Good afternoon, colleagues. Please join me in thanking Elder Annie Inuktalik for the opening words and blessing today.
Colleagues, it's great to be back in this House again today. I'd like to thank the deputy Speaker for taking the reins at the end of last week when I was attending the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association's 44th Canadian parliamentary seminar in Edmonton. It was a wonderful program and I am thankful that I was able to attend on behalf of the House as well with the Member from Inuvik Boot Lake.
I would also like to take a few minutes to provide an update on some of my work over the summer. I thank you for your time and attention.
This summer I had the pleasure of touring communities within my riding with Minister Wawzonek. It's almost been three and a half years of planning to get it done, but we were able to successfully do it. And my communities were very thankful for her to attend, and I would like to thank her as well. We still have one to go but we will get that one done.
Folks, these communities and the people who live there are the reason that I am here, to represent them and their needs. I am grateful they have trusted me to serve as their representative, and I will continue to do my best to represent them through my ongoing conversations with our Premier, Ministers, all Members of the Legislative Assembly and elected officials from other governments.
In addition to visiting throughout the Nahendeh, I had the opportunity to spend some time representing the Legislative Assembly in Ontario this summer. I was fortunate to spend some time in Ottawa where I had the opportunity to meet with Speaker Akoak and deputy Speaker Hickes from Nunavut. More excitingly for me was the opportunity to meet with our Northern Youth Abroad participants and their staff while I was in Ottawa. One of the highlights of this visit was touring the senate and parliament with the youth and meeting with Speaker Fergus and Speaker Gagné. I thank all the speakers, deputy Speaker, and staff who shared their time and experience to make this possible. It was a great experience for our youth, and me as well. I cannot stress how grateful I was to be able to be part of that visit. It was truly a blessing to be able to be involved with these youths, spending time with them, helping them and learning from them. It's been said many times that the youth are our future and, colleagues, we are in great hands. Our future is looking bright.
I also had the opportunity to attend the recent Commonwealth Parliamentary Association meetings in Toronto, where I had the opportunity to meet with and learn from others colleagues from across Canada and throughout the commonwealth. I'd also like to thank the Member from Tu Nedhe-Wiliideh for joining me on that great meeting.
Colleagues, finally I would like to draw your attention to the sash on the table beside me. Following the memorial service of Mr. Whitford this past weekend, his family gifted his sash to this Assembly. I am truly honoured to receive this gift, and I can think of no better place to display Tony's sash than in this chamber. Tony was an important part of this institution for many years, and I am honoured to have his sash in the chamber with us. He will always have a place of honour in this Assembly. Colleagues, when you look at Tony's sash, let it be a reminder of his service and dedication to this Assembly and to the people of the Northwest Territories. It is a reminder to each of us, not just of the great work that he did but of the great work we can all do for our people. Thank you, colleagues. Now let's get to business.
Mr. Speaker, as we approach the one-year mark of this government, I would like to reflect on the progress we have made in strengthening our partnerships with Indigenous governments and the Government of Canada. Our recent trip to Ottawa, as part of the Council of Leaders, is a testament to the collaborative spirit we have built with our partners, and I am pleased to provide Members of this Legislative Assembly with an update on that trip.
Earlier this month the Council of Leaders, made up of the GNWT and Indigenous governments from across the NWT, traveled to Ottawa to meet with federal leadership. Our delegation included all of Cabinet, along with leaders and representatives from more than a dozen Indigenous governments. Together, we delivered a unified message: The Northwest Territories stands at the crossroads of Canada's strategic future. Our region is not only essential to the national conversation on prosperity and security but, with the right federal investments, the NWT is positioned to make meaningful contributions to Canada's success on the global stage.
Mr. Speaker, our meetings focused on key issues affecting the North:
The need for housing investments,
The development of critical infrastructure,
Strengthening climate resilience; and,
Creating economic opportunities through resource development.
While specific priorities may differ between the GNWT and our Indigenous partners, we all recognize the strategic importance of addressing these challenges together. We emphasized the abundance of resources in the North and the need for targeted federal investments in infrastructure, housing, and climate adaptation. Our message was clear: These are interconnected issues that are essential for the future of our communities and our country.
Mr. Speaker, infrastructure is more than just roads and buildings; it is the lifeline that connects our communities to the rest of Canada. The North’s isolation, combined with the growing impacts of climate change, presents significant challenges. Shorter winter road seasons, melting permafrost, and unpredictable weather patterns create barriers to economic growth. Strengthening infrastructure, through all-season roads, energy projects, and communications networks, will help unlock opportunities and ensure long-term sustainability.
Housing is another critical area where federal support is urgently needed. Chronic underinvestment in northern and Indigenous communities continues to be a barrier to education, employment, and economic growth. Overcrowded homes and deteriorating infrastructure impact the well-being of our residents and hamper the development of our communities. We have made it clear that housing is the foundation of a thriving North, and without stable housing we cannot fully unlock the potential of Northerners.
Climate change, Mr. Speaker, is reshaping life in the North. The wildfires that forced nearly 70 percent of our population to evacuate last year remind us that climate impacts are real and immediate. The Council of Leaders called for stronger federal support for climate adaptation. This includes wildfire prevention, building resilient infrastructure, and ensuring our communities are equipped to face these growing threats.
Mr. Speaker, the Northwest Territories is rich in resources that are critical to Canada's future. However, resource development must be balanced with respect for Indigenous rights, environmental protection, and meaningful benefits for Northerners. The Council of Leaders has emphasized the importance of federal collaboration to unlock the North’s potential, particularly in sustainable resource development. The NWT holds some of the world's most significant deposits of critical minerals, which are essential for the global shift to clean energy. With the right investments, we can position the NWT as a leader in this transition.
Mr. Speaker, our visit to Ottawa reinforced a powerful message: The future of the North is the future of Canada. As global attention turns to the Arctic and northern resources, it is more important than ever that we strengthen our partnerships with the federal government and Indigenous governments. This trip marked the first time that the Council of Leaders has tried something of this magnitude working as a collective. I want to thank all the leaders that participated for their partnership in this effort, and their commitment to our unified message. I also want to thank our Member of Parliament, Michael McLeod, for his support and advocacy on behalf of the Northwest Territories during these meetings and throughout his time in office. I was also pleased to have our colleague Mr. Edjericon join us for the trip as a representative of the Standing Committee on Accountability and Oversight, and I thank him for being there. Finally, I want to recognize the enormous contributions of officials from the Indigenous governments and the GNWT for bringing this event together.
The Council of Leaders is committed to working together to ensure the North is ready to meet the challenges ahead and seize the opportunities that lie before us to ensure that our shared priorities, housing, infrastructure, climate resilience, and economic development, are met. The future of the Northwest Territories is bright, and with the right support we will be a critical partner in building Canada's future. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, have a look through past Hansard transcripts and year after year, you'll find speeches by MLAs complaining that the capital budget has failed to adequately allocate resources to the Assembly's priorities. I argue that the underlying reason for this pattern is that our capital budget setting process is disconnected from priorities by design, and we need to change that process if we want to see a change in budgeting.
Currently, departments are using a set of criteria for identifying capital projects none of which include priority consideration first. In most cases, substantiations are provided which do link projects to a priority item in some way or other, but this appears to be done after the fact not as part of an overarching strategic plan for actioning a given priority. What appears to be missing from our process is a more foundational conversation prior to budget development and across departments about the direction set out in the mandate and how that direction might impact not only our capital spending but even our organizational structure. The current process appears to operate under the assumption that everything we are currently doing holds intrinsic value and should continue regardless of our priorities. The problem we are facing, however, is we have limited resources and when analyzed strategically as a component of priority implementation, everything can't possibly hold the same weight. Strategic analysis may determine a very specific and limited course of action is the best way to effectively implement a priority when compared to other options, meaning projects which aren't as comparatively effective shouldn't come forward or be discontinued. In absence of this process, we are taking a scatter shot approach, and MLAs are being asked by an exacerbated Finance Minister to make ad hoc decisions about what to cut on the floor of the House. This puts MLAs in the precarious position of making cuts on the fly to a budget staff who have invested significant time in already and, similarly, without the above-noted priority analysis. This process has proven time and time again to not work, Mr. Speaker, and this territory is now deeply in debt because we keep building more and doing more and failing to change how we operate. These outcomes will not change until we change our processes. I will note specific examples of this problem throughout our review of the capital budget, and I'll have questions for the Minister of Finance. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from Frame Lake. Members' statements. Member from Inuvik Boot Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Dempster Highway and the Inuvik-Tuk Highway experienced one of the worst summers and one of the worst falls in recent years. Mr. Speaker, as we know, this is a vital link for the residents of the Beaufort Delta for products and services. Mr. Speaker, I've been inundated with emails, phone calls, and texts, and I know that the Minister of Infrastructure has certainly received her share of correspondence from the management of the trucking companies in the Beaufort Delta as well, Mr. Speaker.
To put it in context, we have about -- one company alone has about 15 trucks a week. Those are semi-tractor trailers travelling up the Dempster Highway and in some cases into Tuk as well. Mr. Speaker, we've had situations where drivers of those vehicles, and broker drivers from the trucks that are brokered to the trucking companies, have refused to drive up the highway simply because the maintenance costs have been so high and the delays. There's instances where because of the delays on the highway and the distance to get there, the additional hours required to come up the highway, companies, Mr. Speaker, have had to hire extra drivers which, of course, legally you can only drive so many hours in a day, that again adds to the cost of getting that product to our communities. And as well, Mr. Speaker, you may end as well with drivers that don't have the necessary experience to navigate the road systems up there as we know are unique.
Trucking companies have seen more claims, Mr. Speaker, more products coming up. Some of our products obviously have shelf lives that have been reduced. Products, liquid products such as soft drinks and so on and so forth, have seen more damage, more claims, given the condition of the highway. And, again, that affects the residents and it affects the products that we're getting up there.
Mr. Speaker, as well residents who typically would drive out either for family vacations or to take a vehicle to one of the dealerships in Whitehorse, I've had stories, Mr. Speaker, where they've left, packed their families up to head down the highway, and turned around and came back simply because it wasn't safe enough to drive that highway this year, Mr. Speaker. So, again, I'll have questions for the Minister of Infrastructure on what we're doing to ensure this doesn't happen again and what caused those delays this year. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from Inuvik Boot Lake. Members' statements. Member from Sahtu.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the 20th Assembly developed a federal engagement strategy. This will allow our relationship building on joint resources discussions to address the many challenges faced by our Northwest Territories. Mr. Speaker, this federal engagement strategy certainly covers the disastrous situation faced by my community of Norman Wells and the Sahtu residents for the high fuel costs that's being air transported.
Mr. Speaker, as the Members recall last week, my request to the Minister of MACA for a briefing package outlines the preparations taken to lobby our federal counterparts to end the Norman Wells high fuel costs crisis. Later, Mr. Speaker, I will have questions to the appropriate Minister. Mahsi.
Thank you, Member from the Sahtu. Members' statements. Member from Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, finding a solution to the North's housing crisis is a passion of mine and a key concern for my constituents. So this is why much of the work over the past year has been dedicated towards bringing together different levels of government to get private homes repaired as quickly as possible in a way that is cost effective and centered on the services delivered by Indigenous leadership. In summary, this plan is to have the GNWT cover the first step of homeownership inspections so that a fully costed proposal can be delivered to the Minister of Crown Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs. That way the federal government, which has more resources than the GNWT, can directly from the Indigenous governments so we can then utilize those resources themselves appropriately.
We all agree that First Nations must take control of housing in their respective communities, and they will only prey on a greater role of governance of the Northwest Territories that continues our work in permitting the UNDRIP declaration on the rights of Indigenous people which mandates reconciliation as self-government.
We also know all too well that homes across the North are aging rapidly and must be repaired soon before they are into full disrepair or have to be written off completely. This plan is endorsed by the First Nation leadership in my riding, Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh, including the Akaitcho territory government, chiefs, and the Metis leaders. They are all encouraged by the response so far from the housing Minister and recognize the stronger effort this government has taken to lobby Ottawa, together with them, for more support and resources for the North. Let's continue to work together and set a model for how we can all work together to get results for our small communities. This is a key moment in our territory's history for both solving our own housing crisis and set a new path forward for reconciliation. I look forward to asking the Minister of Housing NWT later today on their efforts to work with myself and leaders of the Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh riding to make this proposal happen. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh. Members' statements. Member from Great Slave.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Earlier this fall, a married couple reached out to my office. They told me that they had been facing systemic discrimination within the health system as queer folks for nine years. Over multiple attempts, they had taken steps to seek help from NTHSSA to correct this issue, but after a while they felt ignored or ghosted when they sought follow-up.
The issue at hand was one of misgendering. Both partners in this couple are cisgender women. One of them happens to not present in a stereotypically feminine way. To put it plainly, someone had previously looked at this woman and decided she was a man, and for nine years the health system refused to correct this error. This is not an error that can be laughed off, Mr. Speaker. This is administrative and feasibly medical misgendering for this resident as she takes medication that needs precise dosages. If this medication had been adjusted based on her medical record that identified her as male, this could have had severe health consequences.
Before reaching out to my office, this couple asked on many occasions that the gender designation on file be changed from M to F but were told that they would need to follow the change of sex designation process and forms. This is infuriating because the individual in question is not transgender. Her birth certificate and all other identification correctly identify her as female. She is not trying to change her sex designation but to correct her mistaken medical records.
Happily, Mr. Speaker, within a week of my writing the health Minister, we had this resident's file corrected. But how do we allow a situation like this to persist for nine years? In my conversations with this couple, we agreed that if she looked more conventionally feminine, the problem would have been solved immediately. This couple noted that on many times on their journey that their medical practitioners, such as nurses and doctors, were frustrated on their behalf but couldn't change anything in their record.
Mr. Speaker, I'm highlighting this issue today because I think it's a teachable moment on the differences between gender expression and gender identity. I will have questions for the Minister of health at the appropriate time. Thank you.
Thank you, Member from Great Slave. Colleagues, before we continue with Members' statements, I'd like to draw your attention to the presence of Joe Handley, a Member of this House from 1999 to 2007. Joe was the Minister in the 14th Assembly and the Premier in the 15th Assembly, but the boss of the house as well is joining him is Theresa Handley. So welcome both of you here. Thank you. Notice, Joe, or Mr. Premier Handley, I said the boss was her, right, okay?
Members' statements. Member from Mackenzie Delta.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The residents of the Northwest Territories are wondering when this government is going to start looking after their interest in safety. The residents feel that this government is failing them in all aspects of services - in housing, in health care, in education, and the list goes on. During this past week, the Justice department has taken a different perspective in terms of protecting our residents of our communities. In my community of Tetlit Zheh, like all other communities within the NWT, they are dealing with a drug crisis. I've always stated that if alcohol and/or drugs takes over the lives of our residents, it will have a negative impact on all governmental departments.
Mr. Speaker, during the past week in my community of Tetlit Zheh, there was a serious crime committed by two local male persons. The two individuals forced themselves into a public housing unit and held the two adults hostage at knifepoint. The unit is occupied by two adults and their children. The crime in question is considered very serious in nature and is related to the drug trade. As of today, one of the accused has been apprehended and charged with multiple crimes. The other assailant is still at large.
Mr. Speaker, within a few days of being arrested and charged with some serious crimes, which includes placing a resident's life in danger with a weapon, the accused was free on bail and reportedly back in the community where these crimes were committed. When is this government going to start protecting the residents of their respective communities?
Mr. Speaker, the residents of our smaller communities are terrified and are looking at this government for protection. The RCMP has done their part with the investigation and charged one of the accused only to be let down by this government and the system. When can we start feeling safe within our communities? Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will have questions for the justice Minister. Thank you.
Thank you, Member from Mackenzie Delta. Members' statements. Member from the Deh Cho.
Member’s Statement 348-20(1):
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I would like to speak about the ability of elders in our communities to age in place in their own homes for as long as they are able to do so. Many elders wish to remain in their home communities, in their own homes, as they age. To do so means they require the appropriate health and social supports to live safely and independently. Elders experience higher rates of social isolation, mobility issues, and health conditions that require particular attention as we support their wishes to age in place. Not all elders can rely on family to provide assistance, and we need to think about that in terms of the support we provide.
Mr. Speaker, in case of an elder aging in place at home, one large concern is what happens when there's an emergency and there's no one to reach out to help. In one of my communities, an elder had to call the RCMP to help her to get to the health centre because the nurse at the health centre said she could not leave the health centre. So my constituents have concerns that this is happening, that nurses are not able to leave the health centres to provide care for these elders when they're unable to get to the health centre on their own. Elders are asking who do they call for help in an urgent medical situation in small communities? They are being told the nurses cannot provide care off-site. With the aging population, it is expected that more and more services will be needed for elders in our communities, and we all don't have emergency services such as trained medics or ambulances in some of our small communities.
Mr. Speaker, a change in policy is required that ensures that services elders need are available so they can age safely in their homes which includes health care in urgent situations. With our aging population, this is an issue that needs to be addressed now. I will have questions for the Minister of health later. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from the Deh Cho. Members' statements. Member from Yellowknife North.
Mr. Speaker, echoing my colleague from Frame Lake, year after year during capital budget deliberations in this House, MLAs stand up and say we are not spending enough money on public housing. So why does this keep happening if we all agree that housing is a top priority?
Historically, the colonial federal government forced Indigenous families off the land, away from their livelihoods, and into poorly constructed public housing. In the early '90s, the feds stopped building new public housing. Since then, public housing stock has fallen into disrepair and shrunk while waiting lists have continued to grow. As of 2020, the waiting list for NWT public housing was almost 1,000 families.
We have been told that we cannot take on additional public housing units even if another partner builds them for us. The three arguments seem to be, first, that there's no money for increasing the housing operations and maintenance project. Sure, we take on new capital and incorporate forced growth into our O and M all the time but for housing, apparently we can't afford it. Secondly, there's a belief that it should be a federal responsibility so we must advocate and then wait until they agree to take it on. Third, the feds are giving lots of housing money to Indigenous governments so we should just step out of the way and let them solve the housing crisis. The problem is that no Indigenous government that I know has indicated they want to take over public housing. Certainly, they're providing more opportunities for homeownership, allowing families with higher incomes to move out of public housing, but our economy is still so low in small communities and trauma is so high that there will continue to be a great need for public housing.
Nunavut is a territory that is ambitiously tackling its public housing needs through the Nunavut 3000 plan. Now, as an Indigenous government they can directly access more federal resources, but they're investing even more of their own resources. That's $560 million over eight years, and they're striving to build 1,400 new public housing units by 2030. Fundamentally, the GNWT needs to embrace its responsibility for public housing and allocate more of our own O and M budget to housing, not wait for the feds or Indigenous governments to save us. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from Yellowknife North. Members' statements. Member from Monfwi.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, earlier in this sitting I shared concerns about early childhood education. Mr. Speaker, I have seen firsthand in my riding that many children are entering the school system on an uneven level. This limits their chances for long-term achievement and success. One of the issues I hear from constituents is about the need for speech-language pathology services for their child or children.
Speech-language pathology, or SLP, is a rehabilitation service that provides speech and language therapy to people with communication disorders. In the past, these services were directly available in schools. SLP services were scaled back during COVID, Mr. Speaker. This resulted in less services in school which continued into the most recent school year. This time last year, the waitlist for these services was four to six months. This is too long for our youth to wait. And we all know, Mr. Speaker, that school readiness is essential for successful learning and development. SLP is an important health service in assisting children in need and preparing them for their entire education.
Mr. Speaker, there is a great need for speech-language pathology services in our schools to assist and treat communication problems for our children. Availability and access to this service is critical so that our children can thrive. Furthermore, access to health care is a priority of this government. I will have questions for the Minister of health at the appropriate time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from Monfwi. Members' statements. Member from Range Lake.
Mr. Speaker, the Government of the Northwest Territories has long prided itself on its fiscal discipline through instruments like the fiscal responsibility policy, robust capacity, and the financial management board secretariat. And a keen ability to leverage federal funding into 75 or 100 percent dollars, our government has proven it has what it takes to manage complex fiscal challenges. That is why it's so alarming that the GNWT's largest ever projected operating surplus has evaporated now to such a severe deficit that the Finance Minister is asking the Prime Minister to raise the debt ceiling, essentially our credit card limit.
Mr. Speaker, the things driving these costs were known unknowns at the time the estimates were tabled, debated, and ultimately passed. How have we missed the mark so drastically with such a strong track record of fiscal prudence? Mr. Speaker, I would suggest that we cannot simply hand wave our own responsibilities towards fiscal stewardship by blaming it all on external factors while painting a rosy picture that we're actually headed in the right direction.
Mr. Speaker, when we look at some of the costs that are driving up it comes down to, what it would appear, project management and project management that has been challenged for quite some time, perhaps on a systemic level. The Inuvik wind project has now cost more than double what was originally budgeted. 54 million additional dollars on a $40 million budget. In 2019, replacement diesel generators should have been a simple task at the Jackfish Lake. Well, that took a year to get them here and costs $500,000 of additional monies. And, of course, we have the Taltson project which is delayed by two years and costing an extra $31 million in the overall package of increases of $75 million for the power corporation.
Mr. Speaker, the Minister talks about the stabilizing influence of the public sector on the one hand but on the other hand, how unstainable our public sector expenditures are on the other hand. We can't have it both ways. We either must insist on prioritizing our economy and getting these projects so we don't keep adding short-term debt we can't afford. We are at a tipping point, and we are soon to tip over, and especially if Ottawa says no. So I'll have questions for the Minister about how we can better manage these projects, return to the tradition of fiscal stewardship that we've been so good at in the past, and start to turn the corner on our problems. Thank you.
Thank you, Member from Range Lake. Members' statements. Member from Yellowknife Centre.
Mr. Speaker, when I entered this building for the first time in 2003, the debt wall of the territorial government was $300 million. Since then, it's raised 600 percent, Mr. Speaker. Every Assembly that's shown up time and time again has always shown up with their wants and needs, but then now is no different. But at the same time they've always talked about how they want to live within their means. I've yet to see that after successive governments. Yes, enthusiasm can be contagious, a contagious dream, but all I've seen is this so-called live within our means is a chronic failure. Then in May, some hope might have come when we heard the delirious excitement from the Finance Minister about the latest projection of the world's biggest territorial surplus on record, $294 million. What happened? Oh my goodness, Mr. Speaker.
You know, it was all about paying debts, paying capital fully, hopes and dreams abound, Mr. Speaker. But to my surprise -- and I'll frankly say I can't believe I'm still surprised from time to time on some of these issues -- late last week we get an e-mail, practically it's like sliding a letter under our door, waving the white flag and saying we're broke again, we're heading to Ottawa because we need more money. Yet another deja-vu of the Oliver Twist story, Mr. Speaker. It begs the question what happened to the money? What happened to consultation with this side of the House? Does the Cabinet even need us? Well, they went to Ottawa without us; I mean, clearly they see beyond us. You know, Mr. Speaker, where is the proof that they've talked to us and said hey, can we work through things? Consultation with Members late night sending an e-mail is not consultation, Mr. Speaker.
Now, of course, the Finance Minister and the Premier will say well, this is an operational issue, not a political issue. Perhaps if we're talking about office furniture and how you paint your walls. But, Mr. Speaker, when we're saddling the youth of the Northwest Territories a generational debt, it is a political discussion, Mr. Speaker.
So I always been reminded that my Cabinet will be there when they need me hence they're now asking us to suck it up. We can't afford this Finance Minister any longer, Mr. Speaker. Five years of this type of growth, it was a billion dollars of debt while when she entered office, who knows where it'll stop when she leaves?
Mr. Speaker, we need to have a conversation about maybe -- and I stress maybe -- we should do a Cabinet shuffle because this type of moving forward is only going to bless the youth with a debt they will never be able to service. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from Yellowknife Centre. Members' statements.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'm very pleased to recognize former Premier for the Northwest Territories, and my neighbour, Joe Handley and his lovely wife Theresa Handley. Thank you for being here today.
Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member from Inuvik Boot Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'm proud to recognize my constituency assistant Sheila Nasogaluak who is joining us here in Yellowknife for the week. And I know we all say it, but she is the best.
Thank you. Thank you, Member from Inuvik Boot Lake. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member from the Sahtu.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I too would like to recognize the ex-Premier Mr. Joe Handley. And also, first time to this House here, two students there from the Colville Lake school Mason Kochon and Briley Kochon. Welcome to the House there, young fellas.
Thank you, Member from the Sahtu. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member from Deh Cho.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I too would like to welcome and recognize former Premier Joe Handley and his beautiful wife Theresa. And also, I would like to recognize my constituent assistant from Fort Providence Ms. Phoebe Parent. Welcome. Thank you.
Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member from Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I too would like to recognize Joe Handley and Theresa, his wife. Thank you for being here. And I just remembered in the early days when I was a chief, Joe was my MLA. So it was great to see you, great time to work together. Mahsi.
Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member from Yellowknife Centre.
