Jackson Lafferty

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Range Lake, that Bill 5, An Act to Amend the Maintenance Orders Enforcement Act, be read for the third time.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. I seek consent to proceed with third reading of Bill 6, An Act to Amend the Residential Tenancies Act.

Yes, Mr. Chair.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate the Assembly has expressed interest in protecting the rights of children whose parents are separating or divorcing. However, the Cabinet will be abstaining from the motion that has been brought forward, and I would like to explain why. I will also provide concepts for Members who are not certain whether they should support this or not.

As you know, we do have acts and laws in place within our jurisdiction of the Northwest Territories. First of all, the NWT Family Law supports the principle that decisions should be made in the best interests of the children. The...

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. This option was just given to us recently, so we need to sit down as a department and go over the options. Certainly, it will be presented once we move forward. There’s still ongoing discussion within my department. It hasn’t moved forward because this will be a long-term solution. Once we’ve made a decision, we’ll certainly come back to the committee, possibly the Social Programs Committee, that deals with our ECE department. At that point in time we’ll certainly be sharing that information with the committee. Mahsi.

Mr. Speaker, we did meet with the Deh Cho superintendent, who is coordinating for the superintendents, and also with the chairs of the respective regions’ education boards. We met a couple of weeks ago. They proposed three or four options for us to consider, but we wanted to deal with the immediate issue at hand: the new recruits and the returning teachers coming to the North, especially in the isolated communities that may not have housing units.

We’re going to work closely with the Housing Corporation to identify vacant units that can be made available to the teaching staff. That is one area...

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. [English translation not provided.]

Mr. Speaker, this summer one of our territory’s most important institutions will be celebrating its 50th anniversary. On August 1, 2 and 3 École Sir John Franklin High School will be hosting a homecoming weekend to recognize the school’s 50 years of education.

Since 1958 Sir John has seen thousands of students pass through its doors. Many leaders of the modern North attended Sir John. At least five current Members of the Legislature attended Sir John Franklin Territorial high school, including myself, and at least one of us even taught...

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Range Lake, that Bill 6, An Act to Amend the Residential Tenancies Act, be read for the third time.

Mahsi, Mr. Chair. I have Janice Laycock, to my left, senior policy analyst; and Janis Cooper, legislative counsel, legislation division.

Yes, Mr. Chair. I am pleased to appear before the committee today to review Bill 6, An Act to Amend the Residential Tenancies Act.

The purpose of Bill 6 is to modernize the Residential Tenancies Act, ensure that disputes are resolved more quickly and provide effective remedies to both landlords and tenants. There are also a number of housekeeping items in the bill to correct errors, omissions or outdated references and definitions in the act. Other changes clarify and strengthen provisions to deal with tenants who are involved in illegal activities on rental premises.

These amendments maintain...