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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, on the news today, I am sure it'll be no surprise to the Minister of ECE, that $1.55 billion is rolling forward on the Jordan's Principle money. So I guess maybe let's start with the easy questions. What does the department of education know about the money as in how much money is coming, when it'll be flowing specifically, and will it have any impact on the backstop that the GNWT has provided already? Thank you.

Thank you, Member for Yellowknife Centre. Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I guess just to clarify, I believe if memory serves -- and I am sure it's the right amount per se -- but I think $14 million was passed in the last supp. The issue ultimately comes down to is that when the NWT government eventually gets its portion, can the Minister ensure or guarantee, I guess in some form, that there won't be any clawback of that money? So in other words, all money passed for JP money plus the new one will just help support and augment and further meet the needs of First Nations kids and our communities. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. So, Mr. Speaker, the dollars for Jordan's Principle have not come to the Government of the Northwest Territories. They have gone to school boards through direct agreements with the federal government and the education body themselves. Through the support assistant initiative that this government put forward for the 2025-2026 school year, we had indicated to education bodies right from the beginning that they still had to apply for Jordan's Principle and should their application to Jordan's Principle be successful, that we would then settle up at the end of the year but that we would be there to support their need for their support assistant in the meantime. Thank you.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate the fact that the Minister pointed out the application process. As well as that is, it's challenging to find the staff to meet that. So, Mr. Speaker, if staff are not available to meet that, how is the department going to work with the system to ensure that we have enough people to respond to this need so that Jordan's Principle money gets spent in the appropriate way and on the ground to support the kids, noting that we are struggling to staff these positions for this support? Thank you.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the school boards have traditionally used their resources to apply for funding. They have also worked with families. They have also worked with healthcare providers in order to access this funding and to be able to complete the applications and submit them to the federal government. That money has then flowed traditionally straight from the federal government to the education body for the service that they are looking to provide. And should an education body not be successful going forward still within this school year for their Jordan's Principle application, their application that they have with education, culture and employment would still continue to stand. Thank you.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, earlier today I mentioned the Canadian Institute for Health Information reporting relationship with the emergency room data for the NWT Health and Social Services Authority and the fact that there is none. So my question for the health Minister is, the Yukon mandates emergency department reporting to CIHI and submits roughly 41,000 records a year. Can the Minister confirm that the NWT submits zero? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member from Range Lake. Minister of Health and Social Services.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, what we mandate, the coding to CIHI is inpatient surgical and day procedures; however, we do have the data for the emergency room. It's, you know, that they've had to prioritize those mandated areas that they submit. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. On January 15th, the Minister wrote that NWT -- to my office that the NWT, quote, provides data to CIHI as part of their standardized national reporting programs. She did not disclose that all emergency department reporting is absent, and now we know that they have that information. Was she unaware of this at the time, or did she just choose not to disclose it? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I wasn't aware. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister of Health and Social Services. Member from Range Lake.

Yes, Mr. Speaker. CIHI's expert panel recommends every jurisdiction mandate NACRS reporting. That's reporting to the National Ambulatory Care Reporting System, the uninitiated. What is the Minister's plan and what is her timeline to catch up to this national standard? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And as I have mentioned many times in this House, we have the data. In order to prioritize this, you know, we would need extra staff to keep up to the amount of data that we have to manually track and submit. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister of Health and Social Services. Oral questions. Member from Inuvik Boot Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions aren't on curling today; my questions are for the Minister of Housing NWT.

Mr. Speaker, with the continued shortage of homes in Inuvik, with the long waitlist still at the LHO there, and with of course the funding that was approved last year in the budget, can the Minister update on any plans currently in place for Inuvik with our new builds up there? Thank you.

Thank you, Inuvik Boot Lake. Minister responsible for Housing NWT.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you to the Member for the question. It's important to update this House on the development of the $150 million allocation for the Northwest Territories. Housing NWT is advancing public housing development in Inuvik. Currently, this includes a 20-unit modular development on the Blueberry Patch site. These 20 units will be configured as five four-plexes for singles. A design-build contract has been awarded to ARCAN Construction with modular production by Metcan Building Solutions in Hay River. Site development activities will begin this summer, and site services, including the utilidor, will be coordinated with the Town of Inuvik and adjacent properties to ensure optimization. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thank you to the Minister. That is, indeed, excellent news. I am sure the residents will feel the same.

Beyond that project, which again is a significant project, does the Housing NWT have any additional future plans beyond that once that project is complete, and as the Minister says, on the Blueberry Patch? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we're happy to report that housing has been in discussions with Canada, CMHC, on future opportunities for Inuvik, and we look forward to having an announcement shortly that will include more units for Inuvik and the Blueberry Patch. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.