Rylund Johnson

Thank you, Madam Chair. I'm happy to hear that, and I recognize that one step, as I said previously, is getting the portal. The whole other step is populating it, and how we actually start to publish and release our data. I have a few more questions about the eServices portal in that I think we've got some of the low-hanging fruit in fishing licences, the DVM, which is already online, kind of moving that into one place. I believe there are going to be healthcare cards, marriage certificates; some basic information was in there.

Ultimately, what I would really like is this information shared...

I look forward to bringing up this issue in the next Assembly as it was brought up in the last, as well. I understand we are now shopping for a new electronic medical records system. I heard that was 2023. Can the Minister commit that as part of going out and purchasing a new system, an online patient portal will be part of that system?

Thank you, Madam Chair. Looking back, I support the creation of ISSS, and in many ways, I actually do not think it went far enough in that, still, when I want to ask questions about data, I notice the corporate information management is in Infrastructure, and they have been taking years to get all of our departments on DIIMS; when I want to ask questions about ATIPP and trying to figure out that, I go to Justice; when I want to ask questions about open data, the policy actually lies with EIA, so despite a lot of resistance, perhaps just some centralization of information systems. I still do...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In November, I passed a motion in this House asking the Northwest Territories health system to stop using fax machines to send health records. This is from a 2018 report where the Chief Information and Privacy Commissioner asked the same thing. There have been numerous breaches over the years, including some egregious ones such as health records being sent to CBC North in 2010 and 2012.

Mr. Speaker, I hope that the Minister in the reply can finally put an end to us sending health records. However, Mr. Speaker, there is a lot more to do in the area of electronic medical...

Thank you, Madam Chair. In the department's business plan and in the mandate, there are a number of issues related to increasing capacity in the healthcare system, and there is a specific health recruitment unit. Can I just get clarification whether that lies in the Department of Finance HR or in Health and Social Services? Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Madam Chair. That's unfortunate. We seem to be stuck in this never-ending cycle of getting a notice to bargain and then bargaining taking years so we can never amend the Public Service Act, and then we get another notice to bargain.

Is it possible to seek agreement from the union to bring the act forward even while there is a notice of bargain or to make the change that allows us to bring the act forward despite that happening? I'm just trying to see if there is a workaround with the union's consent because they themselves have identified some changes that that they would like for...

Yes. Thank you, Madam Chair. Lastly, we are projected to go over our debt ceiling. I recognize we're not anywhere near our five percent overall debt servicing finances of Fiscal Responsibility Policy, but I think that number is a little skewed in that we fund half of our infrastructure usually with debt, and then we switch to P3s. The full amount that we actually owe under P3s given the contractual obligations isn't really reflected as debt, and I think this is creating an incentive for us to use P3s. It seems every project over $50 million, we're going to use as a P3, which means we're going...

Thank you, Madam Chair. Perhaps, I could just ask one more question of that. Obviously, a key factor in the total cost of any P3 is the contract and the maintenance contract. If we have a deal with the private sector to pay them X amount of dollars each year under the P3, does that show up as our debt, the contractual obligation? Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I am looking at the Department of Finance's website on this. It says 1,943 individuals have benefited from this program, which is the number I had in my head, which is a much more significant percentage of our work force. I believe our work force, if that's more accurate, is about 2,000 workers who make under $18 an hour, which is below living wage, which means 2,000 working people live in poverty. Can I just get a confirmation of how many people have accessed this program? I don't think it's a fair characterization to say that not many people in our territory are...

Thank you, Madam Chair. What I would like to see in the fiscal strategy is a number, a kind of a hard stop of where we are going to be at the end of this Assembly. Right now, the projection is that we're going to be over our debt wall. I recognize what the Minister said there, that there's a number of plans in the works and we're looking at revenues. I am concerned that I am passing a budget with adding more debt, and I am on the projection to pass, succeed a debt limit that does not leave us any room for emergencies. When all that work is done and when we do the new fiscal management, when...