Caroline Cochrane

Mr. Speaker, this government is committed to improving access to services and enhancing community wellness and safety through the implementation of a territorial 911 program. I would like to describe some of the key steps the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs has taken to ensure that 911 becomes a reality for the territory and that the 911 program benefits all the communities.

In May, a 911 program manager was hired to design a culturally respectful, made-in-the-North 911 program. The program will be based on best practices and established standards. It will foster community...

Yes. We are currently in the process of reviewing all of the options at this point. I know that, within the next two weeks, we will have defined which way or path we are going forward.

Yes, it is absolutely critical that we keep the MLA for the riding as informed as possible. He is the person who is on the ground. He is the person who will be getting the complaints and the questions from the public, so I will commit to keeping him as informed as possible throughout this process. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

We do want to engage the public, the community members of Norman Wells, as much as possible within this process, so, yes, as soon as the decision was made and we relayed it to the municipal council that we were going into administration, we did hold a public meeting. We will continue to hold public meetings ongoing to keep the public aware, also to get their feedback into how we should be proceeding. So, yes, we will do as much public consultation as possible throughout this term.

Mr. Speaker, this week is Family Violence Awareness Week in the Northwest Territories. The theme this year is "Healthy Relationships, Healthy Communication." There are events occurring across the Northwest Territories between October 16th and October 22nd to bring attention to family violence and promote healthier ways for people to deal with conflict.

Family violence is a complex issue, and it must be addressed. The truth is that family violence occurs at epidemic rates in the Northwest Territories. According to a Statistics Canada profile released in January 2015, the rate of family violence...

The municipal inspection report was actually done on my direction as the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs. That report in its entirety will be held in confidentiality, although we do have a summary of the report that is available on the Municipal and Community Affairs website if Members are interested in accessing that.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I do want to start by saying that the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs really does honour our municipal and our Aboriginal governments, and we do the best we can to provide support to them. Sometimes it does come to a place, though, that we have to look at providing either additional support or actually taking over council. It was with regret that we actually stepped in and went into administration with the council. How we are moving forward, over the next couple of weeks I am going to be appointing a long-term administrator for the town. This person, there...

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to speak on the progress of the Strategic Renewal that is being undertaken by the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation. The Housing Engagement Survey was used to identify what is working, what needs improvement, and what is missing for housing programs. Each policy and program is currently being revised in consideration of these needs, as well as ensuring that programs meet the mandate commitments, are effective in meeting their objectives and are appropriate and efficient through considering alternative design and delivery approaches.

Action on Strategic Renewal...

Mr. Speaker, I give notice that on Thursday, October 19, 2017, I will move that Bill 1, Western Canada Lottery Act be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

This program, as stated earlier, is about helping stabilize non-government organizations that provide a critical service that the Government of the Northwest Territories would have to provide if it wasn’t in effect. It does support volunteerism in that the majority of non-government organizations are managed by volunteer boards, which is actually part of their society’s act. So it is something that does support volunteerism to the heart and to the core.