Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Housing NWT has shared samples of formal agreements established with other Indigenous governments for consideration by the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation. Housing NWT is committed to work with Indigenous governments through formal or informal arrangements. Housing NWT continues to meet with IRC informally and is working with them, for example on specific partnership project ideas as well as supporting them in securing land required for their own housing investments. This includes reviewing all vacant land buildings owned by housing and determining if those properties could be released to IRC in their communities or for their use. Housing NWT has signed a collaborative agreement with the Gwich'in Tribal Council and will work with them as well as the Inuvik native band and the Nihtat Gwich'in Council on housing priorities in their communities. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister of Housing NWT. I got it finally right. I said NWT Housing. Oral questions. Member from Great Slave.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister of housing explain what efforts Housing NWT is doing in working with communities to help curb homelessness across the NWT? Thank you.
Thank you, Member from Great Slave. Minister for Housing NWT.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Homelessness is a complex issue that requires an interdepartmental approach to provide a range of housing and health related wraparound supports. A Way Home, the GNWT's Homelessness Strategy, acknowledges this truth and has set us on a path towards integrated service delivery. Currently, Housing NWT operates two homeless shelters in Inuvik and funds shelters in Fort Simpson and Hay River as well as funding NGOs such as the YWCA, the Yellowknife Women's Society, and the Salvation Army, who provide services directly to the homeless population. Housing NWT also coordinates frontline training to NGOs and the GNWT Inuvik shelter staff to help build capacity for frontline staff who assist people that are experiencing homelessness. In addition, Housing NWT has also provided funding via the Northern Pathways to Housing for individual cases with wraparound supports. As the GNWT implements integrated service delivery, we anticipate enhanced collaboration and coordination with other government departments and agencies and eventually nonGNWT partners. Implementation of the integrated service delivery will include establishing five integrated colocated teams across the Northwest Territories that will initially be focused on supporting residents experiencing or at the risk of homelessness. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thank you to the Minister for that answer.
Mr. Speaker, in the 19th Assembly, there was a commitment to create a hundred units for vulnerable persons in the life of that Assembly, which was noted to be the first expansion of public housing stock in decades. I thank the Minister for clarifying this past February that those units should be completed this summer.
Can the Minister please explain if Housing NWT intends to seek further federal funding to make similar investments into our public housing stock during the life of this Assembly? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So Housing NWT, as part of the GNWT federal engagement approach, will include housing as one of its top priorities for discussions on funding with Canada. Housing NWT will be focused on finding new sustainable longterm approaches to addressing housing needs. Housing NWT's supported by the other GNWT departments has begun preparations to engage with federal officials and will be doing so shortly now that the mandate has been finalized and released. The federal government, in its recent budget, announced a number of funding programs to address the national need for housing. A key interest of the GNWT and Housing NWT, in particular, is to understand these funding opportunities and how they can be maximized for the Northwest Territories for the benefit of the residents, Indigenous governments, and the GNWT. As has been stated previously, Housing NWT needs partnerships to address the housing crisis and that includes partnerships with both the Government of Canada and Indigenous governments as well as NGOs and other housing stakeholders. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I look forward to hearing more about that engagement once it gets going.
Mr. Speaker, I know the previous Assembly also worked with Housing NWT to review their policies in an allencompassing way. Can the Minister explain if Housing NWT is considering the contemporary issue of homelessness through the lens of the ongoing effects of colonialism given that Indigenous people are disproportionately represented in those experiencing a lack of housing? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So Housing NWT did review policies related to homelessness and the disproportionate representation of Indigenous people experiencing homelessness in the 19th Assembly. One example of the changed included a homelessness assistance fund policy which now provides an extension for those requiring assistance more than once in their lifetime.
Approximately a year ago, the scoring criteria for public housing was adjusted to include a higher rate for those that are experiencing homelessness. We are currently reviewing other policies to see what changes are required and welcome any feedback Members may have. Under the Homelessness Strategy, other GNWT policies and processes will be reviewed with this important lens in mind. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister responsible for Housing NWT. Final supplementary. Member from Great Slave.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thank you to the Minister for that. I'm hoping maybe she could share some of that so we can give the feedback.
Mr. Speaker, can the Minister explain what Housing NWT's relationship is in the day to day with NGOs who provide emergency shelter and transitional supportive housing to residents and whether any permanent funding arrangements or partnerships can be made between such organizations and Housing NWT? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Member from Great Slave, two questions. Minister for Housing NWT.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And from our perspective, we have a good working relationship with NGOs that provide emergency shelter and transitional supportive housing to residents. We are always looking for new funding opportunities both within and outside the GNWT and provide pathfinding support to these NGOs to access additional funding resources. Additionally, Housing NWT's staff regularly speak to the NGO staff related to other issues that they may have, including safety concerns and educational opportunities. When speaking to longer term or multiyear funding agreements, that is a question that requires an all of government response, not just Housing NWT. A Way Home recognizes the importance nongovernmental partners have in addressing homelessness and specifically including measures to strengthen partnerships with this sector to ensure their sustainability and success.
In the business plan, Executive and Indigenous Affairs is committed to working to improve the relationship between the GNWT and NGOs and to working to better support the nonprofit sector as a whole. There is much work to be done but we have reports like the 2023 advisory reports to build upon. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister responsible for Housing NWT.
Colleagues, we just went through 25 minutes of question and answer, and we've only gone through four people. Can you please keep your answers a little more succinct moving forward.
Member from Tu NedheWiilideh.
I got 34 minutes. Thank you. No, I just wanted to maybe just ask the Minister that Housing NWT, the funding from CMHC's going to end in 2038, I just want to know what the housing corporation's planning to do between now and then in terms of their plans to deal with this issue on the decline of budgets.
Thank you, Member from Tu NedheWiilideh. Minister from Housing NWT.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And, yes, this is an issue that Housing NWT is concerned about. We have declining funding from CMHC. That's concerning. And basically this fund provides preventative maintenance on all houses across the North, Housing NWT units across the North. So in 20192022, Housing NWT entered into a multiyear bilateral funding agreement with CMHC that provided an ability to offset the annual decline of CMHC operating funding for the public housing program up to 20272028. Housing NWT will continue to work with the GNWT in engaging with the federal government on this important issue with the aim of securing longterm, sustainable funding certainty for the public housing program. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as we the Indigenous governments conclude their claims here in the North and there's still two outstanding and one being close to getting an ARP signed would the Minister on the interim start working with Indigenous governments to start making application to CIRNAC in partnership to address the housing crisis in our communities. Thank you.
So with the information I've been provided, Housing NWT does not receive funding from CIRNAC every year. In the 2022fiscal year, the federal government announced a twoyear funding allocation for Housing NWT to invest in public housing. This budget announcement was separate from the funding announced as distinctionbased funding for Indigenous governments for housing. Housing NWT was very pleased to see that the funding going to Indigenous governments to support the housing needs in the Northwest Territories. Moving forward, though, Housing NWT intends to work in partnership with Indigenous governments when talking to Canada about funding for housing needs. Housing NWT will continue to work with each Indigenous government to make determinations about roles and responsibilities. Not all Indigenous governments are interested in taking on public housing, and they see a continued role for Housing NWT in their regions. Housing NWT recognizes the need to work with Indigenous governments and take their lead in terms of their role with housing in their communities. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Minister commit to working with the federal government to get more money for Indigenous governments to address their own housing needs? Thank you.
Housing NWT intends to work in partnership with Indigenous governments in advancing our mandate in priorities related to housing in Canada. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister responsible for Housing NWT. Final supplementary. Member from Tu NedheWiilideh.
Thank you. Mr. Speaker, as mentioned earlier, we got ten homes provided in Lutselk'e, and we're having issues with lot development. I'm wondering if the Minister of Housing NWT could look at that so that we are able to address the housing needs in our small community of Lutselk'e. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Lot development is primarily a community government responsibility, and funding is provided to communities through their capital funding that can be used for this purpose. Housing NWT has engaged with Municipal and Community Affairs as well as Environment and Climate Change to work on the issue of land availability for housing in communities. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister responsible for Housing NWT. Oral questions. Member from Monfwi.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this is for Minister of Finance, and I think Minister of housing can answer this as well, but due to FMB, I'll stick with Minister of Finance. The Financial Administration Act allows the financial management board to forgive debt owed to the government or a public agency where it would be just, unreasonable to do so. Can the Minister agree that it is not just or reasonable to require repayment of debt to the GNWT for elders that cannot afford their housing. Thank you.
Thank you, Member for Monfwi. Minister of Finance.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I can agree because that is one of the considerations that is within the Financial Administration Manual that if an individual is indigent or in other words is unable to repay, then that is one of the considerations and could be one of the reasons for forgiveness or remission of a debt. Thank you.
Okay, thank you. Can the Minister commit to taking special consideration for elders specifically when reviewing GNWT policies that guide forgiveness of debt. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I did note before, again, that there are some considerations already listed, including the inability to pay. With respect to elders broadly as an individual category, that is not currently a consideration and would probably be difficult because of the multitude of circumstances that elders may find themselves in and defining who may railroad may not be an elder. I can say, Mr. Speaker, being a whole of government, I know there is the policy review going on over in housing that you've already heard about, and to the extent that there may be an opportunity to build in what appropriate considerations are when an agency as housing brings forward debt for management to the financial management board, then that may be an opportunity to see if we can better define what it is that the Member's hoping to see. That would be an opportunity for that. Thank you.
Yes, thank you. Can the Minister commit to reviewing the information bulletin 640.01, forgiveness and remission under the Financial Administration Manual to deal with this circumstance. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, that is the document that guides what happens when first an agency or other department identifies a debt for repayment and then brings it forward for consideration. As I noted, the consideration does already include circumstances where an individual's indigent, so if there's a disconnect happening, if there's someone who's in those circumstances and is not finding their debt forgiven, I am going to commit that myself and my colleague Minister of housing will work together to make sure that if there's a something if there's disconnecting, we could speak to the Member about what's if there's something that's not achieving the goal here that we can in the course of work that's already happening in housing make sure that we fill that gap. There's been over $20 million already forgiven with respect to housing debts as well as other debts of this nature. And, again, with the indigent portion already there, I am concerned we're missing something, so I will speak to the Member further and my colleague and fill that gap. If you
Thank you, Minister of Finance. Final supplementary. Member from Monfwi.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I don't have any more further questions, but I will talk and meet with the Minister of Finance and housing later on. Thank you.
Member from Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So my questions today deal with housing, but I'll direct them to the Minister of health and social services as they relate to a program that is split between the two departments. So there are really encouraging plans to develop a transitional housing program for those returning for addictions treatment, and the pilot will involve one in Inuvik and one in Yellowknife. So does the Minister know, first, how many spot are needed in Yellowknife as in how many folks in Yellowknife do we generally have at any given time who are returning from treatment and need somewhere to live to get back on their feet? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Yellowknife North. Minister of health and social services.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as aftercare and transitional housing is not currently being offered in the Northwest Territories right now and it hasn't been offered in Yellowknife, we don't exactly have we don't know how many until we start to be able to track. We do know how many people go out for treatment. We do know that not all those people going out for treatment that are returning back need somewhere to live, but there are those that may. So this is will we don't have those numbers at this time. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So my understanding is that the program in Yellowknife will have the capacity to house five to six people at any one time for 30 to 90 days, but if there are more than six people in Yellowknife that need transitional housing after returning from treatment, how can the department still support those people? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, while the five to six spaces may not address the full need of the once we start to, you know, monitor who's coming back and whether or not what the type of facility or recovery or aftercare that they're going to need, housing they're going to need, it's this specific area is for those that are returning back and being able to support them through transitioning on to living on their own; however, I understand the Member's concern that right now we don't know how many we're going to need this. You know, we may. You know, at this time, I can't I couldn't answer that. But there are other programs and other services that we you know, we will continue to support residents returning back from any type of treatment. Thank you.
(audio) oral questions. Member from Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So my understanding is that this is meant to be a pilot project, which implies that it's time limited, so how long is this pilot project intended to last? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this funding is for two years, and then we will as part of the business plan, we'll continue to move forward into the 20262027 business planning cycle for you know, for future funds. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Minister of health and social services. Final supplementary. Member from Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So I'm going to throw this last question at the Minister, but if she doesn't have the stats on hand, I'd be happy to get a written response later, but does she have any idea of the number of people in a year that go to away to addictions treatment and who might be returning to Yellowknife. She said they do keep numbers on those sorts of things. I'm wondering if she can give us a sense or if not get back to me with a sense of, like, what volume of people we're talking about that are returning from addictions treatment to Yellowknife. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I will commit to getting the numbers that people that are being sent out from Yellowknife necessarily you know, if they come back to Yellowknife doesn't mean that this may be their end location because if somebody goes out and is getting well has gotten well, recovered from you know, and they may go to back to their home communities as they may have supports in those communities, so I what I can commit to is knowing the people that have been sent out from Yellowknife to the Member. Thank you.
