Jane Weyallon Armstrong

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I know that I did express my frustration too before. It would have been nice if there was more notice given to us to close the community learning centres. It's not just me, but my other colleagues have said the same thing too where we asked the college to do more community-based training or offer more community-based program. Because some of our young people are not too eager to leave, but there's not much in the community. If the community learning centre program was not working, then they should have done more to deliver or to work with the community...

Okay, thank you. I would like to get that information too as well. Because I know there's a lot of people that are asking, and there's some market rental, and you've seen that. And then a lot of people are living in some of those old units from the '70s and early '80s. They would like to become a homeowner or -- of those units.

So you said -- so you're transferring some of the HELP program to people under the HELP program. So I just wanted to ask the Minister if they can explain how are they determining the price of these units, especially in the small community where we do not have market to...

Thank you. Homeownership entry level and market housing program, I see here -- I mean, it's not on this list but it was e-mailed to us for the North Slave -- I mean, for Tlicho region, you know, there's -- since 2007, for Tlicho region, Behchoko had HELP program, home improvement or home entry level program. There were four in 2007, two in Behchoko and two in Gameti, HELP applications; 12 in Tlicho region; and another one occupied HELP units, there's 27 in Tlicho region. So I would like to ask the Minister how many of these are transfer, the one that's occupied, transferred to the homeowner as...

Thank you. Thank you, Madam Chair. If we're still on the page 387, public housing program. From last fiscal year, it went down, but according to the business plan, the mandate commitment says that increased housing availability for all residents by working with partners to address the gap, and the target minimum a 20 client each year and a minimum spending of $50 million per year from housing, and to achieve this it says $50 million per year from outside organization on housing. Can the must explain this further. The business plan on page 4.

Can the Minister explain what this --

Thank you. Thank you, Madam Chair. I know that in many of the small communities, we have a lot of good support staff, we have a lot of good teachers, we have a lot of good schools. I don't want to discredit by saying that, you know, because our education is no good or, you know, like I heard that quite a few times, but we know that a lot of work is being done by the school staff. I've seen it myself by the support staff. They're making every effort for the student to succeed, to focus on the outcome. But there is a problem. There's one -- well, there's a lot of problems but, you know, one of...

Thank you. You did mention interpreter/translator or, you know -- we've been asking -- I've been asking too -- not just me, but there's a lot of people that have asked. Interpreter/translator program, it was offered through Aurora College at one time. It was a pilot project. And I know it was popular at that time. And I'm sure a lot of our interpreter/translator that are in here probably went through that program as well, you know. Interpreting is -- I mean, it is an important -- you know, it is important for -- to promote and save the Indigenous language even in a lot of our -- our...

Thank you. Thank you for the information and for the changes the department have made especially regarding with the disability. That's good because a lot of -- in my region, some express concerns and frustrations about some of the programs that they were -- that they're using. And I know it's not just others, but there are organizations, a lot of them did say that some of the income support clients, they don't -- you know, they don't want to go to work because it's so easy and that they will be penalized if they're working even to attend some other programs. But I know in my region, Tlicho...

Thank you. Income assistance. Income assistance went up. Can the Minister explain why there's an increase from 2023-2024 to 2025-2026, why there's a huge -- well, not a -- a big increase.

Okay, thank you. Student Financial Assistance program, okay, it did went up a great deal. I mean, that's really good. So it means that -- so a lot of students are using the Student Financial Assistance program. So how many of these students are -- it would be nice if we can have a breakdown of the regions and the Indigenous and non-Indigenous and how many are doing -- whether it's Indigenous or non-Indigenous but how many of this is student loan, part of the student loan program. Thank you.