Kate Reid

Thank you, Mr. Chair. So my questions to start are about medical travel benefits. I am looking here at the line item on page 218 of the mains, and I can see that the actuals in 2023-2024 were just below $30 million, and then the revised for 2024-2025 slightly over $24 million, and now we're estimating for 2025-2026 going ahead at $8.8 million. So my question is if this is another one of those items that we have a base amount and then we adjust as necessary, or are we restricting benefits? Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Yes, thank you. If the Minister has maybe high level data around the percentage of students that are accessing this program, that would be great. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. So with the revitalization of public health that the Member for Yellowknife North was asking about earlier, will there be a contemplation of adequate staffing levels throughout the system so that surge maybe doesn't have such a strong impact on various regional centres when required? Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Earlier the Minister highlighted that the wellness counsellor is -- the wellness program for school-based mental health and wellness counsellors is captured in this activity. Could she tell me which line item that would be? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. And thank you to the Minister for that. When it comes to outbreaks, which of course we don't want to see but, you know, have seen as recently as last year with the TB outbreaks as the Minister mentioned, how are we addressing surge capacity for public health to go out and address outbreaks as they arise? That's an area of concern I'm hearing about. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. So identifying surplus land, does that mean there's no inventory prior to this business plan commitment of surplus land of ECE? Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So, Mr. Speaker, the building shelter capacity funding for the $100,000 that we're talking about today was not used to develop the training that the Minister talked about earlier. That's separate funding that the YWCA secured through Women's Shelter Canada.

But my question to the Minister would be that, you know, since the NWT has the second highest rate of family-based violence in the country, families turn to shelters and safe homes more than we want them to, Mr. Speaker. Will the Minister commit to working with the Minister to reinstate this funding? Thank you, Mr...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. So is the Minister and Cabinet envisioning that this process will be perhaps, for lack of better term, a pilot project for legislation that deals with the social envelope, is it going to be more widely expansive, or is it only for the Education Act and you'll take lessons learned moving ahead? I mean, I realize this is all theoretical but I'm just curious from sort of like a 30,000-foot view. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yesterday in Committee of the Whole, the Minister of health said that this $100,000 of funding that was cut to the shelter network had to do with their ability to do online training. So my question is, does the Minister believe that training in trauma-informed practices can sufficiently be done through Zoom? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. So, yeah, that was just sort of a general question throughout the department, so I appreciate that.

Going to the business plan, much like my colleague from Frame Lake, I have a sort of a wider picture question. I know the department is working to revitalize/amend the Education Act. I'm curious if the Minister can speak to what kind of process they are looking at to develop that legislation with Indigenous partners. Is it going to be through the process convention that is established for lands and resources legislation, or will it be a new process? Thank you, Mr. Chair.