Kieron Testart

Thanks, Mr. Chair. The remaining funding for supports and other performers that is there, if it is easier to access than the other funding, why is it staying as its own program? Just wondering why. If there are more efficiencies, we would be fine with putting everything in a single-use fund such as the SEED funding and the Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment, which is a very large pot of money that is easy to access. If that is a more efficient approach, should we not just be doing that with all these little funding pots instead of leaving some the same and eliminating other pots...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I note that there is a reduction for supports and other performers by just under $100,000. Can the Minister indicate if that has been rolled into this new arts organizations operating funding, or if it is a straightforward reduction? Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Those are interesting numbers. Again, my question was focused on chronic homeless people, which Housing First is designed to address. How much is this plan going to cost? Let's talk about chronic homelessness, not those in need of shelter, but chronic homeless people use 51 per cent of our emergency services and are a huge cost to the taxpayer. How much are we contributing and paying to make sure this plan works and that we can get that number higher than one?

Mr. Speaker, this morning I had the misfortune to encounter two severely intoxicated homeless people engaged in a vicious brawl here on the grounds of the Legislative Assembly, no less. Unfortunately, this is an all-too-common sight here on the streets of Yellowknife and Yellowknifers have had enough. I'd like to ask the Minister responsible for Homelessness, what is the plan to address the severe need to do something about the homelessness problem here in Yellowknife? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, Ramadan begins this week. Many Muslims in the North and around the world will begin a month-long spiritual journey of fasting, prayer, and reflection to honour the revealing of the holy Koran to Prophet Mohammed. During this hallowed month, members of Islam fast during daylight hours to increase their patience, closeness to God, and generosity towards those less fortunate. This is a time when our vibrant Muslim community here in the North invites their neighbours and friends to share their evening meal Iftar, recite passages from the Koran together, emboldening each other to be at...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Finally, just this is more of a comment, but when this program rolls out or when the new benefit is, having something like a calculator available on the ECE website and sharing that with the public would be, I think, a step in the right direction to let people know exactly what their benefits were, in fact, beforehand. If you know what the calculations are going to be and the it's just a matter of going through the legislative changes, communicating that with the public I think will ease a lot of the economic burdens that people are going through right now, so good peace...

Well, if it's not about spending new money, maybe we can ask the Minister if he will commit to avoiding any cuts to our already excellent support for youth and sport in the Northwest Territories.

---Applause

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as I spoke earlier, athletes from the NWT, including many from my own constituency, will be competing in the upcoming Arctic Winter Games. It's evident that we are giving the necessary support for athletes competing in these games, but what about other athletes throughout the Territories who have not been so fortunate as to gain entry into these games?

Cynthia Simmons, a proud Northerner and an amazing speed skater, is competing for a chance at gold at the Special Olympics Canada Winter Games this week in Corner Brook, Newfoundland. In fact, she is the sole...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I definitely did not get a commitment, but I look forward to working with the Minister on these discussions going forward. I do think, as a champion of sport and youth, though, this should be an area that he finds easy to support, so I'll ask again if he’ll remain committed to sport and recreation in the Northwest Territories through enhanced funding, or at least keeping funding the same.

I know that the Minister is very keen on sports and a real champion. In fact, recently he committed almost $25 million to build the athletes' village for the Canada Winter Games.

---Laughter

Given that, will the Minister commit to allocating some of those funds and improving our programs for sport-oriented training and healthy community initiatives, in particular for youth development in the Northwest Territories?