Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This question is for the Minister of Health. Can the Minister confirm; just a second here. I'll back up a step. In the South Slave, and in, I guess, the territory, we continue to have air traffic and vehicle traffic coming in and going. Is there a plan in place to address and monitor this situation during this virus issue? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member for Hay River South. Minister of Health and Social Services.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Our department, we are working with what we have. We will enhance messaging. We are all very busy, all of our departments, and I take this opportunity to just commend the staff and the department for all of the hard work that they have been doing. Yes, our department is looking at some of the traffic control and what does that mean. Again, we have our Chief Medical Officer here with us this afternoon to explain what's going on in terms of flights and travelling and how does that impact the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Earlier, the Minister of ECE said he didn't have the authority to direct some matters. I am asking, I guess, myself and the people in the NWT, we're looking to this government to take leadership in developing the plans to keep people safe, remove fear, and make sure that any untrue information is taken out of the equation. Can the Minister of Health confirm the chain of command within her department or the government as we deal with COVID-19?
Our Chief Public Health Officer has her own jurisdiction, and there is nothing that the Minister can override. She makes the final call on all decisions when it comes to anything that affects the residents of the Northwest Territories.
She has the authority on anything; it's pretty well anything to do with health, but we have other issues, like flights coming and going. We have traffic on the road. There are other areas that we have control over, as well. Is that correct?
At this point in time, that would be the decision of the Department of Infrastructure. If the department of health declares a health emergency or if, through the Emergency Measures Act, a state of emergency is declared, both of those processes do allow for extraordinary measures to do such activities as close the highways or to protect public health and safety. As the Member is aware, COVID-19 is being monitored on a daily basis, and any decisions to close air or highways would be done in full consultation with the impacted Government of the Northwest Territories departments.
Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Kam Lake.
