Bob Bromley

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr, Speaker, I’d like to move, seconded by the Member for Frame Lake, a motion.

WHEREAS rates of mental illness in the Northwest Territories are disproportionately high in comparison with other Canadian jurisdictions;

AND WHEREAS a high proportion of persons involved in police incidents suffer from mental illnesses;

AND WHEREAS national research indicates that securing mental health services without resorting to the usual criminal justice system can greatly reduce the likelihood of further offences by helping individuals receive appropriate treatment;

AND WHEREAS...

Thank you. I appreciate that information and I’ll pass that along to my constituents who are interested. I guess, following up on the Prime Minister’s visit, is there anything the Premier can report back to us on the discussions? I realize his visit was very short this morning, but I wonder if the Premier had an opportunity to visit and whether we might hear what we should be hearing about. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d also like to recognize residents of Weledeh, Loretta and Dick Abernethy. I’d also like to recognize Johanna Stewart, one of our Pages today, a resident of Weledeh, and really express my appreciation to all the Pages we’ve had throughout our four years.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Politics were new to me and I want to offer some brief and random comments on the experience of the past four years.

People ask me, so, Bob, do you enjoy it? I always reply that I am not sure “enjoy” is the right word, but the job is fully engaging, it uses whatever you can bring to the table.

Another motivating aspect is that being at the table, your voice must be heard. People can choose to ignore your input or disagree with it or use it to modify their own thoughts, but fundamentally the electorate has provided you with a voice and this must be fully valued.

First, as...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Very briefly, the Minister of Justice and the department have shown very progressive leadership on diversion programs that support early intervention and prevention of correctional court and health costs. Secondly, the current review and reorganization of the mental health services underway is extending into the next Assembly. This coincidental and overlapping initiative is a good time to bring a mental health court forward.

I want to point out that in the experience to date in Canadian jurisdictions they have enjoyed very healthy savings. In fact, they found that 90...

I’d like to call Committee of the Whole to order. Committee, we have before us two items: Bill 9 and Committee Report 7-16(6). What is the wish of committee? Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It’s also my pleasure to introduce and recognize Martin Knutson, who is president of the NWT Wildlife Federation and also a director of the Canadian Wildlife Federation. I would also like to recognize Lee Mandeville, a resident of Weledeh and a fiddler extraordinaire, as everybody knows, and any other residents of Weledeh in the audience.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate the Minister’s comments again. I certainly hope that the 17th Assembly will be standing firm and be prepared to do that work. However, I understand the Prime Minister will be in town this week to demonstrate his devotion to northern interests and will be meeting with the Premier. Can the Minister assure me that our dismay at any erosion of Environment Canada monitoring programming in the NWT will be brought forcefully to the attention of the Prime Minister?

Thanks for the bad news that the Minister has provided there. It sounds pretty grim. Many of the environmental monitoring functions performed by Environment Canada are referred to as mandated requirements. Meaning if the federal Minister issues a licence or authority with conditions requiring regulatory agencies to monitor compliance, the federal government is legally obligated to provide the resource necessary to carry out the monitoring. This legal compulsion would presumably govern the monitoring requirements arising out of authorities granted for the operation of our mines, the Mackenzie...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It’s my pleasure to recognize Chief Edward Sangris of Dettah and chief of the Yellowknives Dene First Nation. I’d also welcome Chief Tsetta if he’s here too.