David Ramsay

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I am pleased to provide opening comments to Bill 17 on behalf of the Legislative Assembly’s Board of Management.

Bill 17 amends the Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act to set out certain rights and privileges of the Legislative Assembly to clarify the responsibilities of the Speaker, Board of Management and officers of the Legislative Assembly to define and ensure consistent use of certain terms and to make a number of minor changes to the act.

Madam Chair, Bill 17 is the result of a comprehensive review of the NWT Legislative Assembly and...

Thank you, Madam Chair. With Bill 15, the fact of the matter is, communities are responsible for any plebiscites they would have at the community level and the type of stringent guidelines the Member talks about is not part of Bill 15. It would be up to the communities to set their own guidelines in that. Thank you.

Yes, I would, Madam Chair. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I guess it’s quite obvious, given my line of questioning here and my Member’s statement today, that I don’t think we’re doing enough as a government to address the area of day care and the space that’s provided, the training for childcare workers and whatnot, and I’d like to ask the Minister, given the fact that all these problems are evident, can he come up with a research method or some kind of strategy or if he needs more help I think we need to explore all of our options here in this area and I’d like the Minister to commit today to doing that. Thank...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I look forward to that taking place and the fallout of what that might be after the discussions take place with the day care providers. Mr. Speaker, the federal government has developed a program that pays each family $100 per month for each child under six. I am wondering what the intent of the Government of the Northwest Territories is to work in conjunction with that federal program to offer how we might augment that program with something we could offer here in the Northwest Territories to parents looking for day care space and some help. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This individual’s been in pain and suffering for three years. He’s in the process of going to India, all the way to India, to get treatment for a condition in his back. Mr. Speaker, I want the Minister to make a commitment. It’s been three years and I think it’s an acceptable level of service if that individual has to take that step to go to India when he comes back that this government cover the medical portion of his visit to India so that he can get the help that he obviously can’t get here in Canada. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Yes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. If the Northwest Territories doesn’t have a policy that states quite clearly what acceptable levels of wait times are, then I’d suggest we get one immediately. Because my constituent has been suffering for three years, the Department of Health and Social Services' answer to that is to put him on another wait list to make him wait another two years. it’s completely unacceptable, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, precedent has been set in other provinces across this country where if an individual has to seek medical attention outside the country they do so. When they come...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I too would like to recognize a Page that we’ve had with us here during this session, Ms. Aimee Gauthier. Mahsi.

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Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Minister of Health and Social Service.

Can the Minister please state any and all cases where they had paid for out-of-country medical care for a resident of the Northwest Territories?

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to ask the Minister what steps he, as the Minister of Health and Social Services, can take for my constituent so that he doesn’t have to continue to be on a wait list for a program in Calgary so that he can get some treatment. I’d also like to ask the Minister if in fact he can sit down with his staff at Health and Social Services to come up with a more effective game plan for the treatment of this individual. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.