Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Previously, I was asking questions to the Minister responsible for Lands about equity leases and that. They were talking about positions and stuff like that. Can the Minister please advise us: have all the positions been filled at this point in time? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Minister of Lands.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am pleased to advise that all five positions have now been staffed. The final staffing process has been completed. The final person who was being put in the position will be starting shortly. All positions are now filled or about to be filled. Thank you.
That is great to hear, that the positions are filled. Previously, when the Minister was talking about the process and they were talking about training and having the positions located in Smith and then taking the training there, now these positions are located in various locations. Has the department started developing training plans for these positions?
I can advise that training has been ongoing. As these positions have become staffed, each of the people in the positions, of course, come with different skill sets and backgrounds. The training has been a combination of specific to the individual as well as training for the equity lease team. Of course, as I mentioned, training will be ongoing and will be adapted as issues emerge. Yes, training has been conducted and will be continued in the future.
That is great to hear. Since the training has started and is individualized, which is great, has the department and the staff started to work on reviewing these files?
Work is ongoing. The equity lease team will be reviewing the files to outline and identify the status of each file and the issues that may be involved. There may be issues such as survey requirements and so on. Yes, work has started and is ongoing.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Nahendeh.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Again, I thank the Minister for that answer. I am very grateful that the department is still working towards that and we are getting to the bottom of this issue. Can the Minister advise us when they anticipate the work will be completed with these files? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Of course, the work is ongoing and will proceed in stages. In the settled land-claim regions, work has begun. Of course, I anticipate that that work will be less complicated than in the unsettled land-claim regions. In those regions, of course, there will have to be consultation. I am talking about the unsettled land-claim regions. There will have to be consultation with Indigenous governments. As to when the work might be completed, that is obviously going to take some time. It is not as though all these leases are the same. They are not all different, but there are certainly variations amongst the leases. I can't give a final time for this work to be completed. I know how important it is, and I certainly would be prepared to advise the Member opposite as to progress. I realize, as I said, this is an important issue. We are moving ahead. Thank you.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Sahtu.
