Shane Thompson

I appreciate the Premier providing that answer. Mr. Speaker, does the government hold the shares for Aboriginal organization populations that have not signed on to the agreement?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Danny Allaire was born in Fort Simpson on January 26, 1975, to Phoebe and Daniel Allaire. He was raised and lived his whole life in Fort Simpson. He passed away on January 12, 2019.

After graduating high school, Danny worked as a seasonal crew leader, fighting fires with the GNWT and later with the Nogha fire crew.

During the winter months, Danny spent his time on the land that he loved so much. He would trap and hunt at Notana Lake with his grandparents, Gabe and Mary Cazon, and other family members.

In 2000, Danny left for Fort Smith to attend Aurora College, along...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today, my reply to the budget will be a bit different than the one I did last year. We are still working behind the scenes to get us closer to a final agreement on the budget. It has been a long process, from closely reviewing the business plans to finding common ground, and finally getting closer to a budget that we can agree to pass. Unfortunately, since we started the process, a number of issues have come to my attention and need to be addressed. I realize some of these concerns are not in the budget, but, if we work together, they can be added via supplementary...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this is one of the most difficult things I have been asked to decide since being elected. From the beginning, my position has been clear and concise: the government needs to get back to the table and negotiate with the Union of Northern Workers. I believe in the collective bargaining process.

Mr. Speaker, the GNWT and the Union of Northern Workers have been involved in a difficult bargaining process since 2016. It has been in mediation for some time, and we are now at the point where the union has given strike notice.

This is a serious and extremely stressful...

Thank you to the Minister for his answer. It is my understanding through federal employees and their families that they have to pay for their costs for their hotels, their per diem, up front for medical travel. Is there a possibility that the government can cover these costs and get reimbursed through vouchers from the federal government instead of having the families foot these costs?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, recently, actually probably ever since I have been elected, I have had a number of constituents come to me and ask questions about medical travel. I have been trying to get the information out there as best as I can. Sometimes, I may not be doing it properly. I will have some questions for the Minister of Health and Social Services. The first question I have is: there seem to be some different forms of medical travel. Can the Minister please explain how GNWT staff have a different per diem rate than non-insured residents? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would hope that we could be able to do something, but I understand we are dealing with different benefits there. Previously in this House the Minister has talked about the Medical Travel Policy being reviewed. Can the Minister please advise what the status of this Medical Travel Policy review is? The status of it right now. Thank you.

I greatly appreciate the Minister's answer. It helps to clear up a little bit more as we move forward. I have noticed, though, that the federal government medical travel differs from the GNWT medical travel. Is there a reason that ours is different than that? If there is, can the Minister explain why the differences are?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, Rozsika Tsetso was born in Fort Simpson on September 11, 1983, to Alice Dolly Cazon and Edward Lafferty. She was raised and lived her whole life in Fort Simpson. She passed away on January 8, 2019.

When people spoke about Rozsika, they remembered spending time together and her stories, the stories that consistently revealed her absolutely bottomless love for her sons Demerius and Zolton, her parents, brothers, sisters, and indeed all of her family and friends.

Her mother, Dolly, tells stories of her daughter as a mischievous child always having the maximum...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I greatly appreciate that answer. I look forward to working with the regional councils because they have been asking me for that information, so I greatly appreciate the Minister with his answer. My final question is: can the Minister explain why the council is not able to hold meetings without having a chairperson in attendance? Do they not have a vice chairperson identified when they do this process?