Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mrs. Mary Kendi, a well-respected elder from Aklavik, passed away in Inuvik on Monday, May 26, 2014. Mary just recently celebrated her 99th birthday.

Born on the Pokiak Channel in 1915, Mary Vittrekwa spent her early years in Aklavik, Fort McPherson and Nagwichoo Tshik, mouth of the Peel. She married Alfred Kendi in 1932 and together raised 10 children. She sewed for her family, always making sure her children had slippers and fancy footwear and they were dressed warm in winter months. Later on, taking care of her grandchildren sewing traditional parkys, mukluks, mitts...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Kam Lake, that Bill 18, An Act to Amend the Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act, be read for the third time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Can the Minister describe what is being done for medical travel situations in the interim, before the final recommendations of the review? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are for the Minister of Health and Social Services.

I understand that the department is reviewing its Medical Travel Policy. What is the timeline for this review? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have some serious concerns about the medical travel escort system that our government has in place. Clearly, it is not working. We have medical patients who are travelling whose request for escorts are being denied by this government.

I have spoken to this issue in the past and I’ve brought it to the Minister’s attention and heard promises to make changes. Today I’m speaking for my riding and other people in the Northwest Territories.

We need to get the system right and make our patients comfortable while they are away from home, while they are undergoing surgery and...

Thank you. There’s been a lot of talk these last couple days about junior kindergarten and there doesn’t seem to be much support from here in Yellowknife and I can understand that. It will affect a lot of the daycares here in the city and my biggest concern is the education in the North. It’s quite clear that we’re well behind other provinces and jurisdictions. We need to do something and I believe junior kindergarten is a good start.

Will the Minister ensure that they follow through with the plans that they’ve had to implement more programs this fall? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Excitement is in the air in the Mackenzie Delta. A lot of athletes are getting very excited to travel to Fairbanks, Alaska, for the Arctic Winter Games. I’d like to wish them all well, and all their support, their parents and guardians that will be travelling with them as well. I wish them all safe travels and I hope you get a lot of golden ulus and meet a lot of friends out there. We wish you all the best.

The Minister must know something that I don’t, because last time I looked, I’m a Regular Member.

---Laughter

But I would be interested in being a Minister down the road. To the question. There doesn’t seem to be support here in the larger centres for junior kindergarten, so will the Minister look at possibly not rolling that out into the larger centres and focus more on the smaller centres? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I, too, have a few questions for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. As junior kindergarten moves forward, we had a presentation earlier this month on what they plan to roll out. I would like to commend the Tlicho Government in taking over junior kindergarten and offering it in their language. I would like to see a lot more of that in the other regions as well.

Will the Minister work with other regions to ensure that happens? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I, too, when this last came up, voted on the 19 MLAs, keeping things status quo with the changes that were brought forward by the commission. I think it addresses a number of the issues that we’re dealing with. I know there are concerns of conflict between two Aboriginal groups, but I represent two ridings such as that with the Inuvialuit and the Gwich’in. Two different groups but we work together. I represent both groups. Any concerns that come up, you deal with it and work together, and that’s the way things should operate. I don’t think that in the long run we’ll...