Frieda Martselos

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Your Standing Committee on Government Operations is pleased to provide its Report on the Review of the 2018-2019 Annual Report of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of the Northwest Territories and commends it to this House.

The Information and Privacy Commissioner is an Officer of the Legislative Assembly. The IPC operates independently of the Government of the Northwest Territories. The IPC reports to the Legislative Assembly. They provide oversight and enforcement of the government's duties under the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy (ATIPP) Act...

Mr. Speaker, your Standing Committee on Government Operations is pleased to provide its report on the review of the 2018-2019 Northwest Territories Human Rights Commission's annual report and commends it to the House.

The Standing Committee on Government Operations Committee has reviewed the 2018-2019 Annual Report of the Northwest Territories Human Rights Commission. The committee thanks Mr. Charles Dent, chair of the Northwest Territories Human Rights Commission; Ms. Deborah McLeod, director of Human Rights; and Mr. Sheldon Toner, chair of the Adjudication Panel for their appearance before...

Mr. Speaker, would the Minister agree and consider three standalone facilities for aftercare to be built, one in the South Slave, one in the central region, and one in the Beaufort Delta, to help clients who do not want to go back to the communities upon return for recovery centres? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Would the Minister agree that some of the monies for the on-the-land programs could be used to hire and coordinate a program for after-care once the client returns home?

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Kam Lake, that Committee Report 5-19(2), Standing Committee on Government Operations Report on the Review of the 2018-2019 Annual Report of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of the Northwest Territories, be received by the Assembly and moved into Committee of the Whole for consideration. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

This concludes the Standing Committee on Government Operations Report on the NWT Human Rights Commission 2018-2019 Annual Report.

The Standing Committee on Government Operations recommends that the Government of the Northwest Territories provide a response to the recommendations contained in this report within 120 days.

Mr. Speaker, for my Member's statement today, I am going to talk about aftercare addiction services in the NWT. As a mother, a former Dene leader, and now as an MLA, I have seen from multiple lenses the adverse effects that addictions have on people. I am very passionate about this issue because it is something which affects me directly because addictions affect all people; addictions affect all walks of life, of every family. Addictions do not discriminate based on skin colour, social class, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, or language. Addictions are considered a disease, and...

Given that Fort Smith already has much of the infrastructure, an existing knowledge-based economy, and a highly qualified workforce employed presently in a campus atmosphere, it would only make sense to keep the future headquarters in Fort Smith. Does the Minister agree?

Mr. Speaker, can the Minister provide us with a timeline for when we can expect his department to announce where the headquarters of the future polytechnic university will reside? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, it's extremely important that we get strong leadership as the president of the future polytechnic university, with a strong governance structure that reflects all of the NWT and ex officio members from across Canada. However, no matter how many documents and papers the department publishes, if there isn't strong leadership at the top, with strong innovative visions for the future, I worry that we won't create a truly northern-based polytechnic university. Does the Minister agree? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.