From my understanding, the amount of the cheque that the families get at the beginning of the month includes everything in it and there has been an increase. In terms of tail end, of families getting cheques at the end of the month from our office, I'll have to confirm that, but my understanding is families receive an increase in their payments and an increase in cheques at the beginning of each month. I'll have to confirm with our department, but I'm pretty sure that all families get the full payment at the beginning of the month. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife Centre.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'll look forward to that confirmation from the Minister. Finally, I'm going to repeat the question that commentators and frontline service providers as well as I have been asking: will the Minister recognize that taking away the food and clothing allowance for children under 18 was the wrong thing to do and to reinstate that allowance immediately? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. When we were moving ahead with the Income Assistance changes, we got recommendations from clients, we got recommendations from our partners in the NGO community. Moving forward, a lot of those included that we no longer claw back income that's intended to help parents with the costs of raising their children.
In order to understand the improvements, I think, to the Income Assistance Program, Members must look at the overall benefit package and not at each item in isolation. As a government, we give a whole suite of programs and services to help families in need, low income families. All departments, most of our departments, do that. We've made those changes within Education, Culture and Employment.
When you put the community cost adjustments and that we're no longer clawing back income for children, our families are receiving more money, Mr. Speaker. Any other concerns can be brought forward to the department, but I thank the Member for bringing the concerns that she's been hearing to the House. I feel they're being addressed with the work that we've done with our changes in Income Assistance. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Kam Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, public safety in our downtown core is always of great concern to the people of Yellowknife. I'm wondering if the Minister of Justice can answer some questions today. Recently, Nunavut has made a decision to allow their sheriff's officers to provide for escorts from the courthouse to the correctional facility. Here, in Yellowknife, the RCMP are responsible for that function, and it keeps the RCMP off patrol duty at peak times in the downtown, which puts additional pressure on the RCMP to provide public safety.
Can the Minister make a commitment to review the situation here, in the North, and commit to empowering our sheriff's office to do that job and get the police on the streets, where they belong? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Minister of Justice.
Mr. Speaker, I can commit to reviewing the situation. I don't know whether I could really commit to having the sheriff's officers conduct the duties suggested by the Member opposite as I believe that would require a significant change of legislation. So I am prepared, certainly, to look at the overall issue, but I don't think I can make any commitment as to any certainty as to whether we would be increasing the duties that the sheriff's officers already have. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
When was the last time the Minister reviewed that legislation? Because my understanding of it is that sheriffs are able to do this function; it is allowed by legislation; it's just not being done.
It is some time since I've reviewed the legislation, and, in fact, I may have never reviewed the legislation. I will, however, undertake to the Member opposite that I will review the legislation. I was under the impression that we would either have to enact new legislation in the form of a police act or something along those lines to allow the sheriffs to take on these additional duties, but I will certainly undertake to look into the matter.
Thank you to the Minister for agreeing to look into it. If not the sheriffs, then can G Division officers be used for court duty rather than Yellowknife RCMP officers?
Mr. Speaker, I don't know if I entirely understand the question. The question is whether G Division officers, who are in the RCMP, could replace other officers within the RCMP? Either way, it's still RCMP officers, Mr. Speaker. I may have misunderstood the question. Thank you.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Kam Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and perhaps I'll clarify. Instead of using the local detachment resources, which would be the Yellowknife detachment, the territorial level resources for this function, so pulling officers who are not involved in patrol duty in our downtown core. That's really the crux of the issue, and that's what I'd like the Minister to consider. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, certainly, we are always looking at new ways of being more efficient. I'm rather concerned that moving officers around in the manner suggested by the Member opposite might actually involve a greater loss. RCMP budgets or, rather, our portion of it, which is 70 per cent, has been growing exponentially over the last five or six years, but I certainly will, as I mentioned earlier, undertake to the Member opposite to look at this whole issue. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document entitled "NWT Mineral Development Strategy: GNWT Implementation Plan, 2014 2019." Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Tabling of documents. Minister of Health and Social Services.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to table the following two documents entitled "2016 2017 Health and Social Services Authority Budgets" and "Annual Report of the Director of Child and Family Services 2015 2016." Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Tabling of documents. Minister of Environment and Natural Resources.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document entitled "Waste Reduction and Recovery Program, 2015 2016 Annual Report." Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Tabling of documents. Member for Yellowknife Centre.
Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document, "Guiding Principles and Process Conventions for Consensus Government in the NWT." Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I give notice that on Wednesday, November 2, 2016 I will move the following motion: now therefore I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, that the Legislative Assembly strongly recommends that the Department of Justice take immediate action to extend the service contract and funding for delivery of A New Day Men's Healing Program by one year, to December 31, 2017, thereby granting sufficient time for the completion of a program evaluation as well as any subsequent required program transitions;
And further, the Legislative Assembly strongly recommends that the Department of Justice inform the Standing Committee on Priorities and Planning of its plan to implement the recommendations of this motion before the end of the 2016 calendar year; and furthermore, that the Government of the Northwest Territories provide a comprehensive response to this motion within 120 days. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I give notice that, on Wednesday, November 2, 2016, I will move that Bill 13, Marriage Act, be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Hay River South, that Bill 11, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Operations Expenditures), No. 1, 2016-2017, be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Motion is on the floor. Motion is in order. To the motion.
Question.
Question has been called. The motion is carried.
---Carried
Bill 11 had its first reading.
First reading of bills. Minister of Finance.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Yellowknife South, that Bill 12, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 2, 2016-2017, be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Motion is on the floor. Motion is in order. To the motion. Question has been called.
---Carried
Bill 12 had its first reading.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Hay River South, that Bill 11, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Operations Expenditures), No. 1, 2016-2017, be read for the second time.
Mr. Speaker, this bill makes supplementary appropriation for operations expenditures for the Government of the Northwest Territories for the 2016-2017 fiscal year. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Motion is on the floor. Motion is in order. To the principle of the bill.
Question.
