Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Last week, I talked about longer term impacts on this COVID-19 pandemic is doing to our small communities. Restrictions on social activities such as community feasts, sporting events, and extracurricular activities can negatively impact the mental health of our citizens. I want to say again that the Minister and the Chief Public Health Officer of the Department of Health and Social Services are doing good work keeping COVID-19 out of our communities. The restrictions are necessary, and they are doing their best to communicate this to the public, keeping fears to a...

I think we could make that change this year, with the Assembly ourselves, with this Minister, to go forward and try to make it easier for our people who we represent, especially in the small communities. The burdens of having to fly all the way to Edmonton, you are looking at a week there, then another coming back, two weeks, so you're almost gone for a month for a one-day checkup. With the Chief Public Health Officer, the Minister is the boss of that department. That being said, can she make that change, that positive change, once it's available? Just say yes.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Today, I was speaking about mental health in regard to the self-isolation plans for the travelling for the medical travel. Does the Minister acknowledge the added burden that the self-isolation requirements place on people who have repeated medical travel needs? Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. What time does the Minister anticipate rapid testing be available to the territory on a go-forward basis? Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Has the Minister considered making special arrangements with those who frequently travel for medical travel such as cancer, that small group of people, making it easier for them so that, when they're done their medical travel, they'll come back to the territory, do their test, once a test is available, for probably three days before they're allowed to go back home? Is that possible to happen with that group of people?

Thank you, Madam Chair. Just in regard to the major retrofits in the communities, the small communities that I represent, anyway, I think that the quality of workmanship going in to make sure that we have a Red Seal carpenter who is travelling with these people who are coming into the communities and making sure they are certified, because I've been getting a few calls in regard to the workmanship and not having Red Seal carpenters on-site -- I just want to make sure that that is being done. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Yes. It is a really good opportunity to get gas a lot cheaper for the outlying communities because I think, without our subsidy that's given by our government, you'd be paying $2-something a litre. Getting opportunity to do something like this would probably be about $1.25 a litre, if not a little bit cheaper, because we're getting it right there at the source. It being on 71a lands under the Inuvialuit Final Agreement, 71a lands meaning Tuktoyaktuk lands. Are we keeping in contact with the Tuktoyaktuk community corporation with their business, the Tuktoyaktuk development corporation, and...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to invite CMHC on that tour in regard to seeing. They came to Tuktoyaktuk about two years ago. We told them all our issues, and we never heard back from them. I would ask the NWT representative invited onto that tour of Nunakput and whatever tour she is going on in regard to other than my riding, but I think it's a real priority. It has to be done. We have been sitting. If they are holding $60 million of the territory's access to funding, it should be spent, and it's urgent. Some people are homeless. Some people, they need a little bit of a light to say...

Thank you, Madam Minister, for that update, too. I see that, but we need new units. We need more units. The units that we do have we could have had about another 20 more units because there is so much mould and stuff going on in the community. People are getting sick. I'm thankful to hear that. I know that's happening, but we need more units. We have either sell out what they can get rid of to get it out of the system because I know we're only allowed so many units in the community. We have to get rid of some of the old units and put some new ones and bigger ones, fourplexes. We need more...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Addressing Nunakput's housing crisis, Mr. Speaker, young families have no place to go. We have not enough units in the community. Housing is not adequate for my elders, such as no backdoors in some of the units that are built now. Overcrowding, causing illness, which is a ticking timebomb for COVID-19 and for not enough water for the people inside the unit for water delivery. Houses are in despair. When the wind blows in a certain way, you've got snow coming in through the windows, and you've got snow coming through the doors, Mr. Speaker. Heating costs go through the...