Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Well, I have spoken to information system's consultants, and this is a concern. So will the Member -- the Member's going to get me information -- will the Member -- sorry, will the Minister explore this with her department and see if there are holdups in the Health Information Act and identify any legislative change that needs to be done and report back to either me or the House? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. What I will do is I will have my staff talk to the information protection of privacy, and we will get back to the Member. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister of Health and Social Services. Oral questions. Member from Yellowknife Centre.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'm going to ask the Minister of housing about transitional housing. So why don't we just start with the question, what is the minister's understanding or definition of transitional housing? Because we hear that phrase all the time. So we want to make sure we're talking about the same thing and the right thing. Thank you.

Thank you, Member from Yellowknife Centre. Minister responsible for Housing NWT.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In terms of the definition for transitional housing is individuals that are in transit, so they're looking for independent living and, unfortunately, many times in the Northwest Territories we have people on the waitlist for many, many years. We have over 900 families on the waitlist in the Northwest Territories. So they're on the waitlist waiting for independent housing or public housing, as many people call it, and the idea of transitional housing, it provides some housing but it's in transition. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Okay, I like to use the phrase setting the table. Now we have a sense of what we're talking about. So here we go, Mr. Speaker.

Is the Minister aware of how often we actually have people who transition out of transitional housing into regular, private housing? In other words, we've helped them, and now that they're able to survive and proceed on their own? Could the Minister answer that question. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, transitional housing and the idea of transitional housing just came up in the last few years where many communities and shelters are looking at different options for clients or for tenants. A recent trip to Behchoko, I talked to a transitional housing client, and he had been in transitional housing for 11 years. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister responsible for Housing NWT. Final supplementary. Member from Yellowknife Centre.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Transitional housing, given what I've heard today, sounds like the whole idea is to help you out. But is it to help you out just to get you in the public system forever, or is it designed to help you out so you can become independent and, you know, a contributor or balance the appropriate needs in your lifestyle and your family in the community on your own with the independence philosophy? Can the Minister help with that? Because all I know is people, once they get into transitional housing, it's almost like they're there forever. So I need some clarity on that. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think it's important that we understand that right now in the Northwest Territories we offer public or market housing, and we're offering shelter space across the Northwest Territories in seven different communities, or seven different shelters, plus we have a Northern Pathways program, plus we have some transitional housing after addictions treatment that recently opened in Yellowknife and Inuvik.

In terms of transitional housing, this is not meant to be permanent, Mr. Speaker, but it provides those that are in kind of, like, suspension right now, they're waiting for housing or they're waiting for independent housing to provide them their own space rather than living in a shelter. So the idea is that we transition many people on the waitlist to transitional housing, or if they need that supportive living component, add them to the transitional housing -- council them into transitional housing.

What we're finding right now that many people living in public housing need extra supports, and this is a concern across the Northwest Territories, especially with Housing NWT, especially concerning much of the damage across the North with Housing NWT units, Mr. Speaker. So we're trying to offer different ideas, different solutions along the housing continuum, and this is one idea. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister responsible for Housing NWT. Oral questions. Member from Range Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just want to follow up on questions that my learned friend from Frame Lake asked the Minister of Environment and Climate Change.

There's a land transfer memorandum of cooperation. There's a lot of memorandums out there. But I think what the city wants to know is when will their application for land be granted. Does this agreement give timelines to that effect? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member from Range Lake. Minister of ECC.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I currently have a meeting scheduled with the mayor on October 30th to discuss the memorandum of collaboration and how we can ensure that all of the interests of all of the parties involved are addressed, and we can address some of the challenges that we faced over the last while and find a path forward. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, we've been at this for ten years, whether it's an MOU, an MOC, an MOA, M-O-U-S-E. Can the Minister just commit to transfer the land to the city of Yellowknife and to all municipalities as laid out by several motions that have been brought to the floor of the Assembly before, that's been passed in this Assembly. Will the Minister just make the decision today to transfer the land so our communities can grow? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, although the Member makes it sound very simple and straightforward, it's not as simple and straightforward as it sounds. There's consultation involved. There are a number of moving parts. I am certainly am committed to the conversation with the mayor on October 30th and very hopeful that we can find a path forward that will resolve this issue. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister of ECC. Final supplementary. Member from Range Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there are no land claims issues here. We're talking about GNWT land within municipal boundaries. Will the Minister commit to closing this deal by the end of this fiscal year and get Yellowknife and every community in the Northwest Territories the land so they can access it, so they can grow, so we can build an economy that is currently, as I remind the House, in a red alert? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as I've said in this House before, I'm committed to moving this forward, and there's certainly a lot of work that is required to work with the different municipalities. There are requirements for bylaws, etcetera, land use plans. All of these components come into play as we talk about this type of land transfer and committed to continue to work toward a solution. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister of ECC. Oral questions. Member from Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So I wanted to ask questions of the Minister of housing. I appreciated today's update on the homelessness strategy and the news that they expect to be opening up the transitional housing complex out near the airport, near the Folk on the Rocks site outside Yellowknife before Christmas. I wonder if the Minister has any updates she can give the House in terms of any of the regulatory approvals or logistics that they've been trying to get sorted out to get this project underway. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member from Yellowknife North. Minister responsible for Housing NWT.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And the transitional housing complex at the Folk on the Rocks site near the airport is -- had to go through a number of regulatory approvals and including Transport Canada working with the infrastructure team at Government of Northwest Territories, but also with NAV Canada because it's near the airport. And normally that process could take up to six months for approvals, and that approval through NAV Canada was approved today. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.