Julie Green

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are for the Premier. Throughout the pandemic, the Regular Members have struggled to receive timely, complete, accurate, and fulsome information about different aspects of the government's reaction to the pandemic.

Once again, we have done our major learning from the news sources: first CBC, and then Cabin Radio. What we now know is that the public health order is going to be changed. I am unclear, first of all, why this wasn't announced in an orderly way, meaning a news release with advance notice to the Regular MLAs and a news release that is released to...

Thank you, Madam Chair. I wonder if this is an appropriate time to raise the emails that we have all received about the possibility of continuing classes at Sissons school for the next year so that there is more classroom space available for physical distancing. I see all the Ministers looking at one another, so that is for whoever would like to answer it.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

In response to the COVID-19 global pandemic and to protect public health in the Northwest Territories, the Minister of Health and Social Services declared a territory-wide public health emergency on March 18, 2020, pursuant to the Northwest Territories Public Health Act. This declaration invested the Chief Public Health Officer with expanded powers, including the power to:

Authorize qualified people to provide additional aid and services, as needed;

Expedite emergency licensing of additional healthcare providers;

Make orders and provide directions restricting or...

I wonder if this contract is, in fact, coming out later than was anticipated and there is some slippage in the timing on this project. Can the Minister speak to that, please?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am going to talk about the poverty trap today. I have talked about this concept before, but, as a reminder, a poverty trap is a self-reinforcing cycle that allows poverty to persist. In particular, it's a situation in which an increase in income results in a decrease in benefits so that, in the end, you are no further ahead.

Mr. Speaker, this pandemic has been difficult for all of us but particular for people with low or no income. The federal and territorial governments have provided additional benefits to low-income residents. To its credit, the territorial...

Thanks for that, Minister, but that wasn't my question. My question is whether the planning study for the school is finished, and if so, why does it appear in this supp? Thanks.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Further to my colleague's point about the delay in getting infrastructure projects out, I see here a reference to the JH Sissons School planning study, which I would like to confirm, first of all, is complete. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Minister is right. The private sector is not able to be as generous. Our business has been open throughout the pandemic, and people who want to take holidays have to self-isolate for two weeks on their own time. That is not paid time by the employer. That's the reality of small business, the backbone of the economy.

What I am interested in hearing, finally, is when the GNWT staff are going to go back to work. I realize that it is a phased approach, but when is it going to start, and what is it going to look like as a general idea? Thank you.

I am, of course, disappointed that the Minister is not able to provide the details at this point. I wonder if the Minister is also developing a communications plan to share with the private sector, most of whom are not going to be able to offer this kind of a benefit and who may not receive this news very well. Do you have a communications plan to explain how this is going to work and why it is necessary?

Thank you, Madam Chair. The Samara Centre for Democracy is a non-partisan think tank that is based in Ottawa, and it conducts research on strengthening democracy in Canada. Last week, the Samara Centre issued a report on how provincial and territorial legislatures are adapting their work to the pandemic, and a key finding of theirs is that, "despite the rapid emergence of virtual parliaments throughout the world, few provincial and territorial legislatures have looked to technology to keep up with parliamentary business. Just three out of 13 legislatures in Canada have held virtual committee...