Tom Beaulieu

Marci cho, Mr. Speaker. It would be nice to know the trend of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder. Can the Minister tell the House if they know the prevalence of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder in the NWT? Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, that's very good news that the NWT will be taking the lead in this. Can the Minister advise the House what is available right now in the area of programming and so on for FASD?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Should be afforded to them through early childhood development. They will have a much better chance of graduating and becoming contributing members of our society. Mr. Speaker, it is clear, we should be viewing early childhood development as an investment in our children and their future. If we view this as an investment, it would be easily the highest yielding investment we could make.

Mr. Speaker, early childhood development is the responsibility of two departments, Health and Social Services and Education, Culture and Employment. Later today, I will have questions for...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, I move that consideration of Tabled Document 198-18(2): Supplementary Estimates (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 2, 2016-2017 be now concluded and that Tabled Document 198-18(2) be reported and recommended as ready for further consideration in formal session through the form of an appropriation bill. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, committee wishes to consider Supplementary Appropriation No. 1, Operations, and Supplementary Appropriation No. 2, Infrastructure, both for 2016-2017, and Bill 5, An Act to Amend the Vital Statistics Act. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, I'm interested in what the Minister just indicated with public housing, encouraging independence and, I guess, essentially, moving towards home ownership. I'd like to ask the Minister if the Minister has a divestment plan for public housing.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, again, I feel like there should be a setting of a target so that we do actually meet the target. The Minister just quoted a number of 230-something vacancies, but we haven't seen a PeopleSoft report. We were talking 900 people at one point, there's 900 vacancies. I'm wondering if the 200 vacancies are just the current number that the department is trying to recruit as opposed to the actual vacancy number of which many of them are contracts, casuals and whatnot. So again I'd like to ask the Minister: on summer students, if Cabinet can set an actual number...

Mr. Speaker, can the Minister advise if there's going to be any sort of strategy to increase that number for the coming summer of 2017?

Marci cho, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, [Translation] I would like to talk today about the children that are -- about the people that are giving them employment. [Translation ends] I'd like to talk about summer students. Mr. Speaker, this government and this Cabinet must step up to the plate to give our post-secondary students every opportunity for success. This means giving these students a good summer job and there are none better than a job at the GNWT. Our government must set aside money that usually goes to salaries to proactively seek our students to work for us. It will take some effort...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, I'm satisfied with that response. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.