Please be seated. Thank you, Mr. Lafferty, for the opening prayer and reflections.

Ministers' statements. Minister responsible for ITI.

Mr. Speaker, picture this: Standing beneath the dancing aurora as the night sky comes alive; gliding across a pristine lake so still it mirrors the world above; or tracking the footsteps of generations before us along an ancient northern trail. This is the magic of the Northwest Territories; Mr. Speaker, a land that captivates the soul and invites adventure-seekers from around the world. Tourism is not just an industry here; it is a gateway to land, culture, and to the wonderful people who call this place home.

Last year, visitors spent over $129 million experiencing our spectacular, breathtaking landscapes, rich traditions, and the unmatched warmth of northern hospitality. As we turn the page on Tourism 2025, Roadmap to Recovery, it is time to chart our next journey. That's why our government is developing Tourism 2030, an ambitious, forward-looking five-year strategy to drive sustainable growth, expand opportunities, and build a more resilient tourism sector.

Mr. Speaker, Tourism 2030 will be shaped by those who know it best: Our guides, operators, Indigenous governments, and communities who bring the NWT experience to life. Through open conversations, online surveys, and in-person engagement, we will identify opportunities and challenges that reflect the unique strengths of the Northwest Territories and its communities.

Tourism in the NWT is more than an economic driver; it is a storyteller. It showcases landscapes, cultures, traditions, and ways of life that are real and deeply impactful. We will continue to champion community-based tourism and authentic Indigenous experience in ensuring that stories are told by the people who live them. By fostering collaboration and supporting local entrepreneurs, we can grow tourism in a way that benefits every region, while offering visitors what they seek: authenticity, immersion, and adventure.

Mr. Speaker, we know that tourism has the power to diversify our economy, especially in remote communities. Our resource sector remains vital, but tourism opens up new possibilities; ones that uniquely align economic opportunity with environmental stewardship and cultural revitalization. Last year, over 600,000 users visited the Spectacular NWT website. Now I want to see these online visitors go beyond the screen and book flights, purchase packages, and experience the magic of the NWT firsthand.

To make Tourism 2030 a success, we are committed to transparency and accountability. We will share findings from public engagement through What We Heard reports, and the final strategy will reflect Northern voices. This is an opportunity to build a tourism industry that strengthens our economy, empowers communities, and secures the NWT's reputation as a world-class destination for generations to come.

Mr. Speaker, the Northwest Territories is more than a destination; it is an experience that you carry with you long after you leave. It is where nature, culture, and history intertwine like our winding rivers, shaping stories found nowhere else in the world. Let us seize this opportunity to build a future of tourism together with our spectacular NWT. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister of ITI. Ministers' statements. Minister responsible for Housing NWT.

Mr. Speaker, guided by the Housing NWT capital plan, we are creating more homes for Northerners by working with the Government of Canada, NWT industry partners, and applying innovative approaches to construction. By the close of the 2024-2025 fiscal year, Housing NWT and contractors will have completed the delivery of more than 80 housing units across the territory. This achievement includes 10 units for the transitional housing additions recovery program in Yellowknife and Inuvik, the installation of a biomass heating system for 20 public housing units in Fort Simpson, and major repairs to more than 140 units located throughout the territory. All of these projects result in new public housing units and modernized and repaired units. They also contribute significantly to the NWT economy, with more than 90 percent of contracts awarded to local and territorial businesses. These investments generate new opportunities for Northerners:

• Jobs in communities,
• Prospects for businesses,
• Workforce development; and, most importantly,
• New homes for our residents.

The Housing NWT capital plan includes scalable opportunities ranging from renovation projects for small and emerging local contractors to large multi-million-dollar construction projects for NWT contractors, suppliers, and manufacturers.

Mr. Speaker, as spring approaches, Housing NWT intends to maximize the short northern construction season with construction planned to start on 17 new public housing replacement units located in smaller communities and regional centers.

Housing NWT's capital plan targets not only the quantity of builds and renovations but also promotes innovation in residential construction. For example, this spring in Yellowknife a 50-unit building will break ground followed by rapid assembly of a mass timber structural system, the first in the NWT.

Mr. Speaker, in Deline, Housing NWT is working cooperatively with both a contractor, manufacturer from the NWT, and an Indigenous government to pilot a hybrid construction approach. This innovative approach combines the benefits of a manufactured modular service core with on-site construction methods to gain the best attributes of modular and stick-built construction. Housing NWT has received a development grant from the National Research Council of Canada. This grant will allow Housing NWT to research and collaborate with their team as part of the construction sector digitization and productivity challenge program.

A significant portion of Housing NWT's capital plan is funded through contributions from Canada. We continue to work closely with them to emphasize the needs of the Northwest Territories and advocate for continued housing funding, both for the Northwest Territories' housing program and for others delivering housing across the North. The NWT Housing forum and the recent housing symposium are examples of this coordination and advocacy in practice.

Mr. Speaker, through this coming construction season, Housing NWT will continue to focus on delivering more homes for Northerners by working with Indigenous governments, providing opportunities to industry, implementing innovative approaches to construction, and continued engagement with the Government of Canada. Quyanainni, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister responsible for housing NWT. Ministers' statements. Members' statements. Member from Range Lake.

Mr. Speaker, today is Pink Shirt Day, an annual tradition where we stand against bullying in all of its forms. Back in 2007, two students bought 50 pink shirts after a younger student Chuck McNeill was bullied for wearing a pink polo during the first day of school. As a father of three amazing kids, I can tell you how important this day is for my family. My family has had to deal with bullying in and out of school, and it never gets any easier, but days like today give us all hope as we call out bullies and remind vulnerable kids that -- and even grownups that it gets better.

It's important to remember a couple of things. First, the reasons Chuck McNeill was targeted by bullies are deeply rooted in homophobia and misogyny. The actions of bullies have been influenced by the bigotry and are influenced by the bigotry of others, and they, in turn, seek to reinforce that bigotry on people whose only crime is being different.

Second, the bigoted attitudes which influence bullies at school are learned from adults. Worse yet, those attitudes are on the rise as evident by the success of far-right political movements in democracies across the world. What we are seeing played out through daily developments from the United States and its odious president is that bullying on a much grander scale is on the rise, and it only encourages bullies everywhere else to follow along.

Pink Shirt Day is not just about encouraging our children to be kind and polite to each other at school, it's about standing up to the root causes of bullying and the most powerful of bullies because our children are watching, and we want our strength to teach them how to stand up and look out for each other.

So let me be clear, Canada, Canadians, and Northerners will not be bullied or broken by anyone. The North will stay strong and free as it has since time immemorial. Mr. Trump, we aren't afraid of your tariffs, your dictator friends, or the hatred you spew from your bully pulpit. We value diversity, compassion, and equality, and we won't and never rest until the NWT and Canada is free of discrimination. Northerners take care of each other in times of good and bad, and we will stand together against bigotry, hatred, homophobia, racism, and any affronts to our dignity. We share this message and proudly take care to remember it for the days, months, and years to come. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member from Range Lake. Members' statements. Member from Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, with NWT communities reeling from the news that Aurora College is giving up on community learning centres, I wanted to highlight a successful grassroots literacy and essential skills initiative for young adults that is set to expand. It is a youth employment skills partnership between the NWT Literacy Council and Ilitaqsiniq based in Nunavut and is supported by federal funding. It's designed to help youth aged 16 to 29 gain essential work skills and gain more confidence in their communication and language skills. A brandnew cohort is set to start within the next few months.

This program is designed to break harmful cycles. Some of the participants are referred through the justice system by the wellness court. Staff at the literacy council work closely with the wellness court team to provide wraparound supports for participants, such as mental health supports, even childcare funding is offered. There's a four-week-long classroom portion followed by a two-week work placement. But even the classroom portion is focused on the practical and experiential. It includes on-the-land activities to build culturally based skills and certificates in things like first aid, WHMIS, driver education, and food safe. Work placement examples include local government, catering companies, electrical contractors, hotels, airlines, or work with trail clearing crews or construction crews. The program provides job-specific clothing and safety gear as well as stipends for the youth attending. It's flexible and shaped around the interests and skills of each cohort.

The best part is that many of the previous youth participants have been able to keep the jobs from their original work placement and have been working there ever since or even moved into higher levels of employment with additional job specific training. Some participants have returned to or entered post-secondary education, such as early learning and childcare or academic upgrading. With the current funding, the plan is to run the program in Yellowknife in the next two years and then offer it in a few other communities in year 3.

Mr. Speaker, this is an example of a model that is working, so let's support nonprofits like the NWT Literacy Council to do more of this, expand it to more communities, and replace the harmful cycles with positive cycles rooted in self-confidence and the pride of being able to support yourself and your family. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member from Yellowknife North. Members' statements. Member from Great Slave.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I want to help people who want to make NWT their home. And who can blame them? It's one of the best places on earth as far as I can tell.

Since 2009, our nominee program has supported over 1100 foreign nationals and over 660 of their dependants in accessing permanent residence from the federal government. Since its inception, over 200 different NWT employers have accessed the nominee program to assist them in filling their workforce needs in every region of our territory.

Mr. Speaker, our territory has a tremendous amount of hard-to-fill roles. From a purely economic standpoint, we can't significantly grow our businesses and economy any more than we have without more people, and our population has been static for a long time. If we want to diversify our economy and create more opportunity for all of us, there simply aren't enough of us to go around.

The great majority of applicants to our nominee program are temporary foreign workers already living in Canada on a work visa. Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, we're now in a situation where the federally-imposed limits on spaces available to newcomers and all programs for permanent residency, not just the NWT nominee program, means that many folks are losing access to their dreams. Many newcomers have expiring work visas and are waiting on renewals to those visas with IRCC while waiting for our nominee program or other federal streams.

Mr. Speaker, this gray area is called implied status and adds to the stress for people who are following all of the federal rules. Implied status is basically the definition of bureaucratic limbo. This is when Canada tells you you can stay while your file is being processed but, meanwhile, the NWT cancels your driver's licence and health care card. Adding to more frustration, massive position cuts have been announced federally at IRCC, and these kinds of delays to work visa renewal times are likely to increase. Mr. Speaker, I will have questions for the Minister of ECE.

Thank you, Member from Great Slave. Members' statements. Member from the Sahtu.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, trades training: Mr. Speaker, this is an exciting and prosperous initiative in all sectors and more importantly capacity building readiness for our regions and communities.

Mr. Speaker, allow us to go where the puck is going to be. This prepares our game position for workforce capitalization and community qualified service providers. Mr. Speaker, we, the GNWT, have the authorities, together with supporting resources, programs, community labour market plans, options for our federal counterparts to support their programs. Mr. Speaker, the tools in our toolbox is fully equipped to design regional and community trades training targets to meet industry, government, and our example, the Fort Good Hope construction centre, to meet product demand and stay compliance with the insurance and national building codes.

Mr. Speaker, one of the economic aspects to the initiative to the current and emerging economies is creating a disposal economy and providing dignity within our youth society.

Mr. Speaker, the 20th Assembly is in the unique, position with three years left in our mandate, having recognized this demand for skilled workforce we have the ability to allocate resources to support the readiness trades training through partnerships, departmental resources, collaboration, strategies, planning for all essential -- these are all essential principles in the designing to meet that demand while supporting our youth community for career security. Later, Mr. Speaker, I will have questions for the appropriate Minister. Masi.

Thank you, member from the Sahtu. Members' statements. Member from Monfwi.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today my statement is on immigration and marriage fraud.

Mr. Speaker, Canada is a desirable location for many people seeking a new start and has welcomed many newcomers through different federal programs. Canada's immigration policies fill labour shortages and support family reunification. Recently, it was announced that provincial and territorial nominee program allotments would be decreased.

Mr. Speaker, with this reduction in spots available, I am worried that other means of entry to Canada will be sought. There are cases where people are using marriage fraud to get Canadian citizenship. These are scam marriage applicants used to secure the benefits of citizenship and once acquired, they abandon their spouse after tricking them into marriage. The consequences of these scam marriages are devastating on the sponsoring Canadian citizens being used for this purpose. They are left heartbroken and financially responsible for the applicants for a few years.

The processing of immigration applicants and detection of marriage fraud is a responsibility of the federal government. This is a growing issue that can impact unsuspecting Canadians. I would like people, especially in small communities, to be aware of this issue. With the nominee program being limited, there may be an increase in other avenues being used to gain entry into Canada. We need to protect our residents from online scam phishing and exploitation, and inform them of this issue. It's a crime to marry a Canadian citizen or permanent resident simply to gain entry into Canada. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member from Monfwi. Members' statements. Member from Inuvik Boot Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the agreement education, culture and employment entered into with the federal government to work towards $10 a day daycare was designed to invest in early childcare for the betterment of all in the Northwest Territories. Mr. Speaker, the Government of the Northwest Territories had committed to creating 300 new childcare daycare spaces by 2026, but as of June 2024, only 76 new spaces have been created. A $50 million investment from Ottawa in 2021 was intended to create the 300 new spaces and reduce childcare fees to $10 a day within a five-year period, Mr. Speaker.

Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, what we're hearing from early childcare providers is that rather than investing in early childcare, we may be just putting them out of business. It seems, Mr. Speaker, we were not quite fully prepared for this agreement and the conditions that come with it. There seems to be no inflationary factors built into the agreement. With the cost of food rising, Mr. Speaker, some centres may have to cut nutritional programs. The wage grid for full-time equivalencies have not been calculated correctly in some instances. For example, Mr. Speaker, rather than a full-time position for -- two full-time positions for a certain number of children, what I'm being told by the care providers and centres is that it should be more around 2.5. Early childcare centres are now provided funding for employees who often have to stay late when parents may need more time to pick up their children, but yet childcare centres are not permitted to charge a late pickup fee, which parents would be more than willing to pay, Mr. Speaker.

There's a narrative that centre-based childcare has to become on par with day homes. According to the NWT Early Childhood Association, this is not correct. Day home providers are struggling as well and are not included in the wage grid subsidy program.

In the previous year's budget, the Department of Education, Culture and Employment agreed to an additional $3.5 million to assist early childcare. This money was intended to help all programs in early childcare. Let's give them the money, Mr. Speaker, for wages and some autonomy for the association on how it's spent. Let's include family day homes in the wage grid program and ensure they can continue to operate. Let's remove as many roadblocks as possible, Mr. Speaker. Let's provide as much assistance as needed to give the tools to these providers to complete the essentials course for both day home and centre providers. Let's ensure that the people that work to ensure that others can work are not left with no choice but to close their doors and leave so many of our hardworking residents with no options for daycare. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member from Inuvik Boot Lake. Members' statements. Member from the Deh Cho.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, making residents and communities safe is a priority of this Assembly. The NWT RCMP seized nearly 5 kilograms of cocaine and over $360,000 in cash this month. This was the largest drug and money seizure in the Northwest Territories' history. The RCMP estimates the street value of these drugs is almost a million dollars. The three individuals they arrested in Yellowknife are from outside the territory but have ties to the community.

The RCMP are doing important work, but drugs are still making their way into the communities. According to data from the Controlled Drugs and Substance Act investigations, the number of criminal charges laid annually in the territory has doubled since 2020. That's a crime, Mr. Speaker. Last year, the RCMP reported that they seized 1.9 kilograms of cocaine and a semiautomatic handgun in a single search.

Mr. Speaker, these suppliers are criminals who prey on vulnerable people. I have heard reports of drug charges and seizures in Fort Providence where four people from outside the territory were illegally occupying a cabin to allegedly sell crack to the community. Media has reported instances where Deh Cho residents have been coerced into these operations.

Mr. Speaker, we know in order for our communities to combat the drug issues in our community, we have to work together and find solutions from the communities. I will have questions for the Minister of Justice at the appropriate time. Masi, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member from the Deh Cho. Members' statements. Member from Tu Nedhe-Wiliideh.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Northwest Company which runs the stores across the North could be facing a class action lawsuit that was filed in Nunavut. It is alleged the company has been reducing the costs of groceries they sell despite taking tens of millions of dollars in subsidies from the federal Government of Canada through the Nutrition North program. This lawsuit will play out and even malpractice is not proven, but this is another sign that Nutrition North is not working as is intended. There are countless studies which show that the food insecurity has worsened since the program began. Some studies suggest as little as half of every dollar in subsidies paid out is passed on to northern families. We can read these studies, but we can also talk to our constituents because they show us proof that the rising affordable access to food firsthand.

While Nutrition North is a federal and territorial -- our territorial government is an important partner in administering the program. The GNWT's role in Nutrition North is to advocate for communities, identify where they need our -- the needs are, and improving the right feedback. In small communities are still struggling and the courts are become the route. Northerners are looking for change. They must be more either federal, territorial government could do more to improve the outcomes.

With Nutrition North approaching $2 billion spent since 2011, something needs to change if only half the money is making a difference. My constituents want to know what their government is doing to ensure federal subsidies 100 percent are passed on to them. They want this program to be more effective either through policy fixes or support for local businesses. I look forward to asking the Premier later how he intends to tackle this issue on food security through the GNWT-led initiative on closer corroboration with the Government of Canada. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member from Tu Nedhe-Wiliideh. Members' statements. Member from Frame Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, last year when MLAs were complaining that there were no targets attached to our mandate, we were told it's all going to be in the business plans. But a year later, in many cases I don't see this happening. When I look at our updated business plans, in many cases I'm not sure I see a clear plan articulated for much of what we're trying to do.

Because it came up during your review of the ECE budget last night in COW, I'm going to focus on targets related to growing the workforce today. But I want to be clear that there are a number of areas where we need to better articulate what we are trying to achieve and would suggest that, at a minimum, we need to set clear targets for each of our priority items.

Mr. Speaker, we are capable of setting targets. Keeping the focus on ECE, part of our ELCC agreement included setting targets for growth of childcare spaces as the member for Boot Lake was talking about today. The target lists out both what we are ultimately trying to achieve and interim goals to keep us on track along the way. 75 spaces per year for a total of 300 spaces by March 31st, 2026. That is a solid goal. It's very specific, so we know exactly what we are working towards.

The reason targets like this are useful is because they tell us and the public what we are trying to achieve and, in some cases, even what problem we are trying to solve. Imagine we set a more nebulous target like we've done for growing post-secondary students for childcare spaces? Imagine if our goal was simply increase childcare spaces. How would staff ever know what they achieved or even when they were done? With a goal like that, you will never know when the work is finished or if you're making meaningful progress towards the goal because there isn't one.

I want to acknowledge that a number of the targets ECE has set for growing the northern workforce are measurable and applaud the department's work to establish these targets. For example, they have set the goal of increasing the number of students accessing SFA by 10 percent over the length of the 20th Assembly. That is a measurable target that we can track the progress of. I would suggest that we bring the rest of our targets up to this standard and; furthermore, ensure that we aren't simply taking a shotgun approach to mandate implementation by throwing a bunch of ideas at it. Let's get clear about what problems we are trying to solve, make plans to address those problems, and set measurable and achievable goals to implement those plans. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member from Frame Lake. Members' statements. Member from Yellowknife Centre.

Mr. Speaker, the Alzheimer's Society is an organization here in the NWT that helps people facing dementia. Their team of navigators, volunteers, staff members, all share a common vision of a world without Alzheimer's or any kind of dementia. The Alzheimer's organization believes that each person living with dementia can thrive, and the society's focus is care today and a cure tomorrow.

Through dementia awareness programs and services, the Alberta-NWT society works relentlessly in their efforts to find a cure while supporting our loved ones. The Yellowknife office supports northern partnerships with our communities by creating a strong support network. However, the extent of this work is much broader through outreach efforts and their work with their trained dementia ambassadors.

The society helps not only people living with Alzheimer's disease, Mr. Speaker. They also work to support others who are facing any types of dementia diagnosis who are navigating through the health system and need to help learning about the connecting to the programs and the services available in their community and throughout the North. Connecting people through their referrals is a key to finding the right supports early in the dementia journey which can make the big difference in the quality a person is living with during the dementia challenges and certainly helps support the care partners.

The Alzheimer's Society offers a host of in-person, online programs, and services designed to support individuals and their needs and the preferences through programs and services that are developed for people living with dementia. This also helps their care partners, health professionals, and even employers and employees navigating through the workforce. The society offers its programs, believe it or not, free of charge thanks to the generous support of their donors and the community fundraising efforts. Many of the important initiatives improve the lives impacted by those impacted by dementia and throughout.

Mr. Speaker, we're all working towards a cure, and it is very important that we support these volunteers who provide this invaluable contribution for their work to our community members. I encourage each member of this Assembly to reach out in our own way to learn more about the Alzheimer's Society. Mr. Speaker, you can connect to the society by easily calling 867-669-9392 or email at [email protected]. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I look forward to your support on this cause as well. Thank you.

Thank you, Member from Yellowknife Centre. Members' statements.

Mr. Speaker, I have a return to oral question asked by the member for Yellowknife Centre on February 10, 2025, regarding the budgeting process for the Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority.

The department provides a dollar value and service expectation to each of the three health authorities to develop a detailed budget. The authorities must submit this budget to the department by February 15th of each year concurrent with the main estimates process. The department works with each authority to review their budget aligning details with what was presented to committee. This ensures that the authorities' budgets are ready for final review by the department once the main estimates are approved.

Further, to comply with Financial Administration Act, this work must be completed by April 1st of each year. Once the main estimates in the authorities' budgets are approved, the department then enters into a contribution agreement with each health authority which outlines the dollar value for activities, spending parameters, and reporting requirements such as performance indicators and financial statements.

Lastly, the authorities are required to submit variance reports to the department which facilitates monitoring of expenditures. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister of Health and Social Services. Returns to oral questions. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member from Yellowknife Centre.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have two sets of visitors in the gallery today. I'll start with the shorter list but not anywhere less worthy. The NWT Literacy Council is represented by one of my constituents today, Ms. Katie Johnson. She's also an advocate for many other causes which I certainly endorse.

The other group I'd like to recognize is a bevy of ladies, very smart, charming, and hardworking volunteers, and they are as follows: Ms. Martha McLellan, Ms. Sandra Hockes, Ms. Mika Cameron; and, a special thanks goes to Ms. Linda Koe who helped me with my statement today. And I wish to thank each of them personally for coming today and enjoying our session as presented. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member from Range Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I too want to welcome some of our guests today. Martha McLellan, she's a Range Lake resident; and, Kathryn Barry Paddock, and also a Range Lake resident. And I'd also like to recognize Mika Cameron. She was an important educator in my life coming up in the Northwest Territories. Thank you for being here today.

Thank you, member from Range Lake. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member from Mackenzie Delta.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I would like to recognize two pages from my riding of the Mackenzie Delta. Elijah Smith and Sandy Dylan are both from Aklavik and attend Moose Kerr School. I'd like to welcome them to the Assembly and congratulate them on a job well done. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member from Mackenzie Delta. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member from Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'd also like to thank and recognize Kathryn Barry Paddock, the executive director of the NWT Literacy Council; and Katie Johnson, the program director from the NWT Literacy Council, for coming out today and for the work they do every single day and the passion they bring to their work. Thank you.

Thank you, Member from Yellowknife North. Recognition of visitors in the gallery.

Colleagues, I'd like to recognize Ben Morin and Elizabeth Money, both -- two-thirds of the team that is going to be working on our reconciliation plan for the Legislative Assembly. Welcome to our Assembly.

If we missed anyone in the gallery today, welcome to your chambers. You put us here, and we thank you very much for this honour. I hope you enjoy the proceedings. It is always nice to have people in the Assembly -- or the gallery, sorry.

Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Acknowledgements. Member from Mackenzie Delta.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today, I acknowledge a very determined young man from Tetlit Zheh, Mr. Deeron Vittrekwa. While bringing up a young family with his spouse Natasha, who just completed her business management program, Mr. Vittrekwa is in his fourth year of a four-year teacher education program at Yukon University. He will serve as a great role model to the younger generation in pursuing a career path.

I would like to ask my colleagues to join me in congratulating Mr. Vittrekwa on receiving an Indigenous language revitalization scholarship, and for his commitment to his educational goals. Congratulations and all the best, Mr. Vittrekwa. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member from Mackenzie Delta. Acknowledgements. Oral questions. Member from Yellowknife Centre.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I want to follow up on some of the questions I had asked yesterday to the Premier regarding his special envoy to Ottawa, and one of the concerns, of course, I had was about how much this costs, and I'll wait for that return, of course. That said, I didn't try to come back to the question with respect to process.

Mr. Speaker, we all hear the theme over and over again we have to work together. Well, Mr. Speaker, the Premier was very clear he made the decision, he consulted with Indigenous governments, and furthermore, he consulted with his Cabinet. Maybe he could explain to this House why he didn't feel like working together with this side of the House in some form of discussion about his future plans and what he was trying to achieve. Thank you.

Thank you, Member from Yellowknife Centre. Mr. Premier.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So just to be clear, I had spoke with Indigenous governments after the decision was made to let them know what was going on, and I spoke with my Cabinet colleagues because, you know, when we make changes in that hallway where we all work, I want to ensure that Cabinet feels supported as all the staff down that hallway support all of Cabinet in one way or another. So that being said, this was a decision that I made in my office based on the experiences that I had over the past year. So I'm happy to consult with the standing committee on policies, on programs, on legislation. This was one single position out of the entire Government of the Northwest Territories that was reassigned. And so, you know, I always want to hear what the Members have to say, and I take this Member's comments very seriously, and going forward, I will look at our processes to ensure that if there are any changes like this in the future that I will engage Members sooner. That being said, I do have a responsibility to operate my office in a way that I think is efficient, and I will be making the decisions based on my experience. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I was going to wave off a second question until the Premier had said the last piece. I was going to concede on maybe his contrition in the sense of he'll communicate better or work better. For the record, Mr. Speaker, we work here too, not just Cabinet, and in theory the Premier's principal secretary should be working with Members and, you know, whatnot. That said, how much is this office going to cost now that he's made this unilateral decision? Because we know how much they're paid because on the -- what's online, the GNWT website. They're paid the highest employee we have. There must be an office cost, support costs. Can the Premier elaborate on this unilateral decision he has made without consulting Members. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There will be no change in the cost of this position. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Premier. Final supplementary. Member from Yellowknife Centre.

Mr. Speaker, can the Premier assure this House that there will be no office setup costs, there will be no staff costs, there will be (audio) sorry, the light went off. Maybe on the government too some days.

Mr. Speaker, can the Premier assure that there will be no additional costs to setting up an office because if we're setting up a special envoy that we will now be referring to his excellence or something or other, I mean, are we -- what is this going to cost the Assembly? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We already have an office in Ottawa. There's actually a desk and a chair there already so there may be an increased cost with pens, staples, things like that, but there's not going to be a significant cost implementations for this. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Premier. Oral questions. Member from Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. During my Member's statement, I spoke about Nutrition North and as it costs $2 billion since 2011 and half of that going to the communities throughout the three territories.

Mr. Speaker, my question is to the Premier. The GNWT needs to work closer with the federal government on food insecurities. What action is the Premier taking to assess the Nutrition North shortcoming and to advocate for change in Ottawa? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member from Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh. Mr. Premier.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Last year Minister Vandal, who was at the time the Minister responsible for Nutrition North, announced that there would be -- they'd be undertaking their five-year review of the program and that that review is expected to be completed this year. And so we are waiting that and are engaging at every opportunity that we can.

As well, we have -- or the Minister last year also announced that there would be a -- let me just find this position -- a ministerial special representative independent of the federal public service appointed to review the Nutrition North program. That independent ministerial special advisor was actually appointed yesterday, and so I look forward to seeing how that individual is going to advance this project, and I'm sure there's going to be opportunities for us to go forward and engage in that process. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yeah, Mr. Speaker, we all know that there is -- there are overhead costs to do business that are unique in the NWT, such as administration and logistics. What is the GNWT doing to make it easier to do businesses in small communities so that Nutrition North subsidies can be more effective? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Of course logistics are one of the biggest issues we face here in the Northwest Territories. We've seen issues with climate change relating to supply chain issues with the Mackenzie River, and so when instances like that arise we have responded with supports to impacted communities. We are also looking at continuing to connect communities in the Northwest Territories by road. Of course, there's been a few -- those connections done in the past number of years. And we're talking about the Mackenzie Valley Highway as well which will have impacts on the administration of Nutrition North obviously. But it's an opportunity to lower costs there as well. So we are working on improving our transportation infrastructures and our energy infrastructure as well, all in the hopes of lowering costs and making it easier to do business in the Northwest Territories. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Premier. Final supplementary. Member from Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, Indigenous communities are opening their own new grocery stores, in particular in Fort Resolution. Will the Premier advocate for these bands to run stores to get Nutrition North subsidies as well while in deliberation with Ottawa? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And so, of course, Nutrition North is a federal program and it has its own criteria and it's related to accessibility, road access. That being said, we obviously have higher costs of living in the Northwest Territories, and that's an appropriate thing to bring forward to our discussions with the federal government and the ministerial special adviser, and I think it's important to also highlight Indigenous businesses and how we can better support them. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Premier. Oral questions. Member from Great Slave.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, many folks are panicked because of the goal posts of our nominee program are changing drastically in the last nine months. Available spots, associated timelines, have changed as well.

Mr. Speaker, can the Minister please explain what her department is telling people who do not meet the increased length of work history requirement with their employer or that have an impending work visa expiry? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member from Great Slave. Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, certainly the department is incredibly compassionate to where people are at right now. The department has been fielding a tremendous amount of phone calls and inquiries about this and has a tremendous amount of empathy for people. Certainly, the department is letting people know what the criteria is, why it has changed for the nominee program, and is also making sure that they're steering perspective applicants to federal sources of information on federal immigration programs trying to be as helpful as possible and also letting people know that over the course of this year we will be working with stakeholders, businesses, communities, to determine what the program will look like in 2026. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I know they're getting a lot of calls. They're not returning all those calls. But I am worried that more people will find themselves in limbo waiting on work visa renewals and paperwork headaches that are associated with territorial services, Mr. Speaker. So, Mr. Speaker, can the Minister speak to what work she is conducting with her Cabinet colleagues and federal counterparts to ensure that folks who are classified as implied status are allowed to extend their health care coverage or driver's licenses, for example. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. So, Mr. Speaker, the term implied status has now been changed to maintained status just so that everybody's using the same language. So foreign nationals on maintained status are eligible to extend their health care coverage and NWT driver's licenses, and they would need valid proof that they are on maintained status. Foreign nationals that are looking to extend their health care cards and their NWT driver's license are encouraged to reach out to NWT -- sorry, NTHSSA, as well as the Department of Infrastructure, to confirm the process and documents that they'll be required, but that process is already outlined within those departments. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. Final supplementary. Member from Great Slave.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We all know that our allotment went from 300 to 150 due to federal government decisions around cuts across Canada. So can the Minister speak to more detail with her conversations with her federal counterparts; specifically, how she's advocating for our unique northern context which also applies to the newcomers and businesses that need to grow their workforce. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I think that when you're in these positions, regardless of what side of the House you sit on, you take these jobs very seriously. You've been given the trust of the people that you serve and also Northerners right across the territory. And so taking every opportunity to tell people about the Northwest Territories and explain to them what our context is is something that I do on a daily basis in this role.

Specifically with immigration, I started my day today by meeting with MP McLeod. We talked about the nominee program and talked about how we are going to, you know, further align and have further conversations with the federal government. I have written letters. I have placed phone calls. I -- and that's at political level. The department is doing the same at the officials' level and having bilateral and multilateral engagements and conversations as well. I know that the business community also met with Minister Miller this summer, and I had the opportunity to take Minister Miller out and even have conversations in the middle of Great Slave Lake about this stuff. So certainly doing the work. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. Oral questions. Member from the Deh Cho.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The NWT RCMP introduced a new division drug strategy in 2024 focused on better intelligence gathering and placing priority on disruptive techniques. The strategy includes creating a dedicated drug enforcement team in the NWT. Can the Minister of Justice say whether this team has been created and what community they are based in? Thank you.

Thank you, Member from the Deh Cho. Minister of Justice.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, the crime reduction unit has been established. They are still staffing up. I'm not sure as of today how many members they have staffed up. But despite -- even if they're not fully staffed, they have been doing work across the Northwest Territories and, you know, not just in drug investigations, also doing things like working with the post office trying to ensure that we can stop drugs going through the mail and different types of things like that. This is a territorial unit, and it's based here in Yellowknife, but it can be deployed and will be deployed throughout the territory. And they have been doing work throughout the territory already. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you. Can the Minister commit on whether there have been more human resource allocations at RCMP detachments in my riding as part of this strategy? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wouldn't say that the human resource allocations were part of the divisional drug strategy, but there have been increases to the RCMP numbers in the Member's riding. K'atlodeeche First Nation had two positions added, one this year, one last year. The detachment in Fort Providence has also had positions added. And that's in addition to the new crime reduction unit and the emergency response team that are getting staffed up that also work territorially. So there's more assets available in the communities, and there's more territorial assets available to respond to incidents in the communities as well. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister of Justice. Final supplementary. Member from the Deh Cho.

Will the Minister commit to contacting RCMP detachments in my riding to learn what resources they need to implement this strategy? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So I generally don't talk directly to the detachment commanders, but I do speak with the commanding officer and I'm happy to have that conversation with him. I know that, you know, he is very invested in this divisional drug strategy, and he is doing his best to ensure that the resources are available to officers across the territory. And often that includes things like training. Just having the awareness of, you know, when someone might be using drugs if they're driving a vehicle, then that gives you cause to stop that person and then take further action from there. So the resources, a lot of them are training and awareness, and I know that is happening and it's being rolled out. But I will commit to further discussing with the commanding officer about the resourcing, especially in the Member's riding. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister of Justice. Oral questions. Member from Range Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this is something that's been troubling our community for quite some time, and the Yellowknife River water pipeline that's been built since '68 has been in dire need of replacement for a number of years. In 2017, when I served this Assembly previously, it was pegged at $34.5 million. Last year, it was $62.7 million. This year it's now $107 million. Our city cannot afford this pipeline. Our residents deserve safe drinking water. Can I ask the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs how is he supporting the city of Yellowknife in completing this important public project? Thank you.

Thank you, Member from Range Lake. Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Municipal and Community Affairs distributes $110 million for all the municipalities. That includes the CPI funding that they receive. The money that they have, MACA doesn't tell them how to spend their money for their projects. It's how they want to utilize it for some of their infrastructure. We all know infrastructure costs have been going up. And that one has too. It's been all over the news, and they have received, I think, about $28 million of federal funding for some of that project on top of the CPI money that the GNWT provides. They obviously have to do some work on trying to offset the costs of inflation for these projects. But we do not get into the details of how a municipality funds their infrastructure projects. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, does the department provide 100 percent of the CPI needs for the city of Yellowknife?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The funding formula is not 100 percent, and it's never been 100 percent. So it's up to municipalities to raise money through revenues in order to provide further infrastructure issues. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs. Final supplementary. Member from Range Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this is one we should be spending -- we should be fulfilling our commitments to communities to 100 percent. But this is an extraordinary cost that's well beyond what the city can afford to pay. Every year it gets more expensive. Will the Minister find a way to work with his Cabinet colleagues, with the city of Yellowknife, with the NWTAC, with the federal government, with everyone who has a cheque book, and get the city the money it needs so we can have safe, clean drinking water for half of our residents in this territory? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As the Minister responsible for Municipal and Community Affairs, I would like to say yes for every community with that same issue throughout the Northwest Territories, but the reality is that I'm sure, he's well aware, we're all fighting for funds over here on this side of the House for every department, and there's a lot of questions for department of health where they need the money, and I'm also asking for some funds also to try to increase funding to communities. But we'll just see how that goes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs. Oral questions. Member from the Sahtu.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Further to my statement on trades training, my questions are to the Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment. What is ECE doing to ensure that trades training is tailored to regional and communities' specific labour market needs? Thank you.

Thank you, Member from Sahtu. Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So, Mr. Speaker, education, culture and employment, through its regional service centres, engages with communities, the federal government, training program providers, as well as other GNWT departments to discuss their specific community needs. In addition to that, in the Sahtu there are annual career fairs. There's also our small community employment fund that designated community authorities can tap into, and thanks to Regular Members, was increased. And then in addition to that, there's also financial supports that are provided through the community labour market development plans. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thanks to the Minister for that information, that reply. My next question to the Minister is there are federal programs and industry partnerships that could further enhance trades training in the NWT. What steps is ECE taking to maximize these opportunities and create training opportunities in communities? Mahsi.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. So, Mr. Speaker, I just had a meeting yesterday at an FTP table for the federal labour Ministers' meeting where we did talk about labour market agreements, and we continuously bring that up with the federal government. There's also discussions with Canada Council of Directors of Apprenticeship, Skills Canada, and other groups as well who are really strong advocates in their sector and ones that we try to work with to gain additional funding.

In addition to that, we've submitted two proposals to CanNor that were submitted for recent calls. One of them spoke specifically, that I think the Member will be interested in, to alternative approaches to apprenticeship supervision in small communities. As we know that one of the big challenges we have is the availability of journey persons to supervise apprentices across the NWT, especially in small communities, and so we're waiting on word on those proposals and hope for good news. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. Final supplementary. Member from the Sahtu.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I too am hopeful and optimistic on a good news reply.

My third question to the Minister is workforce development also requires tracking results and making improvements as needed. How will ECE measure the success of trades training programs to ensure they work for the residents? Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we've heard a little bit from the other side of the House on the importance of tracking results and measuring our successes today, so I appreciate the Member's question. So recently, education, culture and employment released a two-year extension to its apprenticeship, trade, and occupation certification strategy. Part of this strategy does have a performance measurement planb and so at the end of our two-year extension, those performance measures will be released publicly, and we will be able to track and see how far we've come. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. Oral questions. Member from Inuvik Boot Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I spoke in my Member's statement about the agreement that the Department of Education, Culture and Employment has with the federal government to create 300 spaces by 2026. So last year I think we had 76. My questions for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, and can she speak to -- it seems that the -- we're a little off track. Can the department provide further information on how they plan to meet those targets of 300 spaces. Thank you.

Thank you, Member from Inuvik Boot Lake. Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we're always working on trying to work with people who are interested in opening up spaces to try and encourage them and support them in that. We currently have five proponents right now that are working with the department to try and open up spaces that are both in and outside of Yellowknife, and I'm very hopeful that they will see great success.

In addition to that, Mr. Speaker, we also do have our infrastructure funding, and I'm also always looking for creative ways to work with my colleagues who are building things in communities and trying to find ways to incorporate childcare in those new builds. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Minister spoke about the infrastructure funding. Can she maybe elaborate on that, what that funding is specifically used for, if it's strictly for infrastructure projects, any of that to be used for anything like wage subsidies then as well. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. So the early childhood infrastructure fund is solely for builds. It can be used to renovate spaces, and it can be used for new builds as well. And we cannot use it for wage subsidies. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. Final supplementary. Member from Inuvik Boot Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I spoke in my Member's statement about the discrepancy between day homes and childcare centres and that the day homes -- in my conversations with the NWT Early Childhood Association -- are not included in this wage grid subsidy program. Can the Minister commit to taking a look at changing this so that the day home providers can also access this funding. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. So, Mr. Speaker, it's thank you to Regular Members who negotiated the additional $3.5 million for the wage enhancement that was negotiated last year as part of our budget negotiations. And at that time, it was found that home-based early childhood educators currently had higher after tax net income compared to centre-based facility childhood educators, and so the $3.5 million for wage parity adjustment was used for the wage grid in order to bring up their annual net income so that it was more in line with our JK -- or sorry, junior kindergarten -- sorry, classroom assistants at our junior kindergarten to grade 12 education facilities across the Northwest Territories.

Currently, Mr. Speaker, our day home operators are already receiving more money than traditionally was received by our daycare facility workers in that they received the childcare fee reduction subsidy, the operational funding, and the five-year retention funding. So certainly trying to bring everybody up and starting with those that are currently earning less within the industry. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. Oral questions. Member from Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My first set of questions is for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. So the literacy outreach centre here in Yellowknife has been a partnership between Aurora College and inclusion NWT since 1997, and that program even won the Premier's Award in 2023 for its excellent results. So given that enrolment has consistently been high with 39 students in the current winter semester, it came as a shock that Aurora College recently announced it would pull out of the program as part of its closure of the community learning centres, leaving the program to be shut down.

So can the Minister tell us whether the funding that the Department of ECE has allocated to literacy outreach centres will be pulled away from Aurora College and reallocated so that these programs might be able to continue. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member from Yellowknife North. Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So, Mr. Speaker, I can confirm that Aurora College was provided $350,000 annually to operate literacy outreach programs, as the Member had indicated, and those programs are found in Inuvik, Fort Smith, and Yellowknife. In addition, education, culture and employment was providing $85,000 to Inclusion NWT to also partner with Aurora College to offer those programs. At this time, Mr. Speaker, I couldn't confirm what that will look like going forward, but I can certainly reassure the Member that ECE is looking at options on how literacy programming can continue to be supported. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So has ECE engaged with Inclusion NWT to try to find a way forward for this program given that Aurora College has pulled out of the partnership? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I can confirm that options are certainly being looked at for how the literacy programming can continue to be supported. I can also confirm that at minimum a three-month contribution agreement will be established to support delivery through the end of June, but I cannot speak beyond June what that will look like as of right now today. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. Final supplementary. Member from Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I appreciate that there's few details available right now and lots of unknowns, but does ECE plan to reach out to Aurora College and its current staff working at the literacy outreach centre, who have been informed that they will lose their jobs, but to see if an arrangement could be made, for example, to continue using the college's classroom space and to communicate the efforts underway to find a path forward for this program? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the existing spaces that are being used by this program are not spaces that are owned by Aurora College, and so certainly that space is not one, for example, that I could confirm on the floor of this House but I can confirm that -- you know, first of all, thank the Member for her advocacy and our conversations in regards to adult literacy across the territory. But second, let the Member know that we are certainly following up on this one and seeing what can be done. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. Oral questions. Member from Great Slave.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Health and Social Services.

Mr. Speaker, expiry dates of health care cards for temporary foreign workers are tied to their work visa expiry dates. So if a work permit expires, so does a health care card. So how many compassionate extensions of health care cards have been provided since the pause to the nominee program in July of 2024? I realize this is quite a lot of detail, but maybe the Minister could speak to it broadly. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member from Great Slave. Minister of Health and Social Services.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I don't have that level of detail. I do know that I have had a few come through my desk that -- you know, from MLAs with their constituents that are in this category. And I know that as soon as they have the documentation, as the Minister of ECE has explained, that our office is able to renew those early enough. But what I will say is is that as soon as somebody is applying and they have their documentation is to contact health services immediately. And they have a pretty quick turnaround for renewing their health care. Thank you.