Kieron Testart

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, colleagues. Again, the study also indicates that when taking into account the social costs of alcohol addicts who also face homelessness into account, there is an estimated savings of $1 for every dollar invested due to significant reductions in frequency of health, social and legal service utilization by participants. Later I will have questions for the Minister of Health on whether he supports a MAP program to give Northerners the support they need and save this government money through preventative programs rather than emergency services. Thank you, Mr...

Could the Minister then commit to undertaking some study on the managed alcohol programs or harm reduction programs, such as INSITE in British Columbia and the successful managed alcohol program in Ottawa, and share those recommendations with Members of the Assembly? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you to the Minister for that response. So would the department then be in a position to look at the situation in Yellowknife, with the recent media reports supporting this kind of approach, and be willing to discuss developing a pilot with local government officials to start taking some action on this cost-effective action?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'd like to recognize Alexander Lambrecht. He's the president of the Northern Territories Federation of Labour. It's good to have you here with us today. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, it's been almost a year since Members of the 18th Assembly were elected, and that means it's almost been a year since Members gathered together as equals and developed a mandate for this government to implement on behalf of Northerners.

I'm ever mindful of my responsibility to my constituents and to all Northerners to hold Cabinet accountable in its continued advancement in executing the mandate. Though there has been some progress in this venture, I am dismayed to see that one of the most pressing concerns, that of addiction, still continues to plague our streets and hold our...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I have questions for the Minister of Finance. On June 17, 2016, the Minister of Finance said, “I can say that we probably have 50 per cent of our small businesses in the Northwest Territories. I believe they don’t pay any tax at all.”

Over a ten-year average, how many small businesses are operating in the Northwest Territories and how many do not pay taxes based on GNWT tax regulations?

Please provide details of the policies, legislation, and any additional regulations that permit small businesses in the Northwest Territories not to pay taxes?

What is the...

The RCMP are not the only peace officers working here in the Northwest Territories to keep Northerners safe, we also have many territorial police officers, including sheriff’s officers and the Department of Justice. Can the Minister explain if there’s a similar complaint process in the Department of Justice for sheriff’s officers, and how many complaints were received in the last year?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, over the last five years complaints were made to the Commission for Public Complaints against the RCMP about NWT officers. Most of these grievances filed were for alleged excessive use of force. Investigations into many of these incidents revealed that the officers in question had faced assaults on their own by complainants and none of the officers were found to have been in violation of excessive use of force. These reports show us that there’s a troubling number of RCMP members who go through a very difficult job. What is the Minister of Justice doing...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It’s imperative that the public has confidence in our security services, including sheriff’s officers. I would strongly recommend the Minister to be aware of those processes and, furthermore, to meet with peace officers, in particular the sheriff’s department, and get firsthand information about what they go through on a daily basis. Will the Minister commit to meeting with the sheriff’s office and seeing if their experience is similar to what RCMP members have gone through in the Northwest Territories? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Maybe to clarify, some of the RCMP officers reported that they were physically assaulted consistently on the job, verbally assaulted even more so, and one example where excrement was involved. This is unseemly treatment and it’s entirely unjustifiable. The role of the RCMP is very important in our communities and we have community justice committees. Are these community justice committees being used to build strong partnerships where RCMP members have the ability to express these concerns to local leadership and make a real difference in the community in terms of their treatment as police...