Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as I spoke earlier, athletes from the NWT, including many from my own constituency, will be competing in the upcoming Arctic Winter Games. It's evident that we are giving the necessary support for athletes competing in these games, but what about other athletes throughout the Territories who have not been so fortunate as to gain entry into these games?
Cynthia Simmons, a proud Northerner and an amazing speed skater, is competing for a chance at gold at the Special Olympics Canada Winter Games this week in Corner Brook, Newfoundland. In fact, she is the sole athlete competing in these games from the NWT. I for one salute her courage and tenacity for being our ambassador at the Special Olympics and hope that she will return with a gold medal on her shoulders and a warm welcome from a proud territory. My question for the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs is: What programs and funding are provided to our athletes, and how will those programs work to send future athletes to games such as the Special Olympics?
Masi. Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs.
We were very disappointed in the six sports that were excluded from the 2016 Arctic Winter Games, and we tried very hard to get an alternative event planned. Unfortunately, one of the jurisdictions backed out and we were unable to pull that together. We have given the excluded sports an option to find an opportunity to find a development opportunity, a tournament that they can go to as they would if they were competing in the Arctic Winter Games. We have a very strong, healthy support system for all of our athletes. We have the $650,000 that we use for multi-sport events, and we continue through many of our programs to have opportunities for athletes to compete not only at a territorial, but at a national level as well.
I know that the Minister is very keen on sports and a real champion. In fact, recently he committed almost $25 million to build the athletes' village for the Canada Winter Games.
---Laughter
Given that, will the Minister commit to allocating some of those funds and improving our programs for sport-oriented training and healthy community initiatives, in particular for youth development in the Northwest Territories?
We were quite disappointed that the 2023 Canada Winter Games were not bid on by the capital city. I think it would have been a fantastic opportunity for not only the athletes in the Northwest Territories, but all the people involved in sport across the Northwest Territories, so we were quite disappointed. The $25 million that the Member spoke of, that was a commitment that was made to help facilitate the games and provide an athletes' village, and then be used for some much-needed housing afterwards. We have a very strong, robust support system for our athletes and our youth across the Northwest Territories, and we will continue to provide that support.
Well, if it's not about spending new money, maybe we can ask the Minister if he will commit to avoiding any cuts to our already excellent support for youth and sport in the Northwest Territories.
---Applause
We value the input of all of our youth across the Northwest Territories. There have been no decisions, as the Member well knows, that have been made yet, and we will debate all aspects of the main estimates during the business planning process that is upcoming in just over a month. We will have that opportunity to debate and have feedback from committee as we move forward.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Kam Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I definitely did not get a commitment, but I look forward to working with the Minister on these discussions going forward. I do think, as a champion of sport and youth, though, this should be an area that he finds easy to support, so I'll ask again if he’ll remain committed to sport and recreation in the Northwest Territories through enhanced funding, or at least keeping funding the same.
I am committed not only to the development of our athletes across the Northwest Territories, which I think has been clearly demonstrated in my time as the Minister responsible for sport in the Northwest Territories, and I remain committed to that. I would like to see not only to the athletes, but to the health and wellbeing and the physical activity of all our children across the Northwest Territories, all of our athletes across the Northwest Territories, and I will continue to do what I can on my part to see that level of commitment carried on. Again, as I said before, no decisions have been made, and we have an opportunity to debate this further. If there are opportunities somehow to enhance any of the funding that we have in the Northwest Territories, then we will seriously have a look at that.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife Centre.
