Yellowknife Centre

Statements in Debates

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 41)

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'd like to welcome many of the people who've already been welcomed: the staff from A New Day program; the leaders of the NWT Association of Communities; and I saw Alex Lambrecht, the new President of the Northern Territories Federation of Labour. I think it's really important for us to have leaders here who we can collaborate with and who support us in the things that we're doing. Thank you.

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 41)

I beg your pardon, Mr. Speaker. May I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement?

---Unanimous consent granted

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 41)

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'd like to start by saying how very proud I am of my colleague Mr. Nadli. He has taken constructive steps to make himself a better man by starting on this healing journey, and we are all the better for it.

Mr. Speaker, women experience violence in greater numbers than men, but it's true that men also experience violence, and the effects of this violence include things like injuries, depression and other mental health issues, disease, addiction and even death. There are economic costs as well, mostly with loss in productivity but also the cost of treatment that...

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 41)

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to table the report "Hush Hush No More: Sexual Assault in the NWT." Mahsi.

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 41)

Mr. Speaker, the report from the YWCA also references development of a new policy and guidelines for health providers on how to support clients who report sexual assault. I wonder if the Minister can tell us whether that work is now complete?

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 41)

Masi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services. One of the issues revealed in the YWCA Study of Improving Responses to Sexual Assault is addressing confusion, especially in small communities, about where to find the kit used to collect evidence of an assault. What steps is the Minister going to take to ensure nursing station staff know where to find and how to use rape kits? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 41)

Mr. Speaker, the Minister's commitment to quality reporting, which he made earlier in this sitting, on government contracts will help increase accountability, or course. In 2012, the Auditor General also found cases where departments had updated their own records but not the contract registry and reporting systems report that is tabled in the Legislative Assembly like the one we saw yesterday. What has the government done to ensure this registry and reporting system is reconciled with its internal departmental records?

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 41)

Today, I have two sets of questions. I'm going to start with the other set, which are questions for the Minister of Finance, and they're about sole-source contracting. These questions are important, Mr. Speaker, because they help us understand how this special set of contracts is managed, and it reassures the public that their money is being well-spent. So, first of all, could the Minister explain for the benefit of the general public, vendors, and the Members of the House, why increases to the threshold for sole-source contracts were approved and what value that brings to taxpayers? Mahsi.

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 41)

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it's also important for us parents to talk to our daughters about the danger of sexual assault and how they can keep themselves safe and the need for consent. The government also needs to put a high priority on increasing awareness about consent, and responding effectively to girls and women who report being assaulted.

Mr. Speaker, sexual assault is a chronic problem in the NWT; but the biggest lesson of all is that it's preventable. What stands in our way is talking openly about sexual assault and creating a culture where it is unacceptable. Mahsi.

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 41)

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'd like to draw your attention to a study published this year by YWCA Yellowknife titled "Hush Hush No More: Improving NWT Community Response to Sexual Violence Against Women and Girls." It contains some important recommendations about new responses by health providers and communities to sexual violence as well as prevention.

Mr. Speaker, by way of background, this study is based on interviews with women who have experienced sexual assault and service providers from five NWT communities. The study notes that men and boys also experience sexual violence but they...