Caroline Cochrane

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We are actively engaging with the NWT Metis Association and Canada and ourselves around negotiations. We're talking about flexibility, what we can do. And that process will continue throughout. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. If you look at the mandate that was done from this, the increase in regional decisionmaking, it will be done by the people that are in the regions. There was feedback that they felt that they couldn't make decisions, that they couldn't they couldn't be the final say, that everything that they had to do had to come through headquarters, and then when we did the review of their job descriptions, it's not true. So I don't know if that's a perception that's come from they're thinking that or somebody that was a supervisor in headquarters that got too heavy handed, but that...

I will either make a commitment to either provide it to the Member in a public fashion or to provide an explanation of why we can't give that to the Member either with a why we can't give it period; why we can't give it in a public manner. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Again, that is a federal program. I'm willing to take feedback on it. But, you know, we have problems with our own programs. So a lot of times when we go in, we don't ask them everything. We I ask them general, you know, what are your concerns, what do you want me to address, what do you want me to talk about, and then they bring those to me. I could spend the whole four years just asking about our own programs. So this one is about food security. It's something I care in my heart about, and so I will I've made a commitment that I'll ask about a federal program...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Absolutely, the Government in the Northwest Territories remains committed to land claim agreements that are comparable across the Northwest Territories. So absolutely, we're looking for a comparable agreement. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Chair, I do know that, from when I used to be the housing minister, that there are regular there used to be every few years, they kind of did a crossdepartmental check to make sure that to see how many market housing needs were met were needed. I know that ECE has let us know that, you know, the education bodies let ECE know on a regular basis what they're needing, and I imagine Health has the same. I don't know when that was last done. So I think it might be something that needs to be looked at again. However, I would also caution that might not be the time right now until the Minister...

Mr. Chair, I'd like to defer that to the Minister of Lands, please, Mr. Thompson.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I do think that that having more communities added to it was was something that we can't put aside as not important. It was one of the biggest issues. When I went to Tsiigehtchic actually, it was brought up in that community that that was one of the biggest issues. And so I was a strong advocate, and we did get Tsiigehtchic and other communities as well included into it.

It is a federal program. What I can do is I will try, recognizing that I'm only one Member, but I will try to see if I can get it on to the Council of Leaders agenda, and if they don't want to deal...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'll start, and then I'm not sure if the housing minister would like to expand on it, but I'll begin with it.

I agree that you can't look at employment in small communities or look at increasing employment in small communities without looking at the need for housing. So I'm giving you a heads up on what but basically I do know that the Minister is working. We just had a discussion today actually and the Minister is working with the federal government as stated earlier today on a working group. She is also working with the Indigenous governments. Indigenous governments are...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'd like to defer that to the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs.