Good afternoon, Colleagues. Please join me in thanking Elder Shirley Elias for the opening song today.
Colleagues, before we begin today, I would like to take a moment to thank the grade 1 and two students from Itlo Ecole who visited us earlier today. As a part of Indigenous languages month, these students were here to sing a special rendition of I love you, in Wiliideh dialect, dedicated to our incredible interpreters. It was wonderful to see these young people and hear their beautiful voices early this morning.
The students were gifted a book from our Inuktitut interpreter Susie Napayk-Short called Kids, Cubs and Calves, which she authored. Thank you, Susie. Colleagues, please join me in thanking these students for being here today and for honouring our Indigenous languages.
Mr. Speaker, I'd like to start my statement today in Inuvialuktun. [Translation] Mr. Speaker, “let us speak together.” That is the theme of this year’s Indigenous Languages Month, which we celebrate every February. This month, we encourage residents to speak together in homes, in classrooms and in communities. Indigenous Languages Month is a time to honour and celebrate Indigenous languages. This year’s theme emphasizes the collective responsibility in revitalizing our Indigenous languages. Every conversation in an Indigenous language strengthens its future.
Mr. Speaker, for generations, colonial policies sought to erase Indigenous languages. That legacy remains, but Indigenous governments, language advocates, and communities continue their work to preserve and promote their languages. The Government of the Northwest Territories stands with them, recognizing that real Reconciliation demands action. [Translation Ends].
Mr. Speaker, I owe a huge amount of gratitude to Beverly Amos for translating that for me today. And to Lillian Elias who joins us here in the House every day, for helping me learn some words. She's always incredibly patient with me and I am forever grateful for her language patience with me, and also her heart in this House.
Mr. Speaker, our Mentor-Apprentice Program is one example of how we support language learning. Each mentor and apprentice pair spend nine months together doing everyday activities like cooking, fishing, having tea, using their Indigenous language only. Last year, 57 pairs accomplished 200 hours of language immersion, developing more fluent Indigenous language speakers in the Northwest Territories.
Over five years, 117 participants have completed their hours. I congratulate all participants for "living life in the language," and I encourage residents to apply before the end of this month for our next intake, Mr. Speaker.
Our commitment extends to schools. Last year, 39 Northwest Territories schools offered Indigenous language programming as a second language. Our Indigenous Languages Secretariat worked with education bodies to implement the Indigenous Languages and Education Handbook, strengthening quality culture and language-based programming.
We also launched the Indigenous Language Instructor Employment Plan, creating new trainee positions where learners develop fluency and instructional skills. Five schools in the Beaufort Delta and Deh Cho regions participated in the pilot, and I would like to see it expanded.
Since 2018, 61 Indigenous language revitalization scholarships have been awarded, including 11 last year. These $5,000 scholarships help students offset the costs of their studies that contribute to revitalizing Indigenous languages.
Mr. Speaker, I am also pleased to announce that this year, the GNWT will release the first edition of the Indigenous Languages Services Standards. These standards will guide public servants in meeting Indigenous language service delivery requirements under the Official Languages Act. Every resident has the right to access public services in an official language, and the new standards will help the GNWT fulfill this right.
Mr. Speaker, we have made progress, but we cannot be complacent. Indigenous languages persist thanks to generations of resilience, and we must ensure their survival. The Government of the Northwest Territories remains committed to revitalizing Indigenous languages alongside Indigenous champions, elders, and educators. I thank and recognize the Indigenous language speakers who are bringing the language forward for the next generations. Let us continue to speak together. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Quyananni.
Thank you, Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. Ministers' statements. Minister responsible for Infrastructure.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to acknowledge the work being done by our regional and divisional staff when it comes to supporting supply chain success in the territory. As you know, our resupply operations on the Mackenzie River faced significant challenges last season due to low water levels, disrupting the transportation of goods and fuel to communities in the Sahtu. The Government of the Northwest Territories, through the Department of Infrastructure's fuel services division, oversees the Petroleum Products Program, which manages the purchase, transport, and storage of fuel in 16 communities not served by the private sector.
We recognize that communities relying on private suppliers are equally vulnerable to fluctuating fuel costs when transportation is disrupted. To address this, the GNWT provided an air freight subsidy to Norman Wells, helping to mitigate rising fuel costs for consumers until the Mackenzie Valley Winter Road became operational for the winter resupply season.
Mr. Speaker, the increased efforts of regional airport staff to support fuel airlifts were also instrumental in ensuring the Sahtu communities had the fuel they needed before the winter road could open. This winter resupply season is an important one, particularly for those communities.
Normal traffic movement of fuel along the Mackenzie Valley Winter Road sees about 130 truckloads per season. This season, the region can expect to see 600 truckloads, a 460 percent increase in fuel trips alone. Fuel resupply efforts in the Sahtu communities serviced by our fuel services division account for 250 of these truckloads, and the rest are private sector fuel.
In addition, we expect to see a significant increase in traffic to complete the backlogged delivery of dry goods to communities impacted by the unprecedented low water conditions. We have been working very closely with our contractors and the private sector to support resupply planning and to ensure consistent communication between all parties.
Mr. Speaker, these efforts put extra pressure on our regional and divisional staff, as well as on our contractors to maintain, construct, and monitor a winter road system to support an anticipated record number of vehicles. Such an increase in traffic, especially heavy-duty trucks, has great potential to further compromise the integrity and longevity of our winter road system that is largely dependent on weather conditions. Though spells of warmer temperatures may be welcomed by some Northerners, they are not favourable to variables to help our winter roads.
In response to this, the Department is taking several precautions for the safety of Northwest Territories drivers and a successful resupply to communities along the Mackenzie Valley Winter Road. Our efforts include additional flooding of ice crossings during construction to extend their operational window and increasing bearing capacity, widening the winter road, where possible, and clearing wildfire debris. We are also increasing maintenance to ensure the efficiency of truck traffic and increasing monitoring in order to address any problems quickly.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize the proactive approach taken by our staff, and the willingness of contractors and communities to collaborate, often stretching their resources and taking on more work sometimes on short and unpredictable notice.
And, Mr. Speaker, as resupply operations in the Sahtu have just recently begun, I would also like to thank our regional and divisional staff, as well as the partnerships that we have with contractors and communities of these continued efforts to build and preserve a winter road system that supports so many aspects of northern life. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Last week, Members received a letter from the Family Violence Shelter Network seeking assistance to reinstate funding for the annual building shelter capacity fund in the 2025-2026 Budget. The network is a partnership between YWCA-NWT in Yellowknife, safe homes projects in Fort Good Hope and Fort Simpson, and family violence shelters in Inuvik, Tuktoyaktuk, Hay River, and Fort Smith. The shelter capacity fund slated to be cut is in the amount of $100,000. These funds are vital to the work the network does to train and build capacity of shelter staff to meet GNWT service standards.
Mr. Speaker, as you might imagine, this kind of work is emotionally intense, and as such the sector deals with high turnover. Training of all kinds, from basic family violence 101 training to risk management to trauma informed practice, is a continual need of both the management and frontline level.
Mr. Speaker, when I was president of YWCA-NWT, getting safe homes out of the pilot project stage and into more of our smaller communities was a tangible way that NGOs and Indigenous governments are collaborating to help address the needs of family violence survivors and address trauma. Shelters and safe homes are a desperately needed service across the territory. We don't have cut a small amount of money that is an investment in positive outcomes and impacts for our residents up and down the Valley. Mr. Speaker, I will have questions for the Minister of Health and Social Services.
Thank you, Member from Great Slave. Members' statements. Member from Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, education is a treaty right and a greater access to education, especially in small communities across the territory, like communities in my riding of Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh. It is clear part of the process towards true reconciliation.
Many of my colleagues have spoken in this House about Aurora College closing 19 community learning centres this June. Their constituents are angry and so are mine. The decision to take all of us by surprise because there were no consultations about these closures. According to the most recent public accounts, the Government of the Northwest Territories provided Aurora College nearly $46 million in grants and contributions in 2024. The GNWT can say that Aurora College made these decisions on their own, but they appointed the board and provided them with their funding, so the buck stops with the Cabinet.
For example, my constituents of Fort Resolution have one of the larger learning centres. It is a standalone building with two classrooms, computer lab, an office, and a common area, two washrooms, and a kitchenette, and a janitor room. A lot more could be done with these spaces yet now it's closing. If Aurora College is closing learning centres because they were underused, that is because the college's programming only centered to a small group of community. Judging by the unanimous criticism from my community members regarding these closures, they wanted improvement, not closures.
Mr. Speaker, I suggest either increasing the fine tuning the amount of programming offered to each of the most people possible in our small communities or transfer the responsibility for these buildings to the communities and make them traditional knowledge learning centres. At the constituents meeting of Lutselk'e last month, I heard many passionate ideas to that effect. They say that if Aurora College cannot be maintained, then the GNWT should transfer them to the communities yet still maintain the full funding, including for programming and operational management. I agree, after all, communities know what is best for their people in education.
Mr. Speaker, we must respect the rights to education enshrined in our treaties and should be doing more for Indigenous communities, not less, and the GNWT needs to face up to the responsibility for education and more specifically the responsibility to keep these education centres open. Mr. Speaker, I will have questions for the Minister for culture and employment later on. Thank you.
Thank you, Member from Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh. Members' statements. Member from the Sahtu.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Community learning centres innovation. Mr. Speaker, with the closure of the community learning centres brings new innovation. These centres have skilled and educated instructors who can enhance the capacity of current GNWT training initiatives. The regional community learning centres strategy proposes establishing three centralized community learning hubs in Hay River, Fort Simpson, and Norman Wells. Mr. Speaker, these regional centres could merge with the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs school of community government by broadening and centralizing training resources and funding. We can create a more streamlined and effective approach to community learning.
Mr. Speaker, these hubs could serve approximately 18 communities across the Sahtu, South Slave, and Deh Cho regions. They could tailor their programs to meet local and regional needs offering training for infrastructure projects and responding to the regional employment opportunities. This is particularly crucial as our communities try to advance and engage in diverse economic activities.
Mr. Speaker, we cannot build community capacity by removing essential staff and closing the doors. Our employed people need shorter, targeted courses that fit with their work and family schedules. These regional centres will provide education where people live, eliminating barriers, and allowing our people to balance their studies with jobs and family responsibilities. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Later I will have questions to the appropriate Minister.
Thank you, Member from the Sahtu. Members' statements. Member from Mackenzie Delta.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I rise to talk about the beauty of our smaller communities within the Northwest Territories. The smaller communities have a lot to offer in terms of knowledge, culture, respect, and the kindness of its residents. That is until one comes upon the abandoned buildings, an eyesore to the community that belongs to Housing NWT. These buildings are no longer inhabitable because they have no windows, no doors, the interior is beyond repair, while others are the remains of a fire.
Mr. Speaker, every community within the Northwest Territories tries to play its role in building the economy of the NWT. Tourism is the only resource that some of these communities have to depend on to be part of the economy. But when visitors come to these smaller communities and the first thing they see is one of these buildings, this gives a bad perception of our beautiful communities.
Mr. Speaker, do you know what is so ironic about this situation?
If one of these buildings belonged to one of the local residents of the community, they would be asked to remove the building. If the resident did not comply with the request, they would be charged property tax along with accumulated interest, yet the government can leave them there for years without being penalized.
Mr. Speaker, the communities within my riding of the Mackenzie Delta have to deal with this on a daily basis. Buildings are not only an eyesore to the community and its residents but also a hazard, especially to the younger children of the community.
Mr. Speaker, when we deal with serious circumstances regarding the safety of our communities, we tend to wait until an accident happens, then we act to address the situation. So before an accident happens, let's remove these government-owned buildings and make our communities beautiful again. I will have questions for the Minister responsible for Housing NWT. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from Mackenzie Delta. Members' statements. Member from the Deh Cho.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Recently, there has been discussion in the House and in the media about the Government of the Northwest Territories' affirmative action policy and the proposed changes that are coming later this year. Today I would like to talk about other programs in place for prospective and current Indigenous employees.
The Indigenous Career Gateway Program, which targets Indigenous aboriginal candidates for entry level and training opportunities within the Government of the Northwest Territories, and the Indigenous Development and Training Program provides skills training or work experience for career advancement. Mr. Speaker, I have heard from constituents that they face barriers in gaining employment in the public service and if they are already employed by the GNWT, it is difficult to move into senior positions.
While it is great that we have these programs on paper, I would like to know how they are being implemented in GNWT departments, boards, and agencies. It's important that we see Indigenous representation in the public service, and it's important that we see it in all levels within the organization, not just entry level positions. The GNWT must hire Indigenous students and allow more time for candidates to apply for jobs. I will have questions for the Minister of Finance at the appropriate time. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from the Deh Cho. Members' statements. Member from Range Lake.
Mr. Speaker, it is often said it takes a village to raise a child, but what if that village didn't have access to the services and resources necessary for that child? Every community needs the right services for every age and every stage, and it's the responsibility of good governance to maintain the quality and access to those services. $10 a day daycare came in place -- it was announced in 2021 to be fully implemented in 2026. This is great. This ensures our constituents have access to childcare because for too long families have been priced out of these services in the North. These efforts have been welcomed by all, especially me as a parent with young kids. It definitely helps. And we feel the difference immediately. Because accessible, affordable care not only provides endless benefits to young children as they develop but the working parents as well who have more time to participate in the economy and provide for their families.
We need to ensure that the Canada-wide early learning and childcare plan is smoothly rolled out. But unfortunately, I'm hearing from both Range Lake families and their childcare providers that they have entrusted the care of their children to that daycares and day homes are struggling with our current policies, and the consequences are more children are being left behind. That's why parents are asking me why the Department of Education, Culture and Employment has not been adequately funding them so that their needs are met. As a result, the Yellowknife Daycare Association's ability to operate their services effectively is diminishing, Mr. Speaker. Valuable opportunities for children in their care have been limited by forced cuts to essential services like after school snacks, field trips, and other things that families rely on.
Mr. Speaker, without proper funding, YKDA may eventually be unable to continue offering subsidized services to families. As a parent, I can speak for us all when I say we Northerners cannot afford for their withdrawal from the subsidy program. All the work that's accomplished to date would amount to nothing, forcing families to pay full rates, and at the mercy of cost of any increases. We need the Minister to understand this clearly and make real changes. We've had this debate on the floor of the House before. We voted millions more dollars for the department to make this program a success. How much more is it going to take? How do we help these families? I'll have questions for the Minister later today. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from Range Lake. Members' statements. Member from Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I want to express my concern today about the well-being of the children in this territory, specifically those involved with child and family services. I've been waiting to speak about this until I felt I had solid solutions to propose, but this is a tough one. That might be one reason that no one particularly likes to talk about this. It's depressing, it makes us feel hopeless, and it's easy to ignore because these children are not the ones emailing and calling our constituency offices, and yet these are likely the most vulnerable of our community members. They have so little opportunity to control what is happening to them, to control the direction of their lives, and that's not fair.
According to the last annual report by child and family services, we had 106 children and youth in permanent care of the state and 45 in temporary care. While at first glance, things seemed to be improving with 40 percent fewer children in permanent care compared to a decade ago, we suddenly have many more children being put into plan of care agreements. And even though this is listed as a preventive measure, it's become very common for social workers to use these agreements to remove children from their homes on a temporary basis with much less oversight than if they were formally apprehended. While plan of care committees are supposed to involve family and community members, in practice, the committee seemed to mostly involve simply the social worker and the parent who may feel pressured or not have the resources to dispute the conditions written up by CFS.
It's also worth pointing out that the majority of the reports of mistreatment, which can lead to these apprehensions, are related to neglect, which is often rooted in poverty. And no child should ever be removed from their family due to poverty.
Meanwhile, we keep hearing about the government's attempts to transform the CFS system, but what I see is a lot of focus on improving processes, frameworks, programs. What I would rather see is us trying to put children and youth themselves at the centre of our strategy and hold ourselves accountable for better outcomes in their lives.
We speak a lot in this House about the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and for good reason, but we rarely speak about the UN convention on the rights of the child. What if we built into our legislation that children's rights must be heard, and they should have as much control as possible over their lives? Mr. Speaker, I don't have all the answers, but I do feel it's important to keep the vulnerable children of this territory in our sights. Thank you.
Thank you, Member from Yellowknife North. Members' statements. Member from Yellowknife Centre.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yesterday I had the pleasure, if not honour certainly, to speak to the executive directors of the Centre for Northern Families daycare, the Montessori daycare, and the Yellowknife daycare as well, Mr. Speaker. Although I didn't get a chance to speak to the YWCA daycare, I still feel for their plight and their concerns will be in my statement as well.
Mr. Speaker, the ladies quite eloquently, and I'll say firmly and clearly, made it very clear their challenges of staying alive in the sense of a business are being impeded by the government-imposed wage grid. Now, the wage grid may have helped some but it doesn't help all, and what it does is it boxes these daycares, that are so necessary to help and flourish and nourish our young people, that the government is getting into the business of controlling these daycares. Now if you don't sign on, you can go at it alone, but that also comes with financial impediments and, if anything, it's perceived as there's no way to move forward if you don't. So in other words, they're boxed into a corner. If I was outside the House, I'd say ah, it's a threat of bureaucracy, but in the House, I'd say they're boxed into a corner.
Mr. Speaker, the frustrating part is they're imposed on the grid, and they can't do their business. But even worse on that is they're told you have to work within the constraints we've created. So what are the constraints? Low money but high control, okay. So the choice of them paying their employees properly comes to them, and the government's attitude is we'll just find money by fundraising.
Well, it might be easy to set up a lemonade stand and then get a hundred bucks by the end of the week, but when we're talking about thousands and thousands of dollars, Mr. Speaker, you just can't set up a lemonade stand or sell chocolates in every case.
Mr. Speaker, the government needs to step up. If it's going to get into the financial control -- or financially in bed with the day homes and daycares, they have to have the full picture and take responsibility. So what's left? These three daycares had told me that they are at financial risk by the summer. Again, controlled and created by the government. Mr. Speaker, this is frustrating. They cannot charge extra fees. They're told they're not allowed to. They have to find it from pennies from heaven. And when they sit there and tell me summer students are paid higher than the imposed wages, they ask themselves who is in charge and how are they really helping. Mr. Speaker, I'll have questions for the Minister later today about trying to fix, if not reverse this problem, and we can find a better way. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from Yellowknife Centre. Members' statements. Member from Monfwi.
Mr. Speaker, today I'm going to be talking about land transfer or title transfer. I want to draw some attention to a problem people face getting certificates of title transferred in Tlicho region.
Mr. Speaker, there are people in my riding who are living in houses on land they should rightfully own but they cannot get a certificate of title to prove their ownership. There are about over 50 members in Tlicho region. They live in a house for over 20 years with no legal title of ownership. This then would make the person or a person, people, a squatter, and this is a shame. There's over 50 of them in my region alone. Some constituents have said that their house, a house without any liens or mortgages, that they lived for years -- that they have lived in it for years which would qualify for community home repairs, is still in the name of deceased parents.
I have heard from elders who wish to transfer title for their house to family members while they are still able to do so, but they need support to navigate the system, whether that means help with the land titles office, the Department of Justice, the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs. Mr. Speaker, my constituents say they were told to get a lawyer to deal with these matters, but people need more directions and they need money to pay for legal fees. It's range from $10,000 to $40,000 to settle a land title claim. The land titles office does not issue leases or grant title to property. It is responsible only for the registration of ownership to privately owned surveyed land.
Mr. Speaker, I know that the Government of the Northwest Territories has different programs in place to help with these types of problems, but residents need more information and more help. Mr. Speaker, I will be preparing a written question for the Minister of Justice on this matter. Thank you.
Thank you, Member from Monfwi. Members' statements.
Good afternoon, Colleagues. This is a statement I prepared for last fall session, but I didn't get a chance to do it.
Last summer, some of you had the opportunity to see various hand game tournaments across the NWT and are happening now. As some of you know, it is amazing to watch. You can feel the energy and excitement in the venue. The hand games were played years ago as a form of gambling among friends and different groups. Often the games were played to gamble for bullets, furs, dogs, toboggans, or match sticks. Today, hand games are played in cultural centres, gyms, community halls or outside, all over the NWT as a friendly competition fostering community pride. The hand game is based on a simple concept of hiding and guessing of objects using elaborate hand signals and gestures to both find the object and hide the object. This is all done with the sound of the drum. Some say it is not physical, but I have seen games that last for hours and at the end, both teams are sweating and exhausted. However, winning or losing, you are grateful to compete against one another.
This past summer, a team from Fort Liard, Fort Nelson, and an elder from Fort Providence competed at the Charlie Zoe Nitsiza Hand Games Tournament in Whati. The tournament started on June 28th and finished on June 30th after midnight. There were 51 teams competing throughout the weekend. As the 51 teams battled it out throughout the weekend, we finally saw it get down to the last eight teams on Sunday evening. The team managed to stay on the A side bracket until Sunday afternoon when they were dropped to the B side bracket by the team from Deline. This added to the challenge for them getting to the final. Fortunately, they eliminated the remaining teams on the B side to make it to the final to compete against the A side Team Deline.
The captain of the team told me about the message they got from the Deline captain, We're glad to see you in the final. Sure enough, they did meet in the final. In the end, the team came in second.The captain would like to say a big mashi cho to his teammates. It was an amazing time.
In closing, hand games are a healing sport and that is why people are attracted to it. It soothes the soul and it's reconnected you with your ancestors. Congratulations to the teams
and the teams that are competing last weekend in Fort McPherson, and I think they're competing in Deline this weekend. So thank you very much.
I MOVE, seconded by the honourable Member for Thebacha, that notwithstanding Rule 2.1, when the House adjourns on Thursday, February 13th, 2025, it shall be adjourned until Tuesday, February 25th, 2025;
AND FURTHER, that any time prior to February 25th, 2025, if the Speaker is satisfied after consultation with the Executive Council and Members of the Legislative Assembly that the public interest requires that the House should meet at an earlier time during the adjournment, the Speaker may give notice;
AND THEREUPON, the House shall meet at the time stated in such notice and shall transact its business as it has been duly adjourned to that time.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from Yellowknife North. To the motion.
Question.
Question has been called. All those in favour? Opposed? Abstentions? The motion's carried.
---Carried
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'd like to recognize a page from the Range Lake riding today, Ahmed Saad, and it's also his birthday. So thank you for being here on this very special day. I'd also like to recognize my friend Hawa Dumbuya-Sesay, she's the executive director of the YWCA, and everyone else who's come to watch our proceedings today from that organization. You do great work in our communities, and we're happy to support you here. Thank you.
We won't embarrass him because he's not in the hall right now, but I was going to say we could sing him a happy birthday.
Recognition of visitors in the hall -- or recognition from the gallery. Well, here we go. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Let's do Great Slave.
Mr. Speaker, I'd like to recognize several visitors in the gallery who are part of the Family Violence Shelter Network. As mentioned, Hawa Dumbuya-Sesay, who is the executive director of YWCA-NWT; Sherri Tambour, program manager, Hay River Family Support Centre; Donna Rogers, executive director, Inuvik Transition House Society; Terry Esogak, a shelter worker, Inuvik Transition House Society; Sandra Elias, Aimayunga Women's Shelter, Tuktoyaktuk; Brenda T'seleie-Pierrot, safe home coordinator, Fort Good Hope with the YWCA; and, Amy Fraser, victim services coordinator and safe home lead from Lutselk'e First Nation, as well as their wonderful advocacy staff member from the Y, Megan Brackenburry. Welcome today, and thank you for being with us.
Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member from the Sahtu.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I too would like to recognize Brenda T'seleie-Pierrot, the safe home worker in Fort Good Hope. Mahsi.
