Julie Green

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I mentioned in my statement, the operator of the day shelter has adopted a new policy of serving only the homeless population. The population with homes are not welcome. My question for the Minister of Health and Social Services is: how does the day shelter staff determine whether clients are in fact housed when they come to the door? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I live downtown in my constituency, and the operation of the combined day shelter and sobering centre is a focus for many of my constituents and, indeed, for Yellowknifers in general. I am committed to making downtown a safer place for everyone to be.

I have spoken in this House about the gains made downtown by having both GNWT and the City of Yellowknife invest in programs for people who are intoxicated and/or homeless. These programs have produced good outcomes for clients, including keeping them safe and connecting them to housing and treatment services, but, as a...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you to the Minister for that. As the Minister is aware, the evaluation says there is a lack of understanding about the shelter's mandate and about the target audience as well as a need for partnerships to extend programming. Will the Minister commit to facilitating the creation of an inter-agency committee for this purpose?

Thank you to the Minister. In fact, my question to the Minister was: how does the day shelter staff determine whether clients are in fact housed when they come to the door? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thank you, colleagues. I have met people at the day shelter who go there to socialize, to take a break from escalating violence at home, or to get something to eat. I am unclear how these needs are going to be met now. Having made this change at the day shelter, the department needs to come up with a plan along with the new interagency committee about how to meet the complex needs of people who do have housing.

Mr. Speaker, this change comes at a time when the weather is a serious risk to those without homes. I appreciate they can go to the day shelter for warmth and...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I, too, would like to recognize the students who are here today from Ecole St. Patrick High School who are with the SADD group and who live in Yellowknife Centre, including Evan Round and Delina Berhe. I would also like to recognize my constituent and the leader of this group and congratulate her for all her hard work. That is Ms. Michele Thoms. Thank you.

That answer surprises me because I thought that, during the 18th Assembly, the department had rolled back on the total amount of surpluses that school boards were able to keep. I am sure the Minister has given me accurate information, but it is certainly much bigger than I expected it to be.

Onto the question of the aging schools, all of the schools in Yellowknife, except for Allain St-Cyr and the re-built St. Joe's, are aging. What is the long-term plan of the Department to assist the board with maintenance and replacement of their schools?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions are for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. I am sure the new Minister is aware that schools in Yellowknife are aging and maintenance costs are increasing. Most recently, YK1 has been forced to make an emergency purchase of a boiler at Mildred Hall School in my constituency, at a cost of $90,000, nine-zero thousand dollars.

Trustees say that money spent on the boiler will take money away from education. My first question is: what help can ECE give YK1 to help pay for the new boiler? Mahsi.

Thank you to the Minister for that response. I'd like the Minister to answer whether she is prepared to revisit the Housing Corporation's decision not to add any more units to its inventory to meet the waiting list of over 900 households.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are for the Minister responsible for the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation. As I mentioned in my statement, residents of Yellowknife and in communities across the NWT are facing what I describe as a housing crisis. Housing problems have more than doubled in the last five years. Can the Minister tell us whether she considers the current situation a crisis? Thank you.