Charles Dent

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Government policy is that indeterminate employees are the only ones who gain the benefit of the staff retention policy. So we do not offer a program specifically for casual and term employees. However, I would expect that, if these people have worked for some time, they would have good references that would stand them in good stead with other jobs when they come open. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would concur with the Member that we have an awful lot of experience at Dene K’onia and people with good experience and a lot of dedication to the job. It is one of the bright points that came out of the review of Justice that was done last year. We have an awful lot of dedicated employees who have stuck around for a long time. We would very much like to keep as many employees as possible and take advantage of their knowledge, skills and experience. The offer of transfer will be made to many or has been made to many. Unfortunately, a lot of people find that it...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As Minister responsible for official languages, I don’t think this government has any policy discouraging the use of any languages, whether they are official or not, in the Northwest Territories. I think I have already answered this question. I said that the government encourages the use of all languages.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this government supports the use of people's first languages as much as possible. We want people to be able to celebrate their language and culture, and it is the position of the government that people should be able to use their language with people around them. Of course, if there’s a situation at work that requires that everybody understands what is going on, we would expect that there would be use of a common language. But we do respect the use of all languages in the Northwest Territories. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, if we look at all of the young offenders facilities that we have or the spaces that we have for young offenders right now, we’re not anywhere near 50 percent occupancy. It will take some time before we get up to a level where we expect that we would need these facilities again. Whether it’s two years, five years or 10 years, I can’t predict how long it’s going to be before we need more facilities. I would hope that we never need more facilities, but, if we do, then we can deal with that through either the provision of homes for young offenders, which is one...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, for young offenders who are sentenced to custody through the courts, there has always been a range of options. One is if they’re sentenced to the secure custody facility here in Yellowknife; it’s available to house them. Typically what happens to offenders who are sentenced to secure custody, they go through that facility into an open custody facility and then move on into either a camp or a residential home. The goal is to try and integrate young offenders back into the community and move them as quickly as possible into a residential setting. What has...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Good afternoon. February 14th to the 18th is Aurora College Week, and this year there is a lot to celebrate. Throughout the week, the college will continue to hold events to celebrate its vital role in post-secondary and adult education and training in the Northwest Territories.

This year there are 412 full-time students attending a variety of programs through Aurora College, including adult basic education, trades and technology programs, and career and professional programs. Graduates of these programs have the opportunity to further their studies at universities...

Yes, Madam Chairperson. I have with me Mr. Mark Aitken, director of legislation division.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we’re not talking about redesigning the program yet because we have no idea what sort of money we’re talking about or what the deal is going to look like that we sign with the federal government for the money to flow to us. Not until we know what sort of emphasis we sign on to with this agreement, but we’re starting to get a better understanding. As I told the Member in a previous series of questions, the provinces, territories and federal government have moved the wording in the agreement quite a ways along, but there are some people who are not satisfied...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, if we’re talking just about day cares, I can answer the question. In terms of 2004-05, the funding for early childhood programming is $1.989 million. It’s important to remember that the program that we’re talking about with the federal government is not for day care. It is an Early Learning and Childcare Program that they are interested in investing in. This is not just aimed at day cares. It’s quite clear from the federal point of view that that’s not what this is about. We are working together to try to come up with a system that improves on early...