Katrina Nokleby

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, one of the things that we heard repeatedly as a committee, both in this work and as well if anything around addictions and such, is that the youth that have nothing to do with they're bored, that's when they're getting into trouble and that's when they're finding themselves, you know, too wrapped up in their heads and what they're thinking and their emotions, and they need creative outlets and places to go that are safe spaces that are free from the harmful influences of perhaps alcohol and drugs and the trauma that they have dealt with. And we've often...

Thank you, Madam Chair. As I mentioned when we were talking about the coroner's report, I have heard numerous times of people presenting at emergency rooms across the territory and either not even making it in to see anyone given that it's not considered to be high in the priority list when you look at triages in an emergency room situation, the emergency the people working there are going to prioritize physical threats to life that are immediate, such as, you know, injuries and wounds, over mental health concerns. And I'm not saying that's right, but that is what is happening.

I have heard...

Thank you, Madam Chair. I too just wanted to thank to take a moment to specifically thank or staff and anybody that did contribute to this report and the work that we've done. It was very weighty work and very heavy work at times and not only I think for us listening but for people who have to actually come in and share trauma. And it's known that people having to relive and over and over telling their stories that that in itself at times can be very traumatizing. So I do really want to thank the staff particularly because I think there was a real sorry, I'm a bit out of breath, Madam...

Thank you, Madam Chair. And I appreciate the willingness of the Minister and the department to try and rectify the issue that we had raised and clearly was listening to what our concerns were. Again, though, this I don't necessarily, though, agree with 3(b) as authorized by the director. And the reason I have concern there is further to what I was saying yesterday about the way that this is going to be set up that it does allow for there to be an arbitrary GNWT employee who is making decisions about people's livelihoods in an industry. And I just don't see that we have a lot of that type of...

Thank you, Madam Chair. Well, I also just think this is a great idea for our people. I also think that there is an economic benefit for forgiving people's debt. And I've mentioned it here before. We've heard the conversation in the US around forgiving of student loans and how that will actually help with stimulating economy because money that would then be spent on interest and principal payments will then be back into the economy and being spent by people. And I'm always struck by how the communities operate, from what I see anyway, is that any time someone is doing well or has the...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, earlier in this session I rose to acknowledge my page, and I realized I did not use their preferred name. So I would like to recognize my page Andy Sieben who is here from Great Slave, and all of the pages who have done a wonderful job. Thank you.

I'll keep it short. I just wanted to say that we have seen examples of these types of programs working, the women's society doing the Spruce Bough program, the YWCA. I'm so excited for their family centre to finally be open again, which will then replicate some of what was lost during the Rockhill fire, which really the model we want to see, is that people don't need to travel to get services; they can help each other out; there's supports and education pieces right in the building that they're living in. It's just wonderful, the things that they can do. And so I think, again, the...

Thank you, Madam Chair. First I want to thank the committee that did all of the work on this bill because I do sit on two other committees that are quite busy; I didn't delve into it quite the same way they did, and really looked to that report to inform me as I have struggled with this bill and my position on it.

When I look at the choice in front of us, I realize we really just don't have much of a choice. We're either going to you know, as everybody has said, we're either going to look to the federal legislation if we defeat the bill here today and not then the GNWT obviously would not be...

Thank you, Madam Chair. Again, just sort of reiterating what I said before. I think this motion is really key for the government in order to ensure that we don't lose any more spaces. I know that there has been talk about new spaces being created. But those were all in the works before this issue around the child care funding and the subsequent changes. You know, I do think that there is an opportunity for this relationship to be repaired. However, it is going to take, I think, the will of the department and the Minister to want to recognize that regardless of how they feel about forprofit...

Thank you, Madam Chair. Yeah, without reiterating everything that my colleague said, I also found this to be a very frustrating and disappointing bill to work on. I do also appreciate, though, that there has been the back and forth with the department and to try and come to some sort of a solution here. But I can't help be left feeling like this is yet again another instance of where a federal program or a federal idea, federal funding, is being pushed on us without proper advocacy from the government to the federal government to understand that it just doesn't work for us here. And there's...