Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I give notice that on Thursday, March 9, 2017, I will move the following motion: I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Yellowknife North, that this Assembly refer Petition 6-18(2): Elimination of Time Change in the Northwest Territories to the Standing Committee on Social Development for a comprehensive review and that the standing committee report back to the Assembly at their earliest opportunity. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am sure my constituents and I are comforted to hear that a similar escape can't happen, but I think these improvements really need to happen. I am just wondering when we will see funding asked from the Minister's department, so we can get this work under way. I didn't see any in the supplementary appropriations. Are we going to see a funding ask any time soon?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like follow up with the Minister on this Aurora College next steps statement he made this morning around the foundational review. My honourable friend from Hay River North made some comments about this, but one of the things that surprised me is that the terms of reference for the foundational review are not yet known. My question for the Minister today is: the strategic plan, which the department and the college have been working on for a while, how is that different from the foundational review? I will start with that. Thank you.

Nothing further, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Just on the health, the $22.9 million of the supplementary estimates for the Department of Health and Social Services: year on year, it's typically around a 20 per cent overage as the average that the Department of Health and Social Services exceeds its projected estimates, and committee looked into this, and this is not in recent years; it's over a range of years. It's a historical fact that the health department consistently exceeds its estimates.

So why do we continue to budget this way when we do have an average forecast of when estimates are going to be exceeded? If...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. My understanding, this was something that was approved by a previous -- not approved, but a lot of work went into this in the 17th Assembly and I wonder if there is any detail as to why the funding originally allocated to it from the midwifery program was not spent to establish it in the 17th Assembly. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am going to ask, in regard to the great public interest in this issue and the hard work of our post-secondary departments with Dechinta and College nordique, if the Minister will commit to making the LP process that the standing committees normally go through a public process so that we can have a broad range of opinions on the legislation before it's finalized in the House? Thank you.

Thank you. I am afraid that, with some dread, I hear that a labyrinthine process of plans upon plans upon plans are being contemplated by the department. I wonder: can the Minister give some assurance that this is not going result in more action plans and strategies and will actually result in results? We have been waiting for a year for a strategic plan that has now transformed into a foundational review, so are we going to be waiting another year to see this review, or are we going to get moving on post-secondary education in the Northwest Territories?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to publicly state my support for Bill 16: An Act to Amend the Education Act.

First off, as a parent, I feel very privileged that my son is enrolled in a first-class school here in the Northwest Territories where his unique learning needs and education challenges are met by very skilled educators whose standard of teaching and professionalism is second to none in Canada and the world.

That being said, I have asked some tough questions of the department along with my colleagues who are full-time members of the Standing Committee of Social...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I misspoke. It is around 5 per cent, $20 million dollars’ variance, or amount exceeding the estimate, so same question to the Minister. Thank you.