Debates of May 29th, 2026

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as I spoke to in my Member statement, there are a few areas we should be considering expanding student financial assistance. So it's not clear why the changes the Minister announced are being made. What criteria were used to determine that the recently announced changes are the best path to achieving our education goals? Thank you.

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

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. So, Mr. Speaker, lots of feedback is received from both Members in this House and members of the public, and certainly making sure that we are being responsive as much as possible and addressing changes that need to be made to regulations is part of the process. So that's why the regulations right now are out for public engagement to get some of that feedback. And the reason that they needed to go out right now, while some work is still happening in the back end, is to ensure that changes can be made for the upcoming school year because the regulations need to go out and be posted for 30 days to provide people with that opportunity to provide feedback into the process. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, how does not including bridging programs while prioritizing other changes align with the post-secondary education framework which identifies increasing access to education opportunities, particularly for Indigenous students from small communities? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I think I heard something encouraging there, but I am going to put the question plainly.

Will the Minister commit to including bridging programs that lead to full-time enrolment in the changes being made to the updated SFA regulations? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, I have already given direction to the Department of Education, Culture and Employment to allow for bridging education for students to resolve this issue so that students who need a very specific coursework, like I have had conversations with Members on both sides of the House about, can access that bridging program that leads to a trade or a profession that they are pursuing. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. Oral questions. Member from Mackenzie Delta.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Further to my Member's statement, my questions are for the Minister of Finance.

What policies govern how long community records are retained and where they are housed once stored? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member from Mackenzie Delta. Minister of Finance.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there are certainly different standards that would apply to different types of records. I would be happy to get back to the House with some details with respect to what particular records there may be. I know there has been recently a matter that a Member has been advocating for a resident on that was quite dated, and we have been struggling to find anything in that respect. But certainly, as I say, I can get back to the House with any specifics on that. I don't have that in front of me. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will carry on with my questions that I have here. What efforts has the government made to locate, reconstruct, or validate missing employment records for individuals who worked for our government prior to 1998? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there are records stored, of course, in different parts of the territory. So with respect to whether or not there is a need to reconstruct a record, so for instance I know there has been -- quite specifically, there was an arbitration decision that has led some folks to be looking for records that in some cases could be quite dated in order to demonstrate whether or not they should be part of the outcome of that decision, which was with respect to casual employment. So in that respect, Mr. Speaker, certainly some people would have their records, some records might be found more quickly or easily. But, again, some individuals are running into difficulty. And then, you know, again, depending on the type of record and depending on the circumstance, we could address it individually. But that may well come down to the type of record and the reason for it. So, again, I know there is a particular resident who is struggling to find some records right now, and there may be others looking. I am happy to deal with them each as they come in. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister of Finance. Final supplementary. Member from Mackenzie Delta.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. These records are very important for family members and, you know, it's something that these people are trying to get some answers for. It is not unreasonable to expect the individuals to go back that far in time knowing that the likelihood of retrieving the necessary supporting information may be uncertain or even attainable in retrieving these records. Will the records be able to be retrieved or reconstructed any time soon? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And, Mr. Speaker, if I am not mistaken, the records at issue here are from 1998 so as I -- I know that there is a concern that someone is trying to find some records with respect to their employment. I will certainly go back and ensure that we have done everything we can to reconstruct that or to perhaps determine if there's some other pathways, perhaps, for example, through CRA or other tax filings, etcetera. So we'll bring a bit more creativity to this and see if we can help this individual. Thank you.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have questions for the Minister of Health and Social Services.

So according to the document tabled by the health Minister a few days ago, on May 27th, in response to a question asked by my colleague from Monfwi back in February, so HSS estimates that the latest annual cost of sending NWT patients south for MRI scans is about $3.3 million, and this cost has been going up significantly year over year.

So, first, I commend the department for doing that math, to figure out those estimates. So my first question for the Minister, has HSS or the health authority done research on how much money it could cost to buy an MRI machine and offer MRI services in the NWT and, as a result, how much money could be saved over time? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Yellowknife North. Minister of Health and Social Services.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the information that we tabled, we have that data because we have been doing the feasibility studies. So we have the cost benefit analysis, and one of the things that we -- you know, over the years that the trend has been is that the physicians are using this tool more frequently now and so the amount of referrals for MRIs has been increasing over the years. And so now that we're -- like, we've done the feasibility studies in the past and where we are now, it does show that, you know, the cost and, you know, the numbers that we have versus just the machine plus to put it into the facility and then to have staff and training and all that, we have all that -- been completed. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I shall be following up with the Minister to see if we can publicize those exact stats.

But given that some of the money to be saved is federal dollars, such as NIHB funds for medical travel, has the Minister tried or been able to convince the federal government to contribute funds for getting an MRI machine in the NWT? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as soon as we heard the federal budget last year, you know, all of these types of things that we've been talking about that we have on our wish list immediately came, and we've had those conversations. My staff has had those conversations. I have had those conversations. We've met with Indigenous governments, and I think Indigenous governments and small communities have raised all of the things that they feel that is needed. And within the announcements that there's -- we are fitting in within the few announcements that have been made for different health infrastructure that where these can fit into those, and so we're just waiting on that. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister of Health and Social Services. Final supplementary. Member from Yellowknife North.