Rocky Simpson

Thank you, Madam Chair. Yeah, I guess it's surprising that we have an additional cost of that amount. You know, considering that my understanding was the contract was let and agreed to based on the fact that it would probably go during the winter, and I think we had COVID already in place.

So I'm not sure what was missed there. And I would, I guess, ask where that extra money will come from to cover those additional costs. Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Myself as well, I encourage spending on highways and more specifically the Mackenzie Valley Highway. That project has been going on since I was I worked on part of it when I was 16 or 15 years old for crying out loud so you know how long ago that is. A hundred years ago. But, you know, we if we want to move ahead, we got to we need you know, we have to do something major.

You know, having a highway and opening it up is going to, you know, encourage investment in the North and encourage, you know, more development. It's also going to allow, you know, those stranded...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, one of the issues that I guess I come across is that when people come into my office, they're looking for I guess more than legal advice. They're looking for assistance in drafting, you know, documents.

So I'd ask the Minister, would the Minister consider expanding the legal outreach lawyer's responsibilities to include the drafting of documents for clients in less complicated matters. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'm not sure how many people will or how many employees will be affected. But I'd like to ask the Minister will there be any supports for transitioning these employees once they're let go? Will there be any financial support for them as well? Because when I talk to some of them, they're looking at moving out of the NWT. That's pretty well what they've got to do if they're going to be looking for employment. These are people that have lived here all their lives, some of them. And, you know, I don't want to see them go and it just -- I guess I'm still amazed that we...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I guess I look at the GNWT and we have a policy for some of the departments. Now I hear the Power Corporation has a different policy. Then we have the federal government has their own policies. And I would ask the Minister what criteria was used to develop that policy and why would it not be in line with the GNWT policy? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, when it comes to GNWT employees or contractors entering small communities, will the community have a veto power over or on whether or not persons have to be vaccinated even though some community residents remain unvaccinated? I ask that because in this past week, we had a couple contractors from Hay River go in to a small community one day and they did some work. Next day, they went in and they were told to leave because they were unvaccinated. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister confirm how many GNWT employees are currently vaccinated? Better yet, can she provide those numbers by department and how many may require accommodation. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the residents of the NWT have stepped up when it comes to protecting each other from the serious and deadly effects of the COVID19 virus. Our vaccination rate, as it stands now, is about 80 percent for those over the age of 12 years.

Mr. Speaker, I have been healthy all my life. I have resisted taking medication. I only just received my second ever flu shot along with my during the 19th Moderna vaccine booster. I did this for the protection of my family, my friends, and those who I come in contact with. In making my decision to be vaccinated, I had to rely...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I thank the Minister for that answer. But it still -- I guess I still have a hard time wrapping my head around when she says that, you know, we send employees in there, and I know we're concerned about the small communities, or any community and about all people, but if we send in unvaccinated people, we're sending in vaccinated people as well who can still pass on the virus. So -- and I know in some of the GNWT policies is that if you're going to go in, you've got to be tested. So I would expect that vaccinated people would be tested as well.

But any ways, the...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, when it comes to COVID-19 and the devastation it's caused, you know, I'm concerned that, you know, I don't want to see people die, I don't want to see people sick, I don't want to see them in the hospital, but at the same time I also don't want to see people unemployed. And in the Northwest Territories, we have a number of people that are working with the Power Corporation, the government, the

Housing Corporation, private sector. And many of them are in the position to lose their jobs. Many of these people are long-term northerners, they're Indigenous, and I...