And finally, Written Question 29-20, paramedic contracts.
During the December 2, 2025, public briefing to the Standing Committee on Social Development on the Small Community Model of Care, the Minister of Health and Social Services indicated that paramedics who were on retainer contracts during the summer months to support wildfire fighting crews could be utilized to support small community health centre day-to-day operations.
My questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services:
- In recent wildfire seasons, what were the terms of the Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) retainer contracts for paramedic teams supporting wildfire suppression efforts?
- For each of those wildfire seasons, how many paramedics were committed to the GNWT under those retainer contracts?
- Did the GNWT's retainer contracts for paramedic teams include provisions allowing the GNWT to assign the paramedics to other health-system duties when they were not required for wildfire support?
- Has the GNWT or the Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority tracked the proportion of retained paramedic resources that were utilized during wildfire seasons, including the percentage of total contracted personnel-hours that were used for active service versus those retained but not deployed? And,
- Have paramedic contracts for 2026 already been negotiated, and if so, are there any significant differences from previous years' contracts?
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.