Ministers' statements. Minister responsible for Infrastructure.

Quanainni. Northwest Territories airports are critical in the economic and social well-being of Northwest Territories residents. They help to connect communities and families throughout the territory and across the country.

Today I am pleased to give you an update on two projects which have been funded by the Government of Canada's Airport Capital Assistance Program. These projects are very important to the Department of Infrastructure and to residents as they will help improve safety at NWT airports.

The Airport Capital Assistance Program, also known as ACAP, is a contribution program administered by Transportation Canada. ACAP provides financial assistance to modernize and maintain the safe operation of regional airports for passengers and employees alike. Last year, Transport Canada announced almost $20 million in ACAP funding to three NWT airports. This figure includes:

• $2.7 million toward the rehabilitation of the airfield electrical system at the Fort Simpson Airport;.
• $2 million toward the rehabilitation of airfield drainage at the Yellowknife Airport; and
• $15 million to fund the overlay of the existing air side surfaces at the Fort Smith Airport.

Currently, the Yellowknife Airport drainage work is making excellent progress. The first phase of project was completed in the fall of 2021. Design work for replacement of the Fort Simpson airfield lighting has been completed and the construction tender is currently in the procurement phase. The Department of Infrastructure has also recently awarded a design and engineering services contract for the air side surfaces overlay project at the Fort Smith Airport.

Oqakti, previous successful ACAP submissions allowed us to purchase a new snowblower for the Inuvik Airport, replace the airfield lighting of one of the Yellowknife Airport runways, and purchase a fire truck for the Yellowknife Airport fire department. The vehicle was recently delivered and will be a valuable tool for firefighters.

To date, the Department of Infrastructure has received ACAP funding totalling over $50 million for 11 projects at the different NWT airports.

Oqakti, the Government of the Northwest Territories remains committed to building capacity at airports to support safe and efficient travel to enhance business opportunities. The Airport Capital Assistance Program is critical to the commitment, and we appreciate the support of the federal Government of Canada in helping us maintain safe, modern, and reliable infrastructure here in the North.
Quyananni.

Thank you, Minister. Ministers' statements. Members' statements. Member for Frame Lake.

Merci, Monsieur le President. For people who want to pursue the rural lifestyle or just want a cabin out of town for weekends and holidays, there's the hope of obtaining a recreational land lease. You pay your $250 application fee and then the wait begins.

These leases are administered by the Department of Lands which considers and disposes of applications under its 2017 Recreational Leasing Management Framework. The result of stakeholder engagement, the framework lays out the GNWT's approach to planning and issuing leases for cabins and recreational uses. It was intended to result in a consistent approach to various land uses across both Commissioner's and formerly federal lands.

Two major goals of the framework are to:

1. Provide the public with readily available and clear information on leasing, processes, rules, enforcement practices, and procedures for cabins and recreational uses; and
2. To create a more effective process for cabin leases to discourage unauthorized occupancy.

So how does it work when a $250 application hits the lands department?

Based upon enquiries I made on a constituent's application filed in February 2021, there are no service standards for this department. Someone files an application for a lease and then never hears anything back. That's not the kind of service our residents deserve.

My constituent hadn't heard anything back after six months. I understand that the department may be in the process of developing something and I will ask the Minister about that later today.

The other issue is whether we should even be accepting land lease applications for areas still under negotiation. Then there is the lack of any Indigenous land rights agreements during the lifetime of this Assembly. I will have questions for the Minister of Lands on improving our services to our residents. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I know we are in the midst of an operating budget but the work never stops, and I'd like to make some comments today about the transparency in our capital budget. And I believe in making these comments and asking questions today, hopefully I can give the departments enough time to improve the transparency of our capital budget.

Firstly, Mr. Speaker, many jurisdictions publish a multiyear capital plan and in doing so, they give a range of the cost of each project. In the Northwest Territories, we don't do that. I'll note we pass some money to build a school in Colville Lake this Assembly, and I can't tell you how much that is projected to cost. I can't have a public debate about whether I think that is too little or too much money, Mr. Speaker. We also passed some money to build a hydro line to Whati, and the department refuses to publicly state how much they expect that to cost.

And the argument given here, Mr. Speaker, is that it'll affect the tendering process. And this really is just not a valid argument considering you can provide ranges, considering most of our projects go out to tender in multiple stages at multiple times. And especially with hydro lines, Mr. Speaker, I am not at all convinced that we can't publicly state how much it costs to build power infrastructure and have an honest conversation about whether there is a business case, whether the Power Corp will be recouping that, whether we're trying to get money from the federal government. But we can't even state how much that costs. The other side will not provide that number publicly.

And, Mr. Speaker, and it's not just the projected costs. It's the actual costs. Often the GNWT will say well, this is all kind of wrapped up in the public accounts but the public accounts is not concerned with individual project costs. I would really like us to do more work to publish our actuals. I have a dream of, you know, each project after it's completed, it has listed the total cost, the contractor, any change orders, whether it was delayed, whether there were carryovers, the reason for carryovers.

Now that may be a bit too much to ask for the GNWT, but right now it is impossible, and we have asked our staff multiple times, to tell you what a project costs year over year. You can't track it through the capital estimates. There is far too much carryover; there is far too much accounting language going on to actually know what something costs. So I'm going to have questions for the Minister of Finance if we can get some work to do better transparency on our capital planning. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to speak once again about my community of Fort Smith as we cope with the aftermath of last weekend's events.

Mr. Speaker, Fort Smith is in mourning right now. Our community's in a process of grieving. The town is still collectively reeling from the chaotic events of last weekend's crimes. However, the grief that my constituents are experiencing has not stopped them from coming together and supporting the family of the deceased in an unbelievable and overwhelming fashion.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the people of Fort Smith for the unity and support they show one another. They have really pulling together as a community and have shown compassion for our neighbors, and that is touching to see. I know that the family of the deceased is deeply grateful for the support they've received from the entire town. On behalf of the family, I would like to say once again thank you to everyone who has reached out and helped in any way that they were able to during this difficult time.

Mr. Speaker, I have often said that the people of Fort Smith are amazing constituents and the town is an amazing community to represent, and it is because of moments like these which solidifies that belief in me. While this was a tragedy that we endured within our community, I know we will continue to pull together and look out for one another in the days ahead as we look for healing within our town.

Mr. Speaker, I also want to thank my colleagues in this House for the support they have given me and my constituents during this trying time. I know things can sometimes get heated here at the Assembly but in troubling times or in times of crisis, we support each other, and for that I am grateful.

In addition, Mr. Speaker, I would like to once again thank all the local leadership in Fort Smith, which includes the mayor and council, the Chiefs and council of both the Salt River First Nation, Smith Landing First Nation, and the president and council of the Fort Smith Metis Local. All levels of government work seamlessly and cooperatively alongside the RCMP and the territorial government. To conclude, Mr. Speaker, I want to wish my colleagues a safe and well deserved two-week break. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. On October 29th, 2020, I spoke about medical travel escorts in here, and I stressed the issue to the last Minister of Health and Social Services. The main issues were elders being sent without escorts and the issues that they have when they arrive, especially in Yellowknife, of being put in a hotel.

Today I want to re-raise these concerns to the current Health and Social Services Minister as they still continue to be one of the biggest complaints that I receive.

Mr. Speaker, clients being sent to Yellowknife are contacting me not only from my constituency but from throughout the Northwest Territories with their complaints. One of the biggest are the denial of escorts. And I would like to stress to the Minister they find out usually a day before and some even on the day that they're going to travel so there is no time to do an appeal. I know Minister has stated this policy is being reviewed. Mr. Speaker, another concern is residents being sent to the boarding home in Yellowknife after being placed in the hotel. The constituents I have heard from -- or sorry, the constituents I have heard being placed in hotels that have no restaurants and the food that they receive was unacceptable. They are hungry, and they have no choice even when they are allergic to the food that is being sent. They are not -- if they are not in the boarding home, then why are we making -- why are we not making arrangements to have them in a hotel with a restaurant and have vouchers to the restaurants for three meals a day? And I may add there have also been elders put in these hotels and have had no escort. This, again, is unacceptable.

Mr. Speaker, I would also like to point out that Indigenous people in the NWT are the ones that are being put through this. These are not GNWT employees or people who have other insurances. If they have staying in hotels, they should be given per diems or meal vouchers to be equivalent to GNWT staff if not fed three meals in a day in a hotel where they're -- where they are staying.

Mr. Speaker, I'd also like to raise the complaint of the quality and quantity of food being provided to the medical travel patients when staying at the hotel and at the boarding home. They tell me they are hungry as the food is very little or inadequate. For example, I have received a photo of a meal for supper that was a hot dog. This was from an elder.

Recently, I've received complaints from those who are at the boarding home that there's nothing do drink for them and little to nothing to have for snacks after supper. Mr. Speaker, I request unanimous consent to conclude my statement. Thank you.

---Unanimous consent granted

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. They can't afford to go anywhere, and some are unable to get anywhere as they may need assistance but they have no escort.

Mr. Speaker, medical travel needs an overhaul. Our GNWT employees would revolt if they were treated as our medical travel patients are. And I would like to point out that majority of them are Indigenous. I will have questions for the Minister of Health and Social Services. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in October, the Standing Committee on Economic Development and Environment posted a panel discussion about landfill management in the Northwest Territories. Waste is like death and taxes, Mr. Speaker; it's a given but it needs proper planning and management to protect future generations. Waste management is not a flashy topic. It doesn't get many people excited or stir up headlines. But how we manage waste is critically important to every NWT community. Waste management is a shared challenge and responsibility and is key to protecting the North's waters and lands.

Mr. Speaker, the NWT has the second highest waste disposal rate in Canada, and this clearly puts environmental and financial pressure on all landfills across the territory. The panel highlighted the challenges facing landfills, including hazardous waste, industrial waste, as well as housing waste; and, many NWT landfills are approaching the end of their lifecycle.

Mr. Speaker, 40 percent of NWT landfills are commercial waste relating to housing construction and repair, hospitals, and largely government infrastructure. This means there's plenty of room for the GNWT to be a leader in reducing landfill needs means and pressure on municipalities. This is an opportunity for the GNWT to evaluate how it generates waste, support backhaul programs to remove waste, and explore the potential of regional landfills. But waste management is not solely a government responsibility, and each of us can make a significant impact on our landfills.

Sixty percent of land fills are residential waste, and almost half of the waste stream of that is compost. Composting and redirecting compostable material from general landfills reduces greenhouse gases, wildlife problems, fire risk, and the byproduct is soil.

Mr. Speaker, we know that many of our communities are small and isolated and the cost to remove waste is significant. But getting rid of solid waste stockpiles is fiscally and environmentally responsible. During the panel, several simple solutions were presented, like reducing waste and potential waste that enters communities, composting, and moving less to less landfills with better services at each. Industry stakeholders are suggesting waste sorting and control measures to extend the life of landfills significantly. But, to shift the trajectory of our trash requires the support of the GNWT in collaboration with municipalities. I will have questions for the Minister of Community and Municipal Affairs after this. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, several of my colleagues have risen here in this House to speak on the ongoing -- I have no luck, Mr. Speaker, when it comes to this computer. I apologize.

Several of my colleagues have risen over the last few weeks to speak on the horrors of the ongoing war in Ukraine and to denounce the tyrannical actions of Russian leader Vladimir Putin. On Monday I spoke about the work being done by the Red Cross and today I'd like to highlight an effort closer to home, where Northerners can get directly involved.

Mr. Speaker, the Firefighter Aid for Ukraine, or FAU's mission, is to collect unneeded or unwanted firefighter bunker and turnout gear, personal protective equipment or PPE, life rescue equipment and medical supplies from fire departments and vendors in Canada. FAU also aims to raise the necessary funds to send those goods to first responders in Ukraine who are in desperate need of equipment and supplies to fulfill their duties to serve and protect citizens.

As a team member of the 2012 Rotary Club Group Study Exchange focusing on emergency services, FAU organizer Kevin Royle visited cities and rural areas in Western Ukraine, including Kyiv. While there, the team visited several fire stations, medical centres, and training facilities. Mr. Royle observed in every instance that emergency medical responders were underfunded and attempting to fulfill their duties with worn-out tools and equipment, missing or inadequate PPE, and broken down archaic machinery and vehicles working out of dilapidated and crumbling facilities.

The deficiencies result from a magnitude of reasons. Ukraine is considered a developing country after years of underfunding while part of the former Soviet block. After independence in 1991, Ukraine continued to feel the affects of this as it remains the poorest nation in Europe to this day. Vaccination rates for COVID have been low as availability has been extremely limited, Something that only makes the ongoing war even more precarious.

As the conflict in Ukraine continues, the situation for frontline first responders and medical workers worsens, placing them and citizens in jeopardy. That's why I am pleased to announce that in partnership with Joe McBryan of Buffalo Airways and Matt Vincent of 62 Degrees North, and utilizing flights put on by Firefighter Aid for Ukraine, we will be collecting new or recently expired first aid kits to send over to support medical teams in the region. Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.

---Unanimous consent granted

Maybe I would have made it if I hadn't had my technical hiccup. Therefore, Mr. Speaker I am challenging businesses, residents, and the Government of the Northwest Territories, to set aside and donate expired or soon-to-be-expired first aid kits and supplies. Specifically, cloth bandages are needed. Northerners are by nature generous and always rise to the challenge. I believe that together we can provide a significant contribution of supplies that will save lives in Ukraine. More details on drop-off locations will be provided next week. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you Member for Great Slave. Members' statements. Member for Monfwi.

Okay, I'll do it in my language.

[Translation] Today is Friday, and we will go for a break pretty soon. So the interpreters, I would like to -- I would like to thank the interpreters. They are our voices. They interpret for us. From Behchoko is Harriet Paul. And Wiilideh dialect, Mary Rose Sundberg from Dettah.

I'd like to thank them to relaying the messages to our communities, and I wish you all a safe trip home and also the safety of our communities. We would also -- public health tells that we are able to go into the community but I wish everyone would be safe and still use your mask just to be on the safe side. And I also like to tell everyone thank you for following these direction. It's been a long two years since COVID hit. And we're all from different communities. We love our people, and we don't want nothing to happen to them. We haven't seen a lot of our loved ones and family and friends for a long time, but we must also remember each other in prayer for those that are suffering. But there's going to be a lot of travel as well. They will travel -- a lot of people will be travelling with skidoos. I wish them to be safe and also pray for each other for safety and good health.

Also for this meeting, I'd like to thank everyone because this job that we are doing is a huge job, and we represent our people in the communities. We're not here on our behalf. We're the voices of our communities. And I wish everybody a safe break. Mahsi. [Translation Ends]

Thank you, Member for Monfwi. Members' statements. Returns to oral questions -- oh, Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Over the last few months Canadians have experienced huge increase in the cost of living. In January, prices rose by 5.1 percent over the year by year basis up from 4.8 percent increase in December. Inflation hasn't been this high in generations since 1991. Northerners and constituents in my riding are feeling the pain, especially at the pumps.

Gas prices this morning in Yellowknife are $1.75 a litre and economists are warning that prices will go higher still as sanctions on Russia get tighter. Earlier this week, the Government of Alberta acknowledged this burden on their residents. They didn't only acknowledge with their words, they took action.

Starting April 1st, Alberta will be pausing excise tax on gasoline and diesel for at least three months. This will safe Albertans 13.6 cents a litre of gas. Currently in the NWT, we already pay some of the highest cost of living. The GNWT charges excise tax of 10.7 cents a litre on gasoline in communities connected to highways, 6.4 cents a litre of gasoline in communities off the highway, 9.1 cents a litre to mode of diesel, and 3.1 cents a litre for non-mode of diesel. On top of all this, there is also a carbon tax, federal excise tax, and federal sales tax.

High gas prices especially impact us in the North. In a vast and sparse territory, high gas prices raise the cost of goods for all Northerners. Today I am calling on the GNWT to stop the collection of the territorial fuel tax to offer Northerners relief from current high fuel prices.

In the 2022-2023 Main estimates, the Department of Finance expects to collect $19.3 million in fuel taxes. I believe some of that should be returned to Northerners to provide much needed relief to Northerners from historical high inflation. It is time that the GNWT respond to concerns about the rising cost of living and offer relief. Pausing the territorial fuel tax puts money back into the pockets of Northerners when they need it the most. I will have questions for the finance minister later on today, mahsi.

Thank you, Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh. Members' statements. Returns to oral questions. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Yellowknife South.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there is a large contingent here from Yellowknife South today. It is a PD day and I am happy to say, firstly, that well known local artist Robbie Craig and a good friend and a resident of Yellowknife South has brought with him a number of my youngest constituents who have come here to learn about the functioning of government. We have Hannah Craig, Olivia Craig, Savannah Gosselin, and Finnigan Gosselin, all in the House. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Yellowknife South. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Kam Lake.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to welcome my oldest child and teenager, who doesn't quite have a driver's license, Jackson Bowden, so thank you very much to Robbie Craig for driving the kids down today. Jackson, because it's a PD day, is providing childcare to Yellowknife South, and I have to thank him for providing a lot of child care to his younger siblings and allowing me to work in House. Thank you.

Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Sahtu.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I myself want to acknowledge my colleague's children here attending our session today. It's very inspiring to see these young constituents here. It reminds me of myself when my mom had taken interpretation when we were looking at Dene Nation in Good Hope. I was a child like that as well too, and observing my mom in leadership. And I also want to acknowledge my colleague MLA Semmler as well too, with her grandmother as well in the leadership roles. We were children, and we were in the same seats as well too. So thanks to the children for coming and you are very inspiring. Mahsi.

Thank you Member for Sahtu. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Welcome once again to the gallery and it is always good to have an audience. After a good year and a half of nobody in our audience, it is really good to have people back so welcome once again, mahsi.

Acknowledgments. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I spoke about in my Member's statement, when reviewing the capital budget this year a couple times I asked, you know, what do we think that school's going to cost or what do we think that transmission line's going to cost, and the Minister would always reply as, you know, that the policy is, due to concerns with procurement and, you know, kind of telling everyone what we want them to bid or what -- they'll just bid up to that, that we could never talk about those numbers.

I'm just -- my questions are for the Minister of Finance, is whether we can review this policy to see which projects it would be reasonable to give some sort of estimated cost publicly on, or to at least give the amount that we're approving in the current capital budget year? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Yellowknife North. Minister of Finance.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We can certainly -- and we're always striving to ensure that what we publish and what we put out is accurate and as fulsome as possible and of course having to also balance the fact that there are procurement issues and procurement's concerns about wanting to be fair and open and go through that process in a way that doesn't negatively impact on the competitive nature of that process.

So Mr. Speaker, right now we have a budget that gets appropriated one year at a time. We put the numbers out one year at a time. And that is, right now, how we're planning to continue at the same time, again as I've said, if we can look at getting information about the projects that have on the agenda out further, we can certainly consider doing that. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Yeah, thank you, Mr. Speaker. And perhaps the way capital budget is defined by Finance and accountants is not the way to do this. I'm wondering if, and I think this would probably be a conversation with Infrastructure, if we could publish, you know, a five-year capital plan which shows the ranges of each project and what they're expected to cost, because right now the capital budget is a point in time snapchat -- snapshot. We just -- we approved $3 million of a $60 million project that will eventually roll out over the years, and it's next to impossible to track. So I'm wondering if we could go out and publish our five-year capital plan that actually shows some of the estimates costs on the projects we're building, of the billions of dollars we are spending. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So Mr. Speaker, when we go out and do industry day, we certainly do make an effort to provide the industry information about what's coming up in future years. What is not included is the specific price or budget that's associated to it. That's the element that is the concern around not impacting on procurement. But to the extent that we want to get more information about the content of what is planned without necessarily impeding the ability to go out and do a competitive process, yes, then that element of it, I think we can certainly look at making sure we've got more about what projects are coming and, as I've said before, specifically what projects are coming to which community. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Yeah, thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'm not quite convinced of the tendering concern. I've seen many governments say, you know, the estimated cost of a school is $20 million and then bids come in at 30. I don't -- I'm not sure that -- that it's going to prejudice that much.

But the other problem I have is that we actually don't publish anywhere the actual costs of projects once they're expended. The public accounts wrap up all of the infrastructure actuals into very large numbers but nowhere is information on specific projects, once they're actually done, posted. I can go through all of the contract exercises and piece together who won what tenders and what they -- the final bid amount was after that's done. But, you know, we have no idea after years later when it's constructed what the actual costs came out to be with change orders and delays and whatnot. I'm wondering if we can find a way to publish what it actually costs to build some of our infrastructure. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And Mr. Speaker, so the Member's already identified that we do, in fact, publish that information. It's not in a format that necessarily attaches project by project. There's contract reporting. There's public accounts. So the fact of the matter is all the information is already public. It's a matter of reorganizing it. Mr. Speaker, I know the comptroller general's office is very keen to look at better ways always of putting information out. So yes, we can take this back and look at finding a better to communicate what has been spent on individual projects. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And the way we do our capital budgeting, as I said, is that snapshot year to year, you know, it's $5 million one year of a $60 million project. And I think this has led to the Minister of Finance and Infrastructure getting far too many questions than they need about carryovers. It is understandable in a multimillion dollar project that it's going to roll out over a number of years and it's not going to line up perfectly to fiscal years. But we do carry over quite a lot of our capital budget, and I'm wondering if the Minister can work to publish some more information about, you know, why things are being carried over. What was it, delays? Was it design? Or was it simply just that we put too much money upfront to make sure that, you know, the Assembly would actually approve it? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Well, Mr. Speaker, it's not putting more money upfront so that the Assembly approves it. That's certainly been my experience that it actually tends to be sometimes the opposite. But all the other examples that the Member gives are quite valid. They are all discussed when we come forward when the House sees whether it's the capital plan or whether there's fiscal updates, questions about individual projects. So there's certainly plenty of that information already out there, and if it's a matter of simply changing where we report that, putting it out better, you know, in the last two years, Mr. Speaker, we started to put out contract reports. They're done graphically, visually, all with a view to putting out the information about what we're doing, how we're doing it, why we're doing it. So certainly that I'm more than happy to say that we'll find a way that we can get that information out so that folks are knowing what's getting built and what isn't get built and why. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary, Member for -- oral questions. Member for Great Slave.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions are for the Premier.

Can the Premier tell us if there have been any discussions with the federal government around bringing Ukrainian refugees to the Northwest Territories or Canada similar to how we took care of the Syrians when they were in their conflict? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Great Slave. Honourable Premier.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I haven't personally had those conversations with the prime minister yet but I do know that the deputy minister of ECE has had conversations. So you might want to defer that to ECE. Thank you, Minister -- or Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Honourable Premier. Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We have been engaged with the federal government. Yesterday the deputy minister met with the deputy ministers from across Canada who are responsible for immigration, and conversations have begun. We also have the forum of ministers responsible for immigration. That is an ongoing group, and these discussions are being had in that forum as well. And based on those discussions, we will be taking next steps. But I know the federal government has created -- has made changes to the immigration program specifically for Ukraine. There's a Canada-Ukraine authorization for emergency travel which expedites the process. It removes some of the Visa requirements. It adjusts the vaccination requirements based on some of the comments made by the Member. And there's a special rep family reunification stream as well that I believe they're also looking to expand. Then they have a dedicated I guess contact for anyone from the Ukraine looking to immigrate. So we are working with the federal government but we haven't -- we don't have a role yet to take in immigrants or refugees from the Ukraine. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And that's actually a bigger response than I expected so I'm really glad to hear that, and that the conditions around the vaccine etcetera are being addressed as well.

I'd like to go back to the Premier if that's okay. My next question is will the Premier commit to directing her Cabinet colleagues to direct their departments to put aside and set aside any recently expired or soon-to-be-expired first aid kits? In the Northwest Territories, it's required under OHS law that kits be replaced, and it's an ongoing thing that happens regularly and those bandages could be used. So I'd like to hear if the Premier will commit to directing the GNWT to do so. Thank you.

Thank you, Member for Great Slave. Honourable Premier.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. First I was thinking when the Member was -- the Member shared the question with me earlier, and I was thinking about checking with the Red Cross. But I did hear in the statement that looks like Buffalo Joe might be taking something on. So yes, Mr. Speaker, as soon as that's -- I want to give a kudos out to Buffalo Joe and the community members that are doing that as well. But if they're doing that, then yes, we will put in notice to departments.

But I'll also go a step further and put something in our Bear Net and asking anybody else, any government employees who have outdated first aid kits that would like to donate, then I think that would be great. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yeah, we don't get a lot of time to explain everything going on and there will be more details coming, but it is with 62 Degrees North, which is a medic company; Buffalo Airways as well will help with transportation; and I'm going to be doing most of the running around in collecting the kits. So I do appreciate the Premier's commitment to put that on Bear Net and ask that, yes, that it also be emphasized that construction companies, all of our client type groups as well and businesses could also -- this could be spread to them too. I'm hoping that I don't end up with a pile of first aid kits at my house so I will have to provide you with a drop off location next week. No question. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Great Slave. Taken as a comment. Oral questions. Member for Monfwi.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have a Member's statement before too so -- but this is with reference to a couple days ago.

So Mr. Speaker, the biggest challenge in Tlicho regions, or in my regions or in all the other regions as well maybe. But improving mental health and responding to addictions and improving housing condition is a major issue. And so those are the major issues. But with that in mind, Minister did say that her government had not received enough application to spend all the money, and that's reference to my questions. Why would -- why would the small communities apply for these funding? What the government should do is that just give us -- give the money to the small communities or to authorities and set up a program that is appropriate for them. So with that in mind, I'm going to ask the Minister what community-based drug addiction program is the department offering in the regions?

Thank you, Member for Monfwi. Minister responsible for Health and Social Services.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There were a variety of questions in that statement. I'll talk about the community-based funds.

We are hoping to empower Indigenous governments to design and implement their own healing and mental health support programs. That's the point of having the funds that we offer in the Department of Health. Some of those funds were not fully subscribed in this fiscal year. Indigenous governments take the initiative to apply for them. There are a variety of reasons they may not apply. And I'm going to say the primary one is capacity, that the Indigenous government doesn't have the capacity to implement a program within their community.

At the Department of Health and Social Services, we're more than happy to help people with applications and to figure out how they can offer services in their communities. The starting point is to call the health centre or, in the Member's case, the Tlicho Community Services Agency, and find out what they're doing and my recommendation is that she suggest that they provide more specific information on barriers they might be encountering to me. She's welcome to do that in an email while we're on the break so that we can figure out how to get the money spent. The money is there. We want it to be spent. Thank you.

Okay well, that's good. The money is there. That's what I was just referring to, why does small communities have to apply for these programs? They should just allocate the fund where it's needed. And right now, like I said, improving mental health, addictions, and housing issues is a major issue in lot of small communities. So why would we have to -- why -- they know the problem is there. Why do we have to apply? They should just allocate the fund, you know, based on needs.

So the second question, it's still the same, but will the Minister commit to finding a community-based solution to the drug addiction problem in the regions? I said in the regions, not Tlicho regions, but in the regions.

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'm not going to repeat everything that I just said about community-based initiatives and capacity. There are resources available in the communities. If it's treatment, there are limited options in the communities. It's primarily focused around on the land healing. If people want to attend residential facility-based treatment, then they would need to connect with community counselling and get a referral. The waiting times vary depending on the place that the patient would like to go or the resident would like to go. But all of these services are in place. The activation point is that people need to engage the system. The system does not go out and proactively say you need drug assistance and this is how.

So I really encourage her to -- when she has cases of people who are requiring treatment or requiring additional supports, that they proactively reach out to the healthcare provider. And if that's not satisfactory, then escalate to my office. Thank you.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services.

During the main estimates this week in the Committee of the Whole, the Minister stated the review of the medical travel policy was complete and committee was briefed. However, can the Minister confirm if the escort policy has made any changes in this review? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Yes, thank you. Thank you to the Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes for that question. In the briefing that we provided almost a year ago, we went over a number of areas that we looked to examine the complaints that we had at the time. They had to do with whether escorts should be provided to people at a specific age. We also looked at the criteria for the escorts, the exceptions policy, how the exceptions policy is implemented and so on. So there is not a new ministerial directive on this. I think there's new awareness of ways in which we can improve the services that we provide to residents.

One of the big learnings, it's appropriate to what I've just said to the Member for Monfwi, is that we find that people don't always ask for an escort, and that should be the starting point. If you ask for an escort, then the practitioner can make a decision about that and then there's, you know, the possibility of an exception if it's not granted. So I just want to say that we're on a continuous improvement path with medical travel, and I appreciate the Member bringing up issues as they arise. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I know I remember being in that review. I don't remember any changes, actually, really presented to us. But I'll move on.

Can the Minister advise us how clients who stay in hotels -- or can the Minister advise us if clients who stay in hotels, can they make -- ensure that there's either restaurants in that hotel that are being -- that provide the meals or provide them with per diems so that they can eat in those restaurants in the hotels? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the Member bringing this concern to my attention. It's my understanding that we are also on a continuous quality improvement process with the food. We respond to complaints as we receive them by contacting the service provider and asking them to remedy the complaints that we bring to their attention.

Once again, in this area I would ask people who are finding the food they're provided inadequate in quantity or quality to make sure they talk to the service provider about that so that if at all possible, the situation can be remedied without it being escalated to my office which would involve considerable time, which, you know, we want a more -- an efficient process. So I would suggest that people talk to the service providers with any complaints they have. We do have more formal process, such as an audit, but that's not where we would go first. We try for a one-on-one resolution. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, you know, I mean, I'm an Indigenous person. I'm very vocal. I will stand up for myself. But the majority of our Indigenous people and a lot of our elders when they go into health authority, a health system, any type of system, they don't speak up for themselves. They come to us afterwards and then they speak to us because they trust us. They won't speak to the people working there because they don't know them. So, you know, when the Minister says that they should speak to them, they just end up hungry while they're there. That's why I'm raising the issue, and I'm hoping that this issue could be looked into.

So can the Minister explain how the Department of Health and Social Services does quality control and when do they do quality control with the contractor that's providing meals and the boarding home to the medical travel patients? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the NTHSSA is interested in hearing from clients about their experience in the boarding home and in other parts of the health and social services system. There's a patient experience questionnaire available right now. So there's provision for those conversations to happen every day if they need to. We need a starting point of a collection of complaints.

And I appreciate the Member's point that she feels that people are not vocal but I don't know how else we can find out what's wrong in order to be able to fix it. We need some kind of system, and if it's through the Member then that's one way to learn about client experience and how we can improve on that.

I would really encourage the Member to print out copies of the patient experience questionnaire, or obtain it from the Inuvik Regional Hospital, and share that with people who are frequent medical travel users so that we have that way of addressing the issues that she's raising today. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary, Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And, you know, thank you to the Minister for the -- and I have shared quality control. Again, I've worked in the health system for many years, and we've done the quality control for years with the Health and Social Services. You know, the rates that we get back are not always great. So, you know what, this is actually a good pop for the Indigenous advocate, patient advocate can be following up with all our medical travel patients. So if we can get those positions in place, great, then they will be working on stuff like that.

Will the Minister also commit to program consistency within medical travel policy and possibly provide a live algorithm based on past approved exception list for their staff so they can refer to this and be more efficient in applying exceptions on the -- and also with their health staff to making sure that these exceptions are being requested at the time of the medical travel. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate the question. I don't have the information to answer it so I'll get back to the Member. Thank you.

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

Merci, Monsieur le President. My questions are for the Minister of Lands responsible for granting of recreational leases. I won't ask the Minister for a full rundown of how long lease applications have been sitting in the department's offices, but can the Minister tell us roughly how many recreation land lease applications are currently active for the Yellowknife area and whether there are any service standards in place? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Frame Lake. Minister responsible for Lands.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we have 19 current applications in the Yellowknife area under aboriginal consultation. Our consultation commencing period is about 60 days for this area; however, if there's comments or concerns received through the consultation period, it may be extended and basically the consultation is not closed until concerns related to aboriginal rights are addressed and accommodated.

In regards to customer service standards, we do have new customer service standards. We've sent it to committee, and we are actually implementing them as we speak right now. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Merci, Monsieur le President. I want to thank the Minister for that. It would be great to get those service standards on the department's website.

I know of at least two applications which are passing their first-year anniversary pending the outcome of consultations. We know that there's little prospect of these applications being dealt with before any Indigenous land rights agreements for the Yellowknife area's completed. So practically speaking, Mr. Speaker, can the Minister tell us why his department continues to accept recreational lease applications in this area? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you. Just a comment. As for the service standards, once we get them from committee and they get improvements, we will make sure we post them on that.

In regards to his question, there's nothing prohibiting the department from receiving and accepting applications in the areas that are not subject to a land withdrawal. The department has also communicated that it's not accepting applications for cabin leases in focused areas along the Ingraham Trail and Highway No. 3. The department informs the application -- applicants that their application remains subject to consultation and if there's a land withdrawal in place, the department does not accept those applications. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Merci, Monsieur le President. One of the top-level priorities for this government in our mandate of priorities was to settle and implement treaty land resources and self-government agreements. As the Minister with the lead for lands issues, can the Minister tell us why he does not simply tell applicants that they are unlikely to be successful until a land rights agreement is achieved? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I thank the Member for the question. Again, there is nothing prohibiting the department from receiving and accepting applications in areas that are not subject to a land withdrawal. The department informs the applicants their application remains subject to consultation. The department must respect its obligations to Indigenous governments. We take any concerns regarding potential rights or impacts of aboriginal rights seriously and work through these concerns, which does take us time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Merci, Monsieur le President. I want to thank the Minister for that. There might be room for some movement on recreation leases in the Yellowknife area if GNWT would consider an interim co-management approach or maybe even revenue sharing with Indigenous governments.

Can the Minister tell us whether his department has ever considered these approaches and what was the outcome? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we have -- we've been having ongoing discussions with Indigenous governments on ways to cooperatively plan and manage lands. This includes land use planning, local area planning, and mechanisms such as ballot draws in high demand areas. We are also encouraging Indigenous governments to work through negotiation table to make sure that the current land withdrawals better reflects their land selection interests. Land withdrawals are the tool we use to protect land for future land selection. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I said in my Member's statement, inflation is reaching levels not seen in generations more and more at the pumps. Northerners need relief. What action is the Department of Finance considering to provide relief to Northerners? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh. Minister responsible for Finance.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, at this point what we are going to be doing is bringing forth some information to Cabinet for consideration. This is a situation, with the inflation and the cost of fuel, that is impacting governments and residents across Canada. It's one that I know many governments are facing, and they're facing calls to take some action. It's difficult of course to simply to come out and come up with a quick -- and say we're going to slash taxes without giving some consideration to what those impacts are. There are, of course -- I do want to make clear that the fuel taxes don't apply to home heating fuel. So to the extent that that's a concern, Mr. Speaker, people may not be aware that it doesn't apply to home heating fuel. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As noted in my Member's statement, Alberta has decided to pause provincial fuel excise tax. Will the Minister commit to pausing the territorial excise tax on gasoline and diesel? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I too took note when Alberta came out with that announcement of the change. Alberta is, to my knowledge at this point, the only province that has done so. Ontario, Yukon, BC, have also been facing that same question and thus far are declining. Alberta's in the somewhat fortunate, I suppose, situation that as gas prices go up, they stand to benefit significantly and their revenues will be going up significantly as a result. And I believe in fact that they're tax changes are being tied to the cost of fuel and as it goes up and their revenues rise, they can afford to make those changes. So we're not quite in the same situation, Mr. Speaker, but we're certainly paying attention to what's happening elsewhere. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As you know, the fuel prices have been going up for some time and it's getting to record high now. So what happens if gas prices continues to increase over $2 a litre? At what point will the department consider taking the action to reduce fuel prices in the Northwest Territories? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, that's exactly the kind of question that the department needs to look at and analyze more carefully in terms of tracking what the costs are, who is paying those costs. Are these, you know, consumers that are industrial consumers and transportation trucks, or is it individual citizens paying at the pumps. These are all some of the considerations we want to take in and considering what will the impacts be and where would we be able to find those funds. For every -- every time, of course, if we were say that we're going to stop the fuel tax, we need to consider what that does to the government's ability to provide relief in various forms to the most vulnerable -- the most vulnerable residents. So again, exactly that question is what we'll be looking at. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary, Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.

Mr. Speaker, and thank you to the finance minister. In terms of timelines when you guys are going to take a look at this, can you give me some feedback in terms of timelines when you're -- are going to bring this to Cabinet and get back to the House on this? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, that's exactly the kind of question I expect to have on the floor and unfortunately the kind of question to which I'm going to not provide a firm answer right on the spot. We haven't even passed our current mains and, of course, I'm having deja vue to two years ago when the situation was changing so rapidly with the beginning of COVID and now here we are facing a bit of a different financial crisis.

As I said, when Alberta came out with this announcement, that same day I'd asked the Department of Finance to start to look at this. Other -- I gather other jurisdictions are also looking at it. They are putting these materials together for us now, and it'll come to Cabinet as quickly as it can. I'm well aware that this is an impact that's going to have on northern residents. We want to figure out what that impact might be and what we -- what leeway we have to do something about it. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, how many communities in -- my questions are for the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs.

How many communities in the NWT have landfill managers that have completed the school of community government solid waste program? Thank you.

Thank you, Member for Kam Lake. Minister responsible for MACA.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the school of community government offers courses annually and attendance's usually five to ten, depending on the year and the location. And the next course is scheduled for April 2022 in Fort Simpson. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Standards Council of Canada has developed northern infrastructure standards to help communities build in permafrost, deal with extreme weather, and design for climate change. There's a standard for solid waste sites in northern Canada. This standard will help sustainable design, operation, and maintenance of northern solid waste facilities considering all phases of their lifecycles.

Can the Minister confirm that the school of community government solid waste management course meets the standard as set by the Standards Council of Canada; and, if not, can the Minister commit to revising the program materials to ensure they are in alignment with this standard? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the northern infrastructure standards initiative guidelines, our guidance document for solid waste site, was only finalized in October of 2021. ENR, Municipal and Community Affairs, and the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board staff contributed to the guide. The school of community government will use this guide to update its solid waste management courses. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, does the training teach waste segregation and compaction, and will the Minister work with his department to create hands-on training in municipalities? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, yes, like, we are working with our communities. Our staff are reviewing the final standards and will incorporate the sections that are appropriate to the NWT in future training. But we do work with communities and sometimes if it's ones off, we do that as well. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, access to training as well as high turnover are some of the challenges that communities face with respect to the management of landfills. Will the Minister look at alternate ways to deliver training under the school of community government to bring hands-on training into the community for more effective delivery of this course? Thank you.

Thank you, and I thank the Member for that. The question I might have answered a little bit in my previous one there, but there are many training methods for solid waste management. This course is already delivered at various communities with some on-site exercises, and MACA always has the option to do one-on-one training in communities. I know in my personal experience previously, we did lots of one-on-ones if the communities weren't able to attend a training event as was scheduled. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions are for the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs.

All of the communities could use help with backhaul of hazardous and industrial waste from their landfills across the Northwest Territories, especially ones that sit along the Mackenzie River given that our MTS barges sometimes travel empty on their return leg down the Mackenzie.

So I'm wondering can the Minister commit to work with the Minister of Infrastructure to target industrial waste removal from communities along the Mackenzie River for the 2022 summer season? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Throughout the 2022 to 2024, MACA will be working with communities on a regional basis to remove hazardous waste and stockpiles from their landfill. This project is under federal funding from the Investment in Canada Plan, and the communities are using some of their community public infrastructure funding to help with this project. The cleanup will be following up -- the cleanup will follow up with training for better management going forward. So we have actually started doing this and will continue this. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister, both in his role as Minister of MACA and Minister of ENR, work with the Minister of Housing to identify solutions where the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation waste is not negatively contributing to community landfill sites? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'm aware of the ENR, Infrastructure, and Housing are working together to review how they manage construction site waste. MACA's also supporting communities with their landfill management, including bylaws and rules for accepting waste. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, is MACA considering less landfills with better services to help manage waste on a more regional basis? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Can I get the Member to re-ask that question? I was a little preoccupied. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I was wondering if the Minister and his department are considering less landfills across the Northwest Territories to allow them to focus on better services from fewer landfills? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we aren't considering less landfill sites but we're working with the municipalities to manage their landfill sites better. By shrinking them, then we have challenges at the regional level - where you going to store it; where you -- what landfill site you going to be using? So right now we work with the municipalities to address this, and we try to help them manage properly. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today is compost day for much of Kam Lake. I'm just wondering if the Minister will commit to composting? Thank you.

Thank you. Already there; been doing that for a long time. As soon as I became the Minister for ENR, it was actually make sure I have to do that. But yes, we are doing that. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Written questions. Returns to written questions. Replies to Commissioner's address. Petitions. Reports of committees on the review of bills. Reports of standing and special committees. Tabling of documents. Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment.

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document: Government of the Northwest Territories Response to Committee Report 20-19(2): Report on the Review of Bill 30: An Act to Amend the Aurora College Act. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister. Tabling of documents. Minister responsible for Finance.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document: What We Heard: Northwest Territories Liquor Legislation Review, March 2022. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister. Tabling of documents. Minister responsible for Health and Social Services.