Alfred Moses

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d also like to take this opportunity to thank all our hardworking staff in the GNWT. The event that we had today goes to show that we have some really good staff and people working for the people of the Northwest Territories through the Premier’s Awards; some hardworking, dedicated staff.

With that said, we’re coming to the end of our four-week budget session. We’ve had some very long days, early mornings, late nights and we had some really strong debates, some really good meetings. Just the whole process of how everything went down was very educating. It’s a lot of...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I give notice that on Thursday, June 14, 2012, I will move the following motion: I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Thebacha, that notwithstanding Rule 4, when this House adjourns on June 14, 2012, it shall be adjourned until Wednesday, October 17, 2012;

And further, that any time prior to October 17, 2012, if the Speaker is satisfied, after consultation with the Executive Council and Members of the Legislative Assembly, that the public interest requires that the House should meet at an earlier time during the adjournment, the Speaker may give notice and...

Mr. Speaker, I guess I am going to have to say I disagree with that statement. Programs are good, but when people are in the system right now and they are battling addictions, they are going to need a detoxification centre to clean up their body and clean their system out, so then they can have a clear mental picture of actually going to those programs where they will get help. I think it is putting the cart before the horse, as some Members have said before. We need to detox.

In regard to the Minister’s statement, there are four goals that he mentioned. One area that he doesn’t talk about is...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are also for the Minister of Health and Social Services. It’s in regard to his Minister’s statement that he gave a little bit earlier. I commend him on taking the initiative to create an action plan. As well, it’s something that we can start on and start building on, as we make it more interesting as we move forward.

In regard to my colleague’s questions here, I just wanted to ask the Minister, in terms of policy for getting into treatment, what’s the current policy for anybody that wants to seek treatment in the Northwest Territories. Is it still a 30-day...

Can the Minister provide us with details on how many individuals did participate in that program that he mentioned out of Hay River, and if he’s looking at putting it into an advanced course and offering it to languages right throughout the Northwest Territories? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are also for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment in regard to a report, I believe in the last Assembly, called the Health Talk Report. There was a recommendation made in terms of having a translator in each of the regional health authorities to assist our growing population of seniors who need medical attention and services, but whose first language is their official language and English is their second language. So they might have some difficulty with the terminology or getting the proper information for the best care that they need...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, prevention is huge and I think we need to think outside the box here in terms of either creating a harder tax on liquor sales or creating some type of legislation that would make it harder for people to continue to abuse alcohol and drugs that we have in the Northwest Territories. Is the Minister willing to look at existing or create new legislation that will prevent people from becoming more addicted to alcohol and drugs? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I think the Minister answered that very well. It goes to show where our deficiencies are within the government system. We don’t have any services to help our people who are struggling with mental health and addictions, especially the addictions. There is no support out there, no services. There are no detox centres that we can house our individuals that need help.

In his Minister’s statement, the Minister mentioned that he will ensure that existing services like the Nats’ejee K’eh Treatment Centre and detoxification services are effective. I am not too sure which detoxification...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In regard to our growing seniors population which will result in more visits to the hospital, as well as the new crime bill coming through, we’re going to see more cases before the court system. Would the Minister commit to increasing some kind of funding pot for local interpreters who might be readily available? Would he be looking at creating some type of program where our local regional people can get some jobs in helping our elders, as well as those in the justice system with this type of thing to expect in the future? Thank you.

The Minister mentioned earlier with going on with my other colleague asking question with the ALCIP program and the other program I believe in the Deh Cho, with the five modules. Would any of those programs be able to address the issues needed within our government system, such as Justice, Education or Health, in terms of terminology and getting the information to residents of the Northwest Territories where English is their second language? Do either of these programs address that concern and that issue? Thank you.