Statements in Debates
Merci, Monsieur le President. It's fall, and once again we are seeing our streets filled with tourists drawn from around the world to enjoy our spectacular aurora viewing. While further interim measures have recently been announced, we are still without a solution supported by the tourism sector, or resourced with dedicated funds from this government.
As I have pointed out before, aurora tourism is the NWT's biggest success story in sustainable and renewable economic diversification. It's a $40 million a year industry, and a study last year showed that having a visitor's information centre...
Thanks to the Minister for that. No increase, but I guess status quo in terms of supporting this booming industry here in Yellowknife.
We've known for at least six months that the visitors' centre was likely going to close; the museum desk was a stopgap measure, but what is the long-term solution here? I would like to hear from the Minister on what that long-term solution to support tourism in Yellowknife is from his perspective.
Merci, Monsieur le President. Since the middle of June the Northern Frontier Visitors' Centre has been closed. The numbers tell the client service story: 725 visitors served in July of this year versus 3,018 the previous year. The City of Yellowknife is stepping in on a temporary basis until March 2018, but what's the plan for a vigorous interim arrangement that will carry us through until a new permanent visitors' centre can be opened? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thanks, Mr. Chair. First off, I would like to thank the Standing Committee on Social Development for its review of the bill. Bill 30, the Health Statutes Amendment Act (Cremation Services), is a private Member's bill which proposes amendments to the Public Health Act and to the Vital Statistics Act.
Together, the minor amendments in Bill 30 will allow greater certainty for cremations to be performed here in the NWT, reducing costs and wait times for bereaved families, and further diversify the domestic service economy. Specifically, amendments to the Public Health Act will create the ability to...
Thanks again to the Minister. I think that was two no's in a row, now. We are not going to make up the shortfall for this year, and it does not look like we are going to get it for 2018-2019. I think our government really needs to make good on this $1.7 million gap for 2017-2018. The Minister's May 25th reply to the petition committed to "fully funding the ongoing costs of JK implementation, beginning in the 2017-2018 school year and into the future." Will the Minister commit to changing the district education authorities' funding formulae to fully account for JK students to avoid future...
Merci, Monsieur le President. My questions are for the Minister of Education. At the very strong urging of this Assembly and a petition, the Minister committed to fully fund the introduction of junior kindergarten. The Minister tabled a reply to my written question earlier this week regarding the full cost of including JK students in the funding formulae for district education authorities. Is it really the intention of the Minister to fully fund the district education authorities for JK implication and make up this $1.7 million shortfall for 2017-2018? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thanks, Mr. Chair. I appreciate the question from the Member. I think, first off, I would like to say that this bill is an interim step. There was not an attempt to try to regulate funeral planners, their accreditation, and so on in this bill. That is not the purpose of it. That is not what I tried to set out to do in the first place.
There is a definition for funeral planner, and it is found in the Vital Statistics Act. It is defined as follows: funeral planner means a person who takes charge of a dead body for the purpose of burial, cremation, and other disposition. The duties of a funeral...
Yes, Mr. Chair, I do.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think that was a third no. He is not prepared to look at the funding formulae which are the basis for the figures that he himself tabled a couple of days ago in this House. That is where I got the numbers from, was from his own reply to my written question that came from his own department. So, look, the funding for junior kindergarten implementation has been like a zombie; it just keeps coming back for more. Whether it is busing, inclusive schooling, capital improvements, Aboriginal language, custodial services, they are all underfunded or not resolved, but we are...
I thank the Minister for his response. I do acknowledge that he tabled the information that I requested at his earliest convenience, but often Ministers will provide it to Members ahead of time. That did not happen in this case. If he has different figures that he wants to quote than the reply to my written question, I would be happy to look at them, but after a lot of wrangling to try to ensure that we have truly fully funded JK, the answers have been evasive at best. We will be reviewing the 2018-2019 business plans beginning in November of this year. Will the Minister commit that full...