Michael Nadli

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In the Northwest Territories we pride ourselves in being self-reliant, fending for ourselves, families and communities. Firearms or guns become a large necessity as tools for livelihood for survival and subsistence. As we look forward to the warming weather and spring hunt, can the Minister of Justice give an update to this House in terms of the Department of Justice’s perspective on Bill C-19 that is before the House of Commons?

I’d like to thank the Minister for his response. My other question is: Is information regarding heart disease and heart conditions getting to school kids, and if so, how is that being done regarding the overall health of children and heart conditions?

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day, when we express our love to special people in our lives. I know most of us have good hearts, so I was a little shocked when I found out that strokes and heart attacks are the second most common cause of death in the Northwest Territories.

Our rate of heart of attacks is a bit lower than Canada’s, but our rate of strokes is about 50 percent higher than the national average. What makes this particularly scary is that effective treatment of strokes depends on very fast medical action. Most of our citizens won’t get that. Some communities have no...

I’d like to thank the Minister again. Just in terms of my final question, how do we know that information programs, whether it’s Healthy Babies or initiatives to ensure that heart disease is detected, are effective since we know that the rate of obesity, for example, is rising?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question today is just a follow up from my statement regarding heart and stroke. My question is to the Minister of Health and Social Services. What methods do we use, especially in small communities, to detect and diagnose heart disease in children?

I would like to thank the Minister for his response. Too often we are faced with many challenges presently here in the Northwest Territories and, for that matter, all over Canada. Small businesses sometimes are faced with challenges such as finding funding. One common response that people get in terms of trying to start their small businesses and implementing them is market disruption. What kind of commitment could the Minister make to small businesses that exist or plan on stating a tourism initiative in the Northwest Territories? Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I had the opportunity to travel on the Alaska Highway many years ago and I was really impressed by the opportunity to just pull alongside the highway, stretch and take in the sights. But I was just stunned by the amazing beauty of the Alaska Highway and the many services that the government provides for tourists, for people to pull over and rest, maybe park their RV and take some pictures. That road was clearly impressive in terms of developing and to ensure that there is a plan for tourists. My statement relates to that very initiative.

In the Northwest Territories my...

Mr. Speaker, my final question is to the Minister. The Minister did mention that the department is looking at developing a plan for year 2015. I understand there are initiatives to ensure that people are involved from a broad perspective. How does he ensure that the community perspective, and also at the same time the Aboriginal perspective and also at the same time small businesses are involved with this initiative? Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In the Northwest Territories we boast about our natural resources, whether it be oil and gas or diamonds. We really have a lot of potential. One thing that I think in many instances that we take for granted is the sustainable potential for tourism. My question today is to the Minister of ITI. What is the GNWT or ITI doing to further tourism development in the Northwest Territories?

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. [Translation] When we are here in Yellowknife we are talking about the budget and the people in the community are saying that we do not have enough money. It seems like we have to listen to people more diligently. [Translation ends].

They tend to depend on government to create jobs and opportunities. In the smaller communities half the people who have jobs work for either the GNWT or local governments.

With the current state of the economy this is not going to change any time soon. The employment rate in many communities is under 40 percent. In two-thirds of the Northwest...