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

Thank you, Member for Nahendeh. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and the community at this time. Members' statements. Returns to oral questions. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Replies to budget address, day 4 of 7. Acknowledgements. Oral questions. Member for Hay River South.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, these questions will be for the Minister of Health. Indigenous people are those mostly being impacted by addictions. I hear many say they want treatment to happen in the NWT. Then we hear a non-Indigenous bureaucracy tell us we are wrong. Will the Minister listen to the Indigenous community and commit to the establishment of treatment facilities starting in regional centres? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Hay River South. Member for Health and Social Services.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I acknowledge that addictions is a huge issue in the Northwest Territories. We spend a considerable amount of time reflecting that in this House; this House, which is comprised of both Indigenous and non-Indigenous people. And we have a suite of programs that I've spoken about in the past that are available to assist people who have addictions. The starting point, of course, is that the person wants help, and that can be the most difficult step. I've seen that in my own family.

In terms of building centres, we do not have any on the books at this time except for the regional -- sorry, the wellness and recovery centre planned for Yellowknife to open in 2024. We provide on-the-land funding so that people can have mobile treatment and they can focus it in whichever way suits their community best. If there is a need for more bricks and mortars healing, then that needs to be a priority of this Assembly and it's something that we need to talk about together. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I thank the Minister for her response. And, you know, I think that addictions and treatment of addictions is a priority of this government, and providing the services in the regional centres and in the communities is very important. And, again, I say that the Indigenous community wants to see facilities that they can attend within the Northwest Territories.

So, again, I ask the Minister will she commit to talking with Indigenous organizations, Indigenous governments, and Indigenous people to confirm that is what they want and move forward with looking and planning for facilities in the NWT? Thank you.

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I appreciate the question. I have the opportunity to meet with Indigenous organizations at bilateral meetings with my Cabinet colleagues, and I recall that in the time that I've been in this role, which is about 18 months, this issue has come up once, and it was the Tlicho government that raised it. They were doing a cost benefit analysis of a treatment centre for their region. If other Indigenous governments raise this, I'm certainly willing to engage in the conversation. I think the question is what the value-added of a building is; what would it provide that would be better than the other forms of treatment that are available in the Northwest Territories. And I also want to say that if it's going to come into our budgeting process, it needs to be identified as a priority by this Assembly. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I appreciate the response from the Minister. It was noted that we'd have to see what the value added of a building would be to the -- to those that would need it. I always -- and I'd ask there what's the value of a life? And we've lost too many lives over the past several years, and think that, you know, this discussion is an important one and it's got to start somewhere. And we can't brush it off and, you know, pass it on. So again, I ask the Minister will she commit to opening up this discussion and furthering it? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I want to clarify my previous statement. It's not that I don't think that any life is important. Obviously every life is important. And the Department of Health and Social Services provides a suite of services to people who are looking for addictions recovery and aftercare. There's no reason for people not to engage in that process starting today by making an appointment with the community counselling program in their community. The same-day appointments are available.

In terms of having a conversation about a treatment facility in the NWT, I'm prepared to have that conversation. The point I'm making to the Member is it's not my decision alone. Thank you.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, those that come to grips with the fact they need treatment find themselves placed on waitlists for openings in southern treatment centres. And I know that, because I've got relatives that are -- they come to me and they got to wait for a month or two months or maybe even a few weeks or two days, and sometimes a day is too long. So, you know, we have to do something. So what do I tell them? I'd ask the Minister, what can I tell them to provide them some hope that we're going to be there to provide them the services that they need in a timely manner so that they continue to live? Thank you.

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the best thing the Member can do is refer his constituents to the community counselling program. That's really the gateway to all services related to addictions and aftercare. And so I would invite him to do that. I also want to caution him that having a northern treatment centre is no guarantee that there won't be waitlists.

When Nats'ejee K'eh operated on the Hay River Reserve, there was a month of men's programming followed by a month of women's programming. So if you missed the intake for your gender programming, you could wait up to eight weeks until the cycle started again so that you could go into the treatment program that was appropriate for yourself.

And I also want to add that during the time that Nats'ejee K'eh operated, it was never more than one-third full. There were people who preferentially wanted southern treatment because they wanted to get away from the circumstances of their addiction in the North, and they wanted additional privacy.

So this is a very complicated conversation. It's not just a matter of writing up an RFP for a building. There are many considerations about how a treatment centre would work, how it would be funded, and who would use it. I appreciate the question. Thank you.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the other day during question period, the ITI minister said that to attract greater economic opportunities and investment in the Northwest Territories, our territory will need greater access to clean and affordable energy. Does the Minister agree that the Taltson Hydro Expansion will be instrumental in strengthening and expanding our economy for future generations? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Thebacha. Minister responsible for Industry, Tourism and Investment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Absolutely, I could not agree more wholeheartedly. The Taltson Hydro facility, and obviously it's one of the big three infrastructure projects that the entire Legislative Assembly has prioritized for this, for our 19th Assembly. It is part of the 2030 Energy Strategy. It is an opportunity for equity participation by Indigenous governments. This project has quite a number of potential of reasons of why it can be a dramatic change to the economic landscape, and I most certainly agree with the statement. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, does the Minister agree that all sectors of the business community are unanimous in their support for the Taltson Expansion? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'm hesitant to speak directly on behalf of the business community in this role but I can certainly say the engagements I've had to date with mineral resource companies, exploration advanced, and even the operating mines, all certainly agree that they are keen to see the advancement of green energy options in the North and certainly ask about the work that's happening at Taltson. And similarly, any businesses that are in the construction industry that are in the -- would have an opportunity to benefit from greener energy certainly are asking for updates, and they have a lot of interest in this project. So over the next year as we get into a point of further planning, I'm sure we'll continue to hear positive remarks. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, this Minister is both ITI minister and finance minister. So she knows the memorandum of understanding with Indigenous groups and the construction of the Taltson Expansion is essential to the project's successful completion. Can the Minister tell us if she and the rest of Cabinet are prioritizing the MOU to move forward with the work on the Taltson Expansion?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, it is in the role as the Minister of Finance, along with the Minister of Infrastructure, that we are -- the two of us are collectively on the steering committee which is as part of the memorandum of understanding. The memorandum of understanding is an opportunity to really approach the design of the project differently. So we're at still a very early stage. We're at the stage of kind of conceptualizing what this could look like, what the project might be. And going through the MOU process is really an exciting opportunity to engage Indigenous governments at the front end. And yes, so we are very much committed to that process. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Mr. Speaker, will the Minister commit, in her capacity as ITI and finance minister, to engage with all Indigenous groups near the Taltson Dam, whether in a bilateral or multilateral meeting, to move forward in a positive way to get this project underway? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there -- we are very much committed to the MOU process, and I will certainly ensure that we continue to use that MOU process to engage with the Indigenous governments who have also signed on to that process. That is, again, as I've said, an opportunity to design this program and to design this project differently. Once there of course is a project on which to consult Indigenous governments in the region or in any affected traditional territories, that also, of course, will happen, Mr. Speaker. Consultation and engagement is essential for any project in the Northwest Territories, but definitely the MOU process is the chance where we can bring folks together to help us to really design what this could look like. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.