Wendy Bisaro

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move, that consideration of Tabled Document 79-17(4), Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 2, 2013-2014, be now concluded and that Tabled Document 79-17(4) be reported and recommended as ready for further consideration in formal session through the form of an appropriation bill.

I can accept that explanation, but I guess I’m still wondering. If I was doing procurement within a department previously, now I’m not doing procurement any more. We’ve now set up a procurement officer and a centralized desk, so why would there not be savings on me as an employee, because I’m not doing procurement anymore?

Can we not see savings in each department that equals the cost of providing this service in a centralized place? I’m having trouble trying to understand how we have employees who are not doing as much as they were doing before, but it is still going to cost us money to bring...

Thanks to the Minister for the explanation. I have to ask the question, and I think I probably know the answer, but we are spending this money, we are going to probably be providing better services in terms of our financial services. Are there any savings from bringing things in together and doing things in a consolidated way? Are we saving money?

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Committee would like to deliberate Tabled Document 79-17(4), Bill 11, Bill 20 and, time permitting, Committee Report 3-17(4).

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In Canada over the last year, we have had to endure too many young people’s lives lost due to suicide, suicide brought on by bullying. Most recently, we heard of the untimely death of Rehtaeh Parsons in Atlantic Canada.

I bring this motion forward so that this Assembly can show its support for work currently underway by provincial, territorial and federal Justice Ministers. They are working hard to effect change to the Criminal Code of Canada, change which will hopefully limit cyberbullying, which will allow for the prosecution of those who take advantage of our young...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

In June of 2011 an employee of the Yellowknife Health and Social Services Authority made a complaint to the Information and Privacy Commissioner about inadequate protection of medical information in Yellowknife’s two primary care clinics. The investigation resulted in what the standing committee agrees is one of the most significant review reports completed during this Commissioner’s term of office.

The implementation of an electronic medical records system began in June 2010 at the Yellowknife Primary Care Centre. This is, for the most part, excellent news as electronic...

I appreciate that the Minister is working with different partners. He’s mentioned that a number of times and that certainly was something that came through in the NWT Teachers’ Association report, was that this is not an issue that can be dealt with by just one entity. It is a difficult problem and I don’t think it’s going to be something that’s going to be solved easily.

I’d like to know from the Minister if he can advise, considering all the number of different pieces and all the number of balls that are in the air, how he is going to be able to coordinate the work that needs to be done. How...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are addressed to the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment and I’d like to follow up on my Member’s statement. I mentioned in my Member’s statement that a possible option to assist with the teachers’ housing is to change the regulations to allow education authorities to own property. So I’d like to know from the Minister why the department has not considered that as an option to date and why it’s not allowed for district education councils and authorities. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move we report progress.

---Carried

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As pointed out in a recent report from the Northwest Territories Teachers’ Association, teachers are turning down job offers for small NWT communities because of a lack of adequate housing. The report goes on to say that in the past 11 years, the Department of Education has spent $13.9 million moving teachers out of these communities, and that doesn’t include the added cost of recruiting new teachers to replace those who have left.

Since 1996, when the GNWT got out of providing teacher housing, there have been many things tried but, unfortunately, most of these solutions...