You know, thank God right now we have geese hunting and fishing that's been helping us to get people out. It is part of our culture and critical way of life.

Since COVID-19 requirements and social distancing especially impacted our way of mental health in our small communities. It's not known how the limitations on households and community gatherings, as well as on youth activities, will end.

Mr. Speaker, I'm concerned about the impacts this continues to have on our youth, our elders, and our people in our communities at large. Youth in the NWT are five times more likely to be hospitalized for substance abuse or attempted suicide than other kids across Canada. Substance abuse and suicide rates are higher compared to the rest of Canada. Depression and stress have increased for everyone through COVID-19 fatigue, and what happens and we have created a support system, elders and our social youth connection, to ensure that most vulnerable population, Mr. Speaker, especially our social restriction and COVID-19 are isolating our elders from our community and keeping them away from everyone and it's really tough on them.

We need to work towards getting something sorted out on our next steps. We look to actions that government has taken to respond to COVID-19 but there's been no specific funding or special support services responding to the needs of small communities so we can continue to socialize and have physical activities that are critical in the well being of our people.

In the communities, we also lack internet capacity to access government services that are offered during this pandemic. We need help with that too.

There have been a lot of public health orders with little government support. They support but lack of internet service, it just can't be done. The well-being of following the public health orders for all our communities. Mr. Speaker, I'm concerned about the lack of culturally appropriate funding for program services have been developed through COVID-19 to effectively respond to growing mental health concerns in small communities. I will have questions for the Minister at the appropriate time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.