R.J. Simpson

Thank you, committee. We will begin consideration of Committee Report 11-18(2), Standing Committee on Rules and Procedures Report on the Review of Standing Committee Public Engagement and Transparency. That's a very wordy name. I will turn to Mr. O'Reilly, the chair of the committee for comments. Mr. O'Reilly.

I call Committee of the Whole to order. What is the wish of committee? Mr. Beaulieu?

It seems like I am late to the game and the Minister is already on top of this, but I have been hearing about the medical travel review for quite a while now, and it always seems like something bumps it. Can the Minister commit that this review is going to be completed when he says it is going to be and that I can tell my constituents that they do not need to worry about these arbitrary numbers anymore?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Medical travel: where do I begin? There are issues with scheduling. There are issues with where patients are sent and how those decisions are made. There are issues with escorts. In Hay River, we have even had issues about the accessibility of the actual medical travel office.

Today I want to talk about an issue that does not receive enough attention in this House or from the government. Most people in the territory have some sort of extended health benefits which cover virtually all the costs associated with medical travel. The GNWT provides such benefits to its...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I believe it was the last of the questions I asked on the last day of our last sitting, and it was about the Yellowknife Airport hours of operations. Just to refresh everyone's memory, sometimes when people are en route to Hay River, they fly through Yellowknife. If a flight gets in late, at midnight, one in the morning, then they assume they are going to be staying at the airport until they can check in at four in the morning, but what happens is the airport closes for those three and a half hours? I asked the Minister before; this is the third time I will be asking...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and welcome back. I would love to say it is great to be here, but right now I empathize with the kids who are back in school after their summer vacation. That is not because I do not love the work we do in this beautiful Legislature; it is just that Hay River is such a beautiful place to be in the summer.

You know, if you are a geologist or someone else who just loves rocks, then I am sure Yellowknife is a great place to be in the summer, too. Personally, I love Hay River's lush greenery, spending hot days on our long stretches of sandy beaches, watching eagles fish as I...

Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. There is a motion on the floor to report progress. The motion is in order and non-debatable. All those in favour? All those opposed?

---Carried

I will now rise and report progress.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. What work has the department done on the liability issues surrounding kicking people out of a government building in the middle of the night when there is really nowhere around where they can go where there is some warmth? Has the government looked into any of those types of issues? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Winter is coming up quickly. These rocks in Yellowknife don't absorb much heat, so when it gets cold, it gets really cold. So that people do not get locked out in the middle of night in the middle of winter, can the Minister commit to at least keeping a portion of the airport open overnight, with or without security?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want to recognize a resident of Hay River, the woman whose shirt matches my tie, my mother, Bette Lyons, and I want to wish her a happy birthday. Thank you.