Kieron Testart

Member Range Lake

Kieron Testart was elected to the 20th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly to represent the constituency of Range Lake.

Mr. Testart was born on March 22, 1985, in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. He was raised in the Northwest Territories, first residing in Tuktoyaktuk and later in Yellowknife, where Mr. Testart now lives with his family, his diverse background and wealth of experiences have shaped his commitment to community development and effective governance.

Mr. Testart was elected as Member of the Legislative Assembly for Kam Lake in the 18th Legislative Assembly, where he demonstrated a keen understanding of the issues facing his constituents. Beyond his legislative roles, Kieron has contributed significantly to the economic development of the region. Serving as the Director of Economic Development for the Yellowknives Dene First Nation from 2021 to 2023. Mr. Testart’s commitment to education and language advocacy is evident in his role as Program Coordinator for Canadian Parents for French from 2020 to 2021. His efforts have extended to policy analysis within the Government of the Northwest Territories and serving as Deputy Sheriff from 2009 to 2014.

Academically, Kieron holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science from the University of Lethbridge (2004-2009) and a Certificate in Parliamentary Governance from McGill University (2017).

Married to Colleen, he is the proud father of Corbin, Eve, and Leander. In addition to his professional pursuits, Kieron finds joy in various hobbies and interests, including a deep passion for Formula 1 and motorsport, a love for film and theatre, grassroots activism, and an avid curiosity about international affairs.

Kieron's commitment to community extends beyond the political realm. As a dedicated volunteer, he has been actively involved in various capacities, including serving on the NWT Federal Liberal Association Board of Directors since 2011, contributing to the Liberal Party of Canada. His volunteer experience also includes a position on the NWT Branch Board of Directors for Canadian Parents for French from 2014 to 2020 and mentoring youth with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Canada in 2014-2015.

Range Lake Electoral District

Committees

Member Kieron Testart
Range Lake
Member's Office

Yellowknife NT X1A 2L9
Canada

P.O. Box
1320
Email

Statements in Debates

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 20)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Okay, how, I guess is my question. Like, I understand what the Minister's saying. This position is going to fundamentally improve service delivery. But how? Because, you know, it's one it's the addition of one person to provide leadership over the entire division or the entire key activity and all the staff that deliver those programs. So how is this one person going to make a difference? Thank you.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 20)

Yes.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 19)

Thank you. Thank you for the response from the Premier as well. Is there any correlated data between the strength of the economy and the increased rates of crime? And by that, I mean we've seen a dip in economic activity since the pandemic and also an increase in crime. So is there a correlation between kind of a softening economy and the increased rates of crime, addictions, and crossborder drug trafficking? Thank you.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 19)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So the costs to for nicotine replacement therapies can be and products like nicotine gum patches I used the patch. It was very effective. I've used them all, though. What financial supports do they have? Because certainly some of these products might not even be available in a small community. So what financial supports and how are we getting these products to individuals outside of regional centres? Thank you.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 19)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. This is kind of more of an opinionbased question, but I think it's relevant. But, like, is the Premier of the opinion that, like the not the root the root cause is obviously public health issues, obviously drugs and addictions that we've been struggling with for some time. But we're seeing this additional level of organized crime who are bringing more drugs into the communities, who are exploiting things like public housing, right, by capturing public housing clients and using their public housing units to deal drugs in small communities. So how would he tackle that...

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 19)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I think the Minister answered most of my questions, so she's ahead of the curve. But I think you've spoken about this in the past, Mr. Speaker, but the Butt Head campaign was a very popular program and toured around the Northwest Territories, and I think kids really liked it as well. Why have we stopped promoting or using the Butt Head campaign antismoking campaign? Thank you.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 19)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, so the increases to RCMP that the Premier's been speaking about, can he just give us a breakdown of where these new officers are or how many let's start I'll do it in smaller checks. How many new officers are being created in this budget? Thank you.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 19)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, tomorrow is World No-Tobacco Day. And this year, it will be special for me it's been 11 weeks since my last cigarette. It's not the first time I've quit but hopefully it'll be the last.

Mr. Speaker, nicotine is more addictive than alcohol, heroin, or cocaine. So days like World No-Tobacco Day are truly important to raise awareness about the dangers of smoking tobacco.

Created by the World Health Organization in 1987, the yearly celebration informs the public on the dangers of using tobacco, the business practices of tobacco companies, what the WHO is doing...

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 19)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. So would it be accurate to say that we are there's a higher expenditure on private lawyers than on staff lawyers in this budget? Thank you.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 19)

Okay, thank you. That's more imminent than I expected, so that's good. That's good that we're moving towards that.

So we spend an awful lot of money on the authorities, which is to be expected given the cost of health care. But often I think there's a disconnect between what is accountable  what the Minister is accountable for and what the authority's accountable for. And certainly when it comes to some of these workplace issues we're hearing about, some of the performance of health care services, there seems to be that disconnect. And I think that the Minister needs to be empowered to be...