Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the answer quite simply is yes, that career development navigators do on-site visits. That being said, Mr. Speaker, the priority is certainly making sure that we're supporting more potential apprentices, more persons, more students to get involved into the trades. And so making sure that we are processing applications is certainly a top priority in supporting students in the trades. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I suppose we shall read between the lines on that answer, that perhaps there are not always proactive visits in every case. Secondly, though, I mentioned yesterday that unlike other jurisdictions, we don't seem to have a way to connect employers eager to find apprentices with the appropriate students who might be a good fit. Has the Minister or the department looked into providing that type of assistance to employers interested in taking on apprentices? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, no need for the Member to read between the lines. Like I said, ECE is proactive but certainly can only be in so many places at once. Mr. Speaker, to the Member's recent question, yes, ECE is currently reviewing apprenticeship programs to ensure that they are more accessible. And this, of course, includes reviewing consent forms to make sure that ECE has the permission to be able to provide this information to employers. Thank you.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So, finally, has the department considered changing regulations to allow for situations where a journeyperson might be able to safely supervise more than two apprentices at a time? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So, Mr. Speaker, short answer, yes. Longer answer is that this is already something that employers can do. So if employers want to be able to take on a third apprentice, they can actually speak with the director of ATOC in order to seek a special waiver to be able to increase the number of apprentices that they have within their workplace. Thank you.

Colleagues, the time is up for oral questions. Oral questions. Written questions. Member from Range Lake.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services.

1. What is the cause of delays in the notification of the affected individuals following the occurrence, detection, and patient notification of the 574 confirmed privacy breaches at the Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority from October 2015-April 2025?
2. What legal or policy provisions prevent the NTHSSA from disclosing the job title, department, or region of an employee responsible for an intentional privacy breach?
3. Of the 750 plus confirmed privacy breaches in the Northwest Territories health system over the past decade, how many involved repeat offenders?
4. How frequently does the NTHSSA conduct proactive or random audits independent of complaints or staffing changes based on their current auditing tool system? And finally,
5. What is the completion rate for mandatory annual privacy training across all staff categories in the Northwest Territories, and what metrics are used to assess whether this training effectively reduces unauthorized access to patient information?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member from Range Lake. Written questions. Member from Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.

Thank you, Member from Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh. Written questions. Member from Yellowknife Centre.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I've got a couple of written questions.

Mr. Speaker, the first written question is with respect to the Inuvik wind project costs and review. So, Mr. Speaker,

The Inuvik Wind Project was originally approved with $40 million in public funding, including $30 million from the federal government and $10 million from the Government of the Northwest Territories. The project has since been publicly reported as expected to cost more than $70 million and has involved delays, access road issues, contractor disputes, litigation, and unresolved damages. My questions are for the Minister responsible for the Northwest Territories Power Corporation are as follows:

1. Can the Minister provide a full cost breakdown of the Inuvik Wind Project, including the original approved budget, current total cost, major cost categories, and all remaining or unresolved costs?
2. Can the Minister provide a chronological timeline of all revised cost estimates, budget increases, scope changes, and major project delays, including when each was identified and what caused the change? And lastly,
3. Can the Minister provide a list of rationale points used to authorize continued spending after the project exceeded its original approved budget?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member from Yellowknife Centre. Written questions. Member from Yellowknife Center.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My next question is with respect to the operational health and capital capacity of Prosper NWT.

As the territory's primary business development lender, Prosper NWT must balance its economic diversification mandate with strict risk management. Amid rising northern operational costs, a comprehensive evaluation of Prosper NWT's current loan portfolio, underwriting thresholds, and write-off metrics is required to ensure the crown corporation maintains the asset health and capital liquidity necessary to protect northern taxpayers from undue liability.

My questions are for the Minister of industry, tourism and investment:

1. What is the current total lending capacity of Prosper NWT for the upcoming fiscal year, and what percentage of its total loan portfolio is currently classified as non-performing or at high risk of default?
2. What are the specific credit limits, underwriting thresholds, or risk-mitigation policies currently used to evaluate high-value commercial loans in volatile economic sectors?
3. How many businesses have been turned away or denied funding in the last 12 months due to Prosper NWT reaching its sector-specific capital or credit allocation limits?
4. What is the total dollar value of loan write-offs or debt forgiveness approved by Prosper NWT during the last two fiscal years?
5. What adjustments are being made to Prosper NWT's lending framework to specifically support micro-businesses and commercial operations struggling with localized infrastructure disruptions.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member from Yellowknife Centre. Written questions.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The next is the third of five. So the next one is with respect to the accountability and limits for government direct appointments.

While the Public Service Act permits direct appointments during exceptional circumstances, routinely bypassing competitive hiring processes risks damaging public trust and institutionalizing bias. This practice can limit career advancement for long-term northern residents and directly conflict with affirmative action commitments. The issue is particularly critical during the final six months of an Assembly's mandate, making full disclosure of the economic and demographic justifications for all recent uncompetitive appointments essential for proper legislative oversight.

My questions are for the Minister of Finance:

1. How many direct appointments have been made across all departments, boards, and agencies within the last six months, broken down by department and position level?
2. What specific criteria or emergency thresholds must a department satisfy to bypass the competitive hiring process for senior management or executive roles?
3. Will the Government commit to implementing a policy requiring formal caucus notification or real disclosures to all Members of the Legislative Assembly for any direct appointments made during the final six months of an Assembly's mandate?
4. What is the total annual salary and benefits expenditure associated with the direct appointments executed during the last two fiscal years?
5. How many of the direct appointments made in the past 12 months were granted to non-residents of the Northwest Territories, and what justification was provided for bypassing affirmative action priorities in those specific instances?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Yellowknife Centre. Written questions. Member from Yellowknife Centre.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.The next question is with respect to child and family services vacancies and compliances.

Repeated auditor general reports highlight chronic gaps within the Northwest Territories child and family services system that directly threaten vulnerable children. High caseworker vacancy rates and intense staff turnover continue to undermine the Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority's ability to meet its statutory duties under the Child and Family Services Act. A clear, regional accounting of caseworker retention and compliance benchmarks is required to ensure accountability and guarantee that mandatory cultural support plans are being actively delivered.

My questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services:

1. What is the current caseworker vacancy rate by region, and what specific targeted recruitment strategies are being deployed to fill frontline positions in small communities?
2. Of the active child protection files opened in the past 12 months, what percentage have fully complied with mandated safety welfare check timelines?
3. What concrete measures or training frameworks have been implemented to ensure caseworker compliance with required cultural support plans for Indigenous children in care?
4. How many child welfare safety audits were completed late or remain overdue across the Northwest Territories as of April 1, 2026? And lastly,
5. What baseline funding increases or resource allocations have been directly committed to community-based Indigenous governments to support localized preventative child and family services over the last two fiscal years?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member from Yellowknife Centre. Written questions. Member from Yellowknife Centre.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The last written question. It's with respect to the medical travel case management and referral coordination.

Mr. Speaker, medical travel is a critical lifeline for remote communities, but it remains one of the fastest growing and most volatile expenditure sectors in the health budget. Internal inefficiencies like duplicate bookings and uncoordinated non-medical escorts cause both financial waste and severe patient distress. To ensure accountability, the department must provide empirical evidence that recent administrative investments such as specialized nurse case managers are successfully streamlining care and lowering the program's overall cost trajectory.

My questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services:

What is the current operational status, completed milestones, and implementation timeline of the "referral coordination project" originally identified under the Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority's Deficit Reduction Plan.

1. How will the recently announced medical travel nurse case manager positions in Yellowknife be operationalized to actively reduce common system inefficiencies, such as administrative duplication, missed connections, or premature patient rebooking?
2. What specific performance indicators, metrics, or financial benchmarks is the Department of Health and Social Services tracking to measure whether the addition of these specialized case management positions is successfully lowering the overall cost trajectory of the medical travel program?
3. Of the total medical travel flights authorized in the last fiscal year, what percentage were classified as non-urgent or escort travel, and what was the corresponding total expenditure for those categories? And finally, Mr. Speaker,
4. What steps are being taken to integrate real-time digital tracking or portal access for patients and referring community health centres to reduce administrative backlogs within the medical travel system?

And that's the last question for today. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Member for Yellowknife Centre. Written questions. Returns to written questions. Replies to the Commissioner's address. Petitions. Reports of committees on the review of bills. Reports of standing and special committees. Tabling of documents. Minister of Health and Social Services.

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following three documents: Deh Cho Critical Incident Investigation Report and Recommendations; Primary and Community Health Care Reform Framework; and, the 2026-2027 Health and Social Services Authority Budget. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister of Health and Social Services. Tabling of documents. Minister responsible for WSCC.