Masi. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Range Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would be remiss if I didn't also recognize Lorraine, Annemieke and Sammie as the Minister responsible for the Status of Women. I'm really grateful that you're here. Thank you.
Masi. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Hay River North.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'd like to recognize the pages from Ecole Boreale that are here with us also all week, Victoria Tweedie-Pitre and Reegan Jungkind. I want to thank them for their excellent work. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'd like to rise in the House to inform you that Mr. Frederick (Sonny) Williams McLeod, 82 years old, entered into peace on Thursday, September 15, 2016. Mr. McLeod's final days were spent surrounded by family and friends. Fred had an effect on each of us in some way throughout his memorable life. It is comforting to know both Fred and Violet have given themselves to the Lord. He now joins his wife, Violet, in paradise. Mr. and Mrs. McLeod are survived by their five children and their spouses, ten grandchildren and five great grandchildren and numerous nieces and nephews and extended family. He will be sadly missed. My condolences go out to his family. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today my question is for the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources. Earlier on I spoke about active fish species, and my first question to the Minister, Mr. Speaker, is how is the department involved in monitoring changes to species range and habitat? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Minister of Environmental and Natural Resources.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, they do have the lead role in managing Canada's fisheries including those in the NWT. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources, we're responsible for managing sport fishing regulations and issuing licenses to NWT residents and visitors. We also provide funding through the Cumulative Impact Monitoring Program to conduct studies on salmon, among a number of other things. In the case of salmon, this is a partnership approach with the University of Manitoba and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans to determine how the movement of salmon into new habitat will affect species like char and act as indicators to climate change. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, my second question to the Minister is can the Minister explain how invasive species are different from species like Chum salmon that are becoming more widespread in the Northwest Territories.
Mr. Speaker, the change in climate is causing a movement and introduction of new species in the NWT every year. The impacts of these new species are complex and will take some time to determine how they affect our ecosystem. Invasive alien species are generally species that are introduced by people and the movement of salmon to different parts of the Northwest Territories is naturally occurring, not by people, and the salmon are therefore called invasive alien species. They are considered pioneering species.
I appreciate the response. Mr. Speaker, my third question is how has the department incorporated traditional knowledge into this work on invasive species?
Mr. Speaker, the knowledge of your elders is essential and very important to tracking and learning about changes in our climate. There are observations of species changing ranges and habitats and the new introduction of species is how these changes will affect our ecosystem. ENR works with elders at wildlife workshops in the regions and collect this valuable information to help us with our added adaptation to climate change and the experience and the knowledge that they bring is very important to the work we do at ENR.
Masi. Oral Questions. Member for Nunakput
Mr. Speaker, my final question for the Minister is does the department have concerns that species that are migrating further north with drive out plants and animals that have been the keystone of northern landscape and harvested from the land for a millennia?
Mr. Speaker, the department, we share these concerns with these species working their way further migrating. However, as our climate is changing we are starting to see the movement of new species out of their natural ranges to the Northwest Territories, and it's awfully difficult with climate change for us to stop these migrations, and it's just something that we have to adapt to and try to work with and see what type of an effect it will have on our ecosystems, and we will continue to do that work and keep Members apprised as to the work we're doing.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Frame Lake.
Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Earlier today I talked about my communication with the MACA Minister on the support for seniors and sports and recreation. In reply, the Minister indicated that her department is actively encouraging development of an application to support these types of services. How actively though is the department involved? That is, has the department proactively assigned an expert policy program delivery staff to assist in the drafting of proposals or is it simply asking seniors representatives to develop applications and come back with further revisions? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. There are a couple questions there. Minister for Municipal and Community Affairs.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'm assuming that'll count for two of the questions then. The Department of Municipal and Community Affairs is actually very active in trying to support seniors. We recognize that we need to address more and not only from seniors but from cradle to grave, and so we need to address the whole spectrum of sports and recreation within our territories.
So on that end, I mean we do provide some support currently. We support the Elders in Motion Program through the NWT Recreation and Parks Association and the Canada 55+ Games which is provided through Sport North. Of the 55+ Games, 38 athletes actually attended from the Northwest Territories. They competed in nine sports and won a total of 16 medals in swimming, bowling, cycling and darts. They received $14,000 from Sport North this past summer and it covered uniforms and pins. But we do recognize that we still have a long way to go, and so like I had said yesterday in question period we are in the process of contacting and I know we’ve reached some, I don't know if we've reached them all -- we're contacting all the five sports and recreation associations to bring them to a table.
Our plan is to address all of the gaps and the duplications that these organizations are providing at this point. Seniors, youth, all of that will be put on the table to address that and then we'll be working with them to develop a new business plan to see where they can go forward with the fiscal constraints where we are today.
So we are recognizing that we have a long way to go but we're being very proactive in actually trying to address the needs of all residents of the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. I think I heard a little slip there; the word "fiscal" came into the picture. I did want to ask the Minister, I've got some ideas here, but in view of that MACA only delivers their programs through third parties at the present time, why doesn't MACA include specific terms and conditions in their agreements with these organizations, requiring funding such as a percent of budgets, specific dollar amounts, or required minimal amounts be dedicated to seniors?
Currently, we don't have anything within our application process that I know that states what programs or financial amounts that we dedicate specifically for seniors. But, like stated in my previous answer, we are bringing all of the organizations together to see if we can actually address better the needs of the residents of the Northwest Territories. I will carry forward the Member's comments to that meeting with the organizations and see if there is more that we can do.
Again, I appreciate the response from the Minister. I wouldn't mind being a fly on the wall in that meeting. Can the Minister commit to report back to Members the results of this meeting, identifying gaps and what sort of commitments might be made with regard to support for seniors in sports and recreation?
Like I said before, we are bringing the organizations together. It probably will be a little bit of a process to get through identifying what the duplications are, what the gaps are, who's going to take them on, how we develop that, where we go forward, but I can commit to once all of that information is received that I will put that forward to all of the Members of the Legislative Assembly.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Frame Lake.
Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Again, I appreciate the response from the Minister. The Minister sort of outlined what might be a rather lengthy process here and I'm just a bit concerned about that. Does the Minister have any sense of what the timing of these meetings are and who is going to be invited? Could she just give us a few details about that? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
So I can say that the five sports and rec organizations will be at the table. I can get a list of the five. I knew it yesterday, I'm thinking I'm forgetting a few of them today so I don't want to state and forget some of them, so I will provide that to the Members. The timeline is difficult. It's really hard to say what time that it will be finished. I am respectful that there are some issues with the groups; they might not want to hear about overlaps, there might be some contention. So I can commit, though, that it is a priority for me and that as soon as the results are in I will get that to Members, but I can't say specifically when because it will depend on the feedback and the interactions that we have with the organizations. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Nahendeh.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today in my Member's statement I spoke about the importance of physical literacy for older adults. I'm not talking about sport, I'm not talking about recreation; I'm talking about physical literacy. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs advise this House what the department is doing for older adults as it relates to their physical literacy? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs.
As stated earlier, currently the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs is providing funding to NWT Recreation and Parks Association, which is one of the five, for the Elders in Motion program, and we're also providing it for the Canada 55+ Games. We do recognize that there is an issue with physical literacy and so that will be a topic that's on the agenda.
I should also state that there has been a representative from one of the seniors' organizations that has recently come forward and asked if we would consider working with them also to provide a new program for seniors. I don't have the details on that, but I do know that we have expressed more than interest in working with senior groups to provide supports to seniors.
I thank the Minister for her answer. I guess I'm a little bit concerned. We're talking about third-party funding, so the department gives funding to the two of the partners to run events. But I guess my thing is I was looking for the department, and I appreciate that they're working with the seniors, or older adults as they want to be called. Mr. Speaker, in my Member's statement I spoke about some of the benefits of physical literacy for older adults. Can the Minister advise the House if the department is willing to promote the benefits of physical literacy to the residents of the NWT?
Yes, I think that we don't do a good job in actually promoting the benefits of sports and recreation. I think we do but we could do better, and so we will work on developing that as well. Again, it is something that we should be bringing to the five organizations because I also think that they have a role in the promotion of sports and recreation throughout the Northwest Territories. So again, like I said, I will commit to bringing that issue to the table when we meet with them all and see if it becomes solely a department issue or if it's something that all of the organizations should take part in, because, in my personal opinion, I believe it should be a shared responsibility.
I thank the Minister for her answer, but we need leadership, that's what we're looking for, and we need the department to show the leadership then the five partners will follow in stride with it. Physical literacy is important. It's just not sports, it's just not recreation, it's about wellness we're looking for. I realize older adults and seniors cross over other departments. Can the Minister advise the House if there's a committee, Ministers, or departmental staff that work together to help provide older adults with programs to help improve their lives?
At this time no, there is not an interdepartmental committee to look at sports, rec and physical literacy for people in the Northwest Territories. That is the responsibility of the Municipal and Community Affairs.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Nahendeh.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I actually learned something today on this file. I thought that there would be an ECE, Health and Department of MACA working looking after seniors and that's, you know, promoting their health and that and I wish we would work with that.
Mr. Speaker, this past June I read in the news that the department provided little if no support for the 50+ Games. I've heard the Minister say that there were some pins and uniforms and that. Actually, one of your colleagues actually attended the games and did quite well, I heard, and I thank him for, you know, promoting physical literacy and a better way of life. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister explain to the House why is it the department provides little or no support for these type of games for seniors? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I'm going to take the opportunity to actually address two issues that were brought up by the Member. The first one was that there is no coordination within the departments to deal with seniors specifically; that is not true. My understanding was there is an interdepartmental group. There is no interdepartmental group; however, we do have a Minister responsible for seniors who works with all of the departments to compile the information supports and to lobby and advocate with us to provide supports to seniors.
The second thing I will address is the question. It was talking about the 55+. Like I said, we did give $14,000 to Sport North this summer for the 55+ games. They used it to cover uniforms and pins. But we have made a commitment, and that was from the past Minister and it still follows through with myself as the new Minister, that every organization will receive the same amount of funding as they got last year and, if not, then maybe more. I will honour that commitment, and I do promise that there will be at least the amount of funding if not more for seniors. I have a personal stake in this as well. I am over 55. I want to make sure that we take care of ours. I don't want to be one of the people that fall off and aren't physically active. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions are for the Minister of Health on the question of funding and support for seniors, in particular aging in place. Mr. Speaker, the Minister recently stated that while federal health funding is diminishing, there is a new funding anticipated. Can the Minister provide the status of that funding and indicate to the assembly, if approved, what will it be used for? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Minister of Health and Social Services.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, during the federal election, there was an indication that there would be money allocated to provinces and territories by the federal government, about $3.9 billion over a four-year period. We don't actually know how they plan to distribute those dollars or what the criteria is for utilizing those dollars are. If past predicts future, and they use the same types of formula as they have in the past, which is often population-based, we could get as much as $3.6 million over the four years, which works out to just over $900,000 a year.
We, and all the other provinces and territories, are working with the federal government to figure out how to distribute those funds and what those funds can be utilized for. It is clear that it is for home care but not the scope and nature. In the past, there have been some concerns about some of the federal dollars that are rolled out that have been very specific. There hasn't been a lot of flexibility. The provinces and territories are suggesting to Ottawa that our needs across this country are different, and there needs to be some room for flexibility.
One of our concerns about the dollars, when they do flow, is they are often referred to as boutique funds or short-term funds. We will get four years of money, and we have to be cautious about setting up programs or delivering programs that become expected and we are required to continue to deliver them because the federal money will end. As we are accessing these monies, we need to figure out how to ensure that we are either set up to continue programs or that they are utilized to help us design programs that we then have to come to this House to fund. But as the Member knows, we do have financial challenges here in the Northwest Territories. We need to make choices here in this building about cuts, reductions, corrections in order to invest in new initiatives. We are all going to have to work together to find out where the money is. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I thank the Minister for his response. Mr. Speaker, the question I would like to ask, the "Our Elders: Our Communities" frameworks speaks of the need to support seniors in aging in place in the community to delay the need for long-term care. Can the Minister elaborate on some of the steps that are being taken to support aging in place in our communities?
Mr. Speaker, I have mentioned it before. We are working on a continuing care services action plan, which is helping us to quantify the needs and demands out there for things like home care and other supports that we can be providing for our seniors. We hope to have that action plan done by the end of this fiscal year, at which point I will be coming to committee to have some discussions on the plan itself and how we can work together to roll that plan out and make sure that we are meeting the broad range of needs of seniors across this territory.
