Thank you, Madam Speaker. I just had to send a message to the Minister of Infrastructure to confirm she remembered a conversation we had on the weekend.
Our highway system everybody here is, you know, drives the highway systems at one time or another. We know our highways are narrow. We know that, you know, we get blowing snow. We get dust. And one of the things that we see, you know, occasionally, and from time to time, is we see emergency vehicles assisting people on you know, on the highways. And so what I guess I'd like to ask the Minister is the Minister aware of safety issues related to the visibility of emergency vehicles using amber lights only? Thank you.
Thank you. Minister of Infrastructure.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, I spent the weekend with the MLAs in Hay River, and we had lots of discussions so I was a little bit worried about which discussion we had because there were plenty, but we did have a conversation on you know, on the concern of the tow trucks that are out on the highway and some of the Alberta regulations versus the Northwest Territories regulations. So, yes, I'm aware of that. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. So I am pleased that the Minister was listening. Is the Minister aware of the use of combination of amber and blue lights for tow trucks in Saskatchewan and Alberta, and they use that to increase safety when they're responding to accidents? Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. So the research concludes that the amber light is the most viable combination in low light conditions as well as bad weather, you know, which is often when tow operators are doing their most dangerous work. So, yes, we are aware. And that is something that we can perhaps look at. I'll leave it at that, and I'll see what other questions he has. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. So she's hitting 50 for 50 so we'll see if she passes the exam. I'd like to ask the Minister does our current legislation allow for the combination of lights to be changed? For instance, if tow trucks wanted to go to amber a combination of amber/blue, is that possible within current legislation? Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, that's a really good question. You know, this is something if Alberta is switching the regulation, we need to determine whether this is a regulatory change or a legislative change. Once we determine that and we could be able to determine what time how long this takes to get done, whether we have to do some consultation or whether we have to do some committee work. We just need to dig a little further into whether it's legislative or regulatory. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. And I'll save the Minister some time. Yes, you have to change the regulations, and you have to change the act, and I would ask you to change the act and allow for changes in light combinations to be set in regulation, and I think that you do have some changes coming up the Motor Vehicles Act this you know, fairly soon, and I would ask the Minister to commit to trying to incorporate this in that in those changes. Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, that is correct. I do have another change coming up to the Public Highways Act, and if this is something that we need to bring forward to this House, then we can do it. The motor vehicle equipment regulation is the prohibition on the blue versus amber light. So this is something that we can look into. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Kam Lake.
Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, my questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services.
In June of this year, I asked the Minister a series of questions in regards to people who presented at our hospitals and healthcare centres with suicide attempts or suicide ideations. And the Minister committed to taking my comments and concerns and asks around the supports that are provided to people away and into account and considering them. And so I'm wondering what changes have occurred to supports or responses to suicide attempts at our healthcare centres and hospitals in the Northwest Territories? Thank you.
Thank you, Member. Minister of Health and Social Services.
Thank you, Madam Speaker, and thank you for the question. We are reviewing the suicide risk assessment tool, which has been in place since 2019, which NTHSSA staff use when someone comes to the hospital with suicidal ideation or a suicide attempt. The policy runs to ten pages and talks about the ways in which staff need to respond, who needs to be involved, and what kind of a safety plan the patient leaves with. Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, in June I identified that safety plans don't always happen at health centres and hospitals when somebody presents with a suicide attempt. And so how does Health and Social Services now ensure that every suicide attempt receives a safety plan when they are at the hospital or the healthcare centre? Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, this is the standard operating procedure, that a person leaves with a safety plan. I think that some of the confusion comes around having a standard diagnosis. Not everyone who comes in with selfharm is recorded consistently in that way or with suicidal ideation. So they may not always fall into the category of the suicide risk assessment. So it depends on what kind of information is conveyed right at the beginning. But the safety plan is required. So if the Member knows of times that safety plans have not been given to people who have suicidal ideation or selfharm from suicide, then I encourage her to have them contact quality risk management. We're always interested in improving our services. Thank you.
Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, one of the things that Health and Social Services introduced this year from headquarters are mental health subscription boxes. But these boxes, which I believe in September the theme of the box was suicide prevention, these boxes are not made available to people in healthcare centres or in hospitals. And so I'm wondering if that is a change that the Minister is willing to make? Thank you.
Yes, thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, I think it's fair to say that the youth subscription boxes have been more popular than we anticipated, so much so that we've made the resources available online to people who are not able to obtain one of the boxes. We are now evaluating the success of that program with a view to deciding how and when to expand it. Thank you.
Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, might I start a new set of questions? Is that good?
You are still at a follow up. Okay, oral questions. Member for Monfwi.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. This is a question to the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources.
Madam Speaker, caribou is important to all the Indigenous people, you know, and it because it sustains us, and it for Tlicho people, it sustained us for thousands of years. And my people used to go out to the barren land for fall hunt. But since 2009, that has stopped, since that caribou restriction came into effect. My people, especially my elders, it is sad because many of my elders since 2009 have passed on, and many have never went back to barren land to go hunting since 2009 because of the caribou restriction in place. Why? Why should we go back to barren land to go hunting? You know, I mean, we can't even go hunting so why should we go back to barren land? So many of the elders have that said that. So now it's good that, you know, Lutselk'e people they still practice they still carry on with their tradition of going hunting in barren land.
So I just wanted to ask the Minister it's good that I support that livelihood because my people never had a chance. My elders never had a chance to go back to go the barren lands since 2009, but slowly we're it's coming back. Our school just our Chief Jimmy Bruneau students went out to the barren land recently. So I really admire that. But I want to ask the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources if he will apologize to the Lutselk'e people, to Lutselk'e Dene First Nation. Thank you.
Thank you, Member. Minister of ENR.
Thank you. I thank the Member for her beautiful Member's statement; I greatly appreciate that. In regards to the question, I've already told the Member from Tu NedheWiilideh and Member from Great Slave, I've reached out to the chief from Lutselk'e. We are right now having a conversation, and we're working together on this. So that's what I've made a commitment to and that's what I'm going to do. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Thank you, Minister of ENR. It's going to much easier once you're Minister of ENR/Lands. All right, Member for Monfwi.
I want to ask the Minister how much did it cost to send in those helicopters to Lutselk'e and a SWAT team? Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, they're officers, not a SWAT team. They were reacting to a tip and they went in there and they executed a warrant. This Member seems to want to make it sound illegal what the staff were doing. The staff did their job. As for the cost, the operational cost of how long it was, they waited an hour and 20 minutes before they even went into the camp. So we had to actually pay for that time as well. So if the Member wants to know, it's three hours. So whatever the operation of the helicopter time is, that's what it was. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Yes, I want to know the cost of sending, you know, helicopters. And okay, well SWAT team, ENR, they're like a SWAT team because, you know, they went in there. You watch it on the social media, you know, like harassing the elders and the young people in that a woman and child. So they are for me, I view them as a SWAT team. So thank you.
Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. I am going to have to disagree with the Member. She doesn't her definition of what is SWAT team is and what my definition of my officers that work for the Department of ENR do is totally different. So as I said, it was approximately three hours. So whatever the helicopter time was is what it was. But these are part of the jobs that we need to do. So as for the amount, it was three hours of what the cost is.
I just need to really stress with this mobile zone, she should reach out to her leadership and talk to the Wek’eezhii Renewable Resource Board, because they are the ones that work with us to develop this mobile zone. So if the Member doesn't want that mobile zone, she should really reach out to her leadership because I can tell you my conversations with her leadership and the Wek’eezhii Resource Board, they're very much about protecting the caribou in this. And as I said before, I've had a relationship with reached out to the chief from Lutselk'e, and we're working on something that where I will go in and meet with chief and council and elders to discuss this very topic. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary. Member for Monfwi.
No, well I said SWAT team because it was retraumatizing for them in describing their experience with residential school and all that, and it was it was not a pleasant thing to see. So that's why I referred to them as a SWAT team. So that's just more of a comment. Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. And I appreciate everybody has their own definition. But let's get it clear. It wasn't a SWAT team. There was two officers that came in, met with the people that were in the community. They came up. They waited an hour and 20 minutes before they even went and did their job. They worked with the people that were there. So as I said before, I am having a meeting with the chief and council and some elders in the community, and we are having this very discussion about this. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Kam Lake.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, my questions are again for the Minister of Health and Social Services.
I questioned the Minister during this sitting in regards to bursaries for students who want to partake in the Aurora College nursing program, and I was happy to learn and to hear that Indigenous students and northern students are both open to access bursary programs for the Aurora College nursing program. So I'm wondering, though, if the Minister will allow southern students to access northern nursing bursaries to fill the remaining spots in the Aurora College nursing program to ensure that the Aurora College nursing program is fully subscribed every year. Thank you.
Thank you, Member. Minister of Health and Social Services.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, at this point, this is a brand new program, the bursaries actually are not going to be available to apply for until the winter of 2023, and at that point it will be possible to apply for them retroactively. So we don't have any information on the uptake to say whether it's possible to expand it to other populations. Thank you.
Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, there are 30 spots every year available at the Aurora College nursing program. Every year there are Indigenous students who partake in it, and there are northern students who partake in it. Right now there are also people who are NWT residents who are not considered an Indigenous student or a northern student. They're a southern student because they have not lived more than half their life in the Northwest Territories. If there are spots still remaining in the nursing program, as in we have not met our max of 30 students, I'm wondering if Health and Social Services will take the necessary steps to expand their bursary program to ensure that every year we have a fully subscribed nursing program at Aurora College? Thank you.
Yes, thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, it's worth noting that this program is not only for registered nurses; it's also for people who are in allied professions including midwifery and physicians and so on. I find it impossible to make a commitment about extending the program without it ever having been introduced. But I do invite the Member to ask me about this again once it has been introduced. Thank you.
Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, in a perfect world we would have 30 Indigenous students in the nursing program, or 30 Indigenous and northern students in the nursing program at Aurora College. So the budget ideally would allow us to max out the 30. So the budget really, in theory, is already there. So all I'm asking for is that we ensure that the Aurora College nursing program bursaries are fully subscribed every year to ensure that we have the biggest capacity of nurses, because as soon as we can say hey, we'll educate you in exchange for service, we have a guaranteed eight years of residency of these students. And if someone stays here for eight years, I find most often they'll stay here for a decade, or maybe two or three. That's fabulous. They meet somebody. They have families. They have friends. They make the North their home. So I'm wondering if the Minister will commit to please expanding the bursary program to students who are not northern or Indigenous students to fully subscribe the program? Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, I appreciate the Member's passion for this. I am not going to change my answer. This program hasn't even launched, and the criteria the Member's asking for the criteria to be changed. We need to launch the program. And I invite her to come back to me with questions once it has been launched during the winter term. Thank you.
Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, my questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services.
The Government of the Northwest Territories provides services to treat underlying medical conditions that cause infertility.
What medical conditions are approved?
I have constituents who have underlying medical conditions requiring treatment before fertility treatment is available, and it is not supported by the GNWT. So Who decides what conditions are recognized and which ones are not?
If a fertility specialist identifies a condition that needs to be addressed before in vitro fertilization treatment is possible, why does a Northwest Territories resident need a referral from a Northwest Territories physician? This is administratively burdensome and adds significant time to a process where timing very much matters. Will the Minister create a directive to medical travel to accept referrals from specialists outside of the territory rather than the current system that duplicates this process? And,
Given the question of equity of healthcare for birth givers, why are vasectomies and vasectomy reversals covered whereas fertility treatments for birth givers are not? Who decides what is medically necessary and what is not?
Thank you.
Thank you, Member. Written questions. Member for Deh Cho.
Mahsi, Madam Speaker. My questions are for the Minister responsible for Housing Northwest Territories:
Can the Minister explain the reason for offloading public housing units onto First Nations organizations?
As many are not high market communities, has the Minister explained the financial obligations and problems associated with being a landlord of public housing?
Treaty 11 of 1921 was to ensure free housing for First Nations peoples and hence First Nations housing was devolved to the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation (now Housing Northwest Territories). Can the Minister provide an update on progress on this obligation? And,
The federal government's Rapid Housing Initiative states only 49 units for the Northwest Territories. As these are 100 percent dollars, why is there such low application numbers for the Northwest Territories?
Mahsi, Madam Speaker.
