Glen Abernethy

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the positions exist. We have filled positions. We have had people resign. We have had turnover. Some are more stable than others. We are committed to filling the positions. We continue to move forward to fill those positions when incumbents do leave. Our goal is to have those positions full at all times. They are not currently all full. We are recruiting where they are vacant.

I'm not sure I understand the question 100 per cent. If a resident of the Northwest Territories is given a referral to a community outside of their home community for a service, if they are required to go to another community to receive services, whether it's somebody going to Fort Resolution for an appointment or somebody from Simpson going to Edmonton or Yellowknife, medical travel will apply, and if there is a legitimate need for an escort, those needs will also be met. So I'm not sure I understand the question 100 per cent.

We'll certainly work with committee. We will keep them updated both with the review and the report, as well as moving forward.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in March there was a motion that all Members of the House supported, including Members on this side. We have moved forward, we have begun the development of the plan. We intend to have it done March 31, as originally indicated. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I wish, but, unfortunately, no. But to the Member's point, the negotiations have actually started already. We're in early stages of discussions, figuring out how the negotiation is going to move forward. I've made a commitment to our Aboriginal partners and governments that during these negotiations we want to make sure that our Aboriginal partners are engaged. The Aboriginal people are telling us the same thing around progressive lenses; that the seniors who are accessing our extended health benefits are saying. I can't say that we will win that fight, but it's a fight that we're undertaking...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I just want to take an opportunity to thank all the pages who have been working with us over the last couple weeks. They provide us a great service, and we really appreciate everything they do. In particular, I wanted to recognize one of the pages who happens to be a resident of the Great Slave riding, Ethan Aumond. Thank you so much for everything you've done.

This does happen from time to time. But to be clear, a medical escort, non-medical escort, still needs to be referred or supported by a practitioner. It's not a choice that the individuals get to make; they still have to have support. If there's a legitimate need, an escort will be provided.

I understand the situation the Member is describing. If Jane Doe lives in a community, has to go to Edmonton, but their daughter, spouse, whatnot, happens to live in a different community, how do we get the right people together? It's usually done through an exception request. This is something that an...

Mr. Speaker, I knew the money question was coming. The Member has asked pretty much for money on every initiative that we're working on, which I appreciate, and obviously we would love to put money into these initiatives. The problem is, we have an expenditure versus revenue challenge here in the Government of the Northwest Territories. Any money that we put into new initiatives, new programs, is going to cost money, and that money has to come from somewhere.

As I've committed on the other questions the Member has asked, we're going to look carefully at how we're spending our money to make sure...

That is the intention. We intend to have a plan outlining the services and whatnot that are provided today and identifying any gaps in services we need to provide, as well as an opportunity to have mechanisms to evaluate as we move forward.

We deliver NIHB on behalf of the federal government. It is a federal government program, and the timing of the negotiations really depends on the speed that they wish to move forward. We're already engaged. I, unfortunately, can't tell you when these negotiations conclude. The end date is somewhat mobile or somewhat flexible, based on the intensity of some of the negotiations.