Frieda Martselos

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I, too, would like to thank the Members from Cabinet and especially the Minister of Finance for listening to the colleagues on this side of the House. I appreciate the phase 2 of the midwifery program. I think that's a very important part of our traditional way because everyone was born at home in the early years, and now, that hasn't been happening to a great extent. I really appreciate that, and I, too, want to thank everybody for working together because I think that's what consensus government is all about. The relationship that we have with Cabinet as ordinary...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. On March 11, 2021, the Minister of Health and Social Services made an announcement regarding long-term care bed projections for the NWT. Minister Green explained that the Department of Health had updated its data stream and worked with the Bureau of Statistics to redo the estimate of long-term beds needed for the NWT over the next 14 years. They concluded that the NWT does not require as many new long-term beds as they initially thought in 2015.

Mr. Speaker, as a result of this new estimate, the department also created a new prediction model to determine a new number of...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Lastly, the NWT Seniors' Society President, Mr. Don Webb, who is a Fort Smith resident, has told me verbally that he is also very grateful for the new long-term beds coming to Fort Smith. In addition, the entire community of Fort Smith wants to thank Minister Green and the Cabinet for their decision. As the MLA for Thebacha, I, too, wish to thank Minister Green and the Cabinet for implementing the renewal strategy and this decision. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today, I would like to acknowledge all of the Indigenous leaders across the NWT, and that includes all First Nations, Metis, and Inuit leaders within all the communities of the regions of the territory.

Mr. Speaker, as a former chief, I know very well all the challenges that being an Indigenous leader comes with. I know the level of work and stress that comes with the job. I also know how difficult a decision is to put your name forward as chief, and being a former chief, I consider most of the Indigenous leaders of the NWT as friends and former colleagues of mine. As...

Thank you, Madam Chair. Bill 16, An Act to Amend the Income Tax Act, received second reading in the Legislative Assembly on November 2, 2020, and was referred to the Standing Committee on Government Operations for review. On February 25, 2021, the standing committee held a public hearing with the Minister of Finance and completed its clause-by-clause review of the bill. I thank the committee for their efforts in reviewing this legislation. Individual Members may have additional comments or questions.

Can the Minister provide a timeline for when her department expects more communities to have midwifery services in the NWT?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The 2017 NWT Midwifery Stakeholder Engagement Report was 75 pages long. Can the Minister tell us if her department is ready to implement all 10 recommendations to ensure that all communities have access to births in their home communities within the life of the 19th Assembly? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The midwifery programs in Fort Smith and Hay River have been providing excellent care since their inception. Data from the University of British Columbia demonstrates that health outcomes for patients using midwifery services are equal to or better than the rest of the territory and even the country. NWT communities with midwifery services have lower pre-term birth rates than those without, and even clients who choose to leave their home communities for birth have lower C-section rates and long breastfeeding duration rates. These excellent health outcomes are directly...

Thank you, Madam Chair. I am just wondering why we are dealing with this issue when we don't even know if Alberta is going to be aligning with us. Until they align with us, why are we doing this? Why are we even putting this on the books? I don't understand the priorities, but it certainly isn't my priority. The engagement part is really important, and engagement is face-to-face because a lot of people probably would not be in favour of something like this if Alberta is not on the same page as we are. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Can the Minister tell us when her department expects to enter into phase 2 of the midwifery service expansion? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.