Député de Hay River Nord

Premier ministre
Ministre de l’Exécutif et des Affaires autochtones

R.J. Simpson a été élu à la 20e Assemblée, représentant la circonscription de Hay River Nord. Le 7 décembre 2023, M. Simpson a été élu premier ministre de la 20e Assemblée législative des Territoires du Nord-Ouest.

M. Simpson a été élu par acclamation à la 19e Assemblée législative et élu pour la première fois à la 18e Assemblée en 2015.

M. Simpson a été élu pour la première fois à la 18e Assemblée législative en 2015. M. Simpson a été président adjoint de la 18e Assemblée législative, vice-président du Comité permanent des opérations gouvernementales et président du Comité spécial sur les questions de transition. M. Simpson a également siégé au Comité permanent des priorités et de la planification, de même qu’au Comité permanent du développement économique et de l’environnement.

M. Simpson a habité à Hay River toute sa vie. Après avoir obtenu son diplôme d’études secondaires à l’école secondaire Diamond Jenness en 1998, il a décroché un baccalauréat ès arts à l’Université MacEwan et un diplôme en droit à la faculté de droit de l’Université de l’Alberta.

M. Simpson a précédemment travaillé pour le gouvernement du Canada, la Northern Transportation Company limitée, la section locale no 51 des Métis, et Maskwa Engineering.

Pendant ses études en droit, M. Simpson a été président de l’association des étudiants en droit autochtones. Il a également siégé au conseil d’administration du Centre d’amitié Soaring Eagle, à Hay River, et donne de son temps au projet d’éducation Canada-Ghana.

Committees

R.J. Simpson
Hay River Nord
Bureau

Yellowknife NT X1A 2L9
Canada

P.O. Boîte
1320
Bureau de circonscription

62, promenade Woodland, bureau 104
Hay River Nord NT X0E 1G1
Canada

Ministre
Premier ministre des Territoires du Nord-Ouest, Ministère de l’Exécutif et des Affaires autochtones, Ministre de la Justice

Déclarations dans les débats

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 75)

Mr. Speaker, I give notice that on Tuesday, June 1st, 2021, I will move that Bill 30, an act to amend the Aurora College Act, be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 75)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'm happy to speak with those organizations. They are in my community and many in my constituency, and some I've already discussed this very issue with. Can I confirm that there will be bussing? I can't at this point because, like I said, this is a decision of the South Slave District Education Council and the Hay River DEA. And if I could just write a cheque and make this go away, that's what I would do. But the fact is that the education system as it is is very decentralized, and that decisionmaking authority lies with those bodies. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 74)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

ECE doesn't have lease agreements with landlords month to month. ECE provides benefits to individuals, and those individuals can then pay their rent with that funding.

What the Member is talking about is more what the housing corporation does. It provides housing. That being said, there are clients who are pay rolled, meaning they don't have to report their income month to month. So they are getting income for three months straight being cut off, if that's the case. Six months, maybe a year.

And so there are situations like that. And...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 74)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Maybe. That you know, well, when I came into this role as an MLA previously, I received a lot of income assistance questions or concerns from my constituents. So I know there's areas that can be improved, and that's why we've initiated review of the Income Assistance Program.

And through that review, this is one of those areas that we're looking at. I have to say that the Member is correct that housing is it's a government wide issue, and for our part at ECE, we do provide housing in a sense where we will provide rental support to individuals who can't afford it...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 74)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'm always happy to work with the standing committees. But to make changes in the midst of review, it kind of defeats the purpose. What are you reviewing? If the program isn't the program that you're reviewing, then what do you do with those results.

So I'm happy to work with the standing committee, but we have a process in place. And I also want to say that the Member mentions a number of different departments, and one of the things that we're also working on is an integrated service delivery model that really looks at the needs of the individuals and not...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 74)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And, no, I can't because of that money issue that I mentioned whereby we spend millions and millions of dollars on market housing compared to hundreds of thousands of dollars on the public housing. And right now, that's just the fact of it. That's just the budgets.

And this Assembly is the one that appropriates money, and we would have to come back for a large appropriation if this was the case. And so I can't commit to spending millions of dollars that, frankly, we don't have at this moment. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 73)

In 2018, the NWT and the federal government signed an agreement, and that was to develop -- it was under the Public Safety, Canada's Guns and Gangs funding initiative. Since that time, money has been coming into the territory that has been funding research for one thing. There have been subject matter experts who have gone into the different communities in Fort Smith and Hay River. They're going to be going to Behchoko, Inuvik, and Yellowknife to examine the issues so that we can help come up with some of these solutions. There's also a budget for community-based crime prevention projects this...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 73)

We have Crime Stoppers in the territory. It's a civilian non-profit organization that brings together police services, the media, and the community. It's a place where community members can report crimes that they see and provide this information to police. I know that, when I drive in Hay River, I see a little Crime Stoppers sign. However, I think, like I said, we could be doing more.

When the Health Department runs a new program, you see ads on every single social media platform. You see it everywhere you go. What are we doing to get the word out there that there is this avenue and that...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 73)

[Translation] Mr. Speaker, I am proud to celebrate the francophone community of the Northwest Territories during the 23rd Annual Rendez-vous de la Francophonie. This nation-wide initiative, held every March, is an opportunity for Canada's 10 million French-speakers and all Canadians to celebrate and promote French language and culture.

Through this year's Rendez-vous de la Francophonie theme, Acadia, at the heart of my country, celebrations will highlight the fact that Acadia is the birthplace of Canada's Francophonie, while acknowledging the presence and contribution of Indigenous peoples in...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 73)

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document: "Plain Language Summary for Bill 25: An Act to Amend the Education Act." Thank you, Mr. Speaker.