Lesa Semmler

Member Inuvik Twin Lakes

Minister of Health and Social Services

Lesa Semmler currently serves as the Member representing Inuvik Twin Lakes in the 20th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly, having been re-elected to the position. Born in Yellowknife, NT, and raised in Inuvik, where she still resides, Ms. Semmler has deep roots in the Northwest Territories. 

A Registered Nurse, Ms. Semmler graduated from the Aurora College Northern Nursing Program in 2000 and earned her Community Health Nurse Certification from the Canadian Nurses Association in 2008. With 15 years of frontline nursing experience at the Inuvik Regional Hospital, she focused on Acute Care, Homecare, and Public Health. Her career also included roles as the Manager of Acute Care Services and eventually the Regional Manager of Acute Care Services under the Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority. Notably, she served as the Inuvialuit Health System Navigator at the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation, assisting Inuvialuit Beneficiaries in navigating the healthcare system. 

Beyond her healthcare career, Ms. Semmler has actively contributed to education and community service. She served on the Inuvik District Education Authority, assuming the role of Chair from 2015 to 2018, and chaired the Beaufort Delta Education Council. Ms. Semmler participated in various working groups at the territorial and national levels, including the Inuit Tuberculosis Elimination Board and the Inuit Midwifery Revitalization. Her commitment to social justice is evident in her voluntary work as a member of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls National Family Advisory Circle, where she worked to ensure northern voices were heard and represented. Lesa Semmler's life and career reflect her passion for healthcare, education, and advocating for the well-being of her community.

Inuvik Twin Lakes Electoral District

Committees

Inuvik Twin Lakes
Member's Office

Yellowknife NT X1A 2L9
Canada

P.O. Box
1320
Email
Extension
12195
Constituency Office

198 Mackenzie Rd
Unit 123
Inuvik NT X0E 0T0
Canada

P.O. Box
3130
Constituency Phone
Minister
Email
Minister of Health and Social Services

Statements in Debates

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 83)

Thank you, Member. Minister of Finance.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 83)

Thank you. Member for Hay River South.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 83)

I now call Committee of the Whole to order. What is the wish of committee? Member for Frame Lake.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 83)

Welcome. Member for Frame Lake.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 83)

Thank you. Minister.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 81)

Mr. Speaker, your committee has been considering Tabled Document 435, 436, 437, and would like to report progress, and Mr. Speaker, I move that the report of Committee of the Whole be concurred with. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 81)

Thank you. Does committee agree?

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 81)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Committee Members heard anecdotal reports from constituents who must improvise methods to regulate the temperature in public housing due to poor build quality, deterioration of the units, and insufficient maintenance. The committee has heard about tenants in NWT public housing whose units do not adequately retain heat in the winter due, for instance, to interior doors being installed on exterior walls. As a result, tenants may resort to using their stove to heat their unit. The committee also heard about tenants in NWT public housing who must open the windows in the...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 81)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So we should have 90 completed by the end of this term going into the next term. So how many actual units will be built in my community? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 81)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there was a commitment in this House as part of the 19th Assembly priorities to increase the number of affordable homes and reduce core housing needs, and then that -- and part of that mandate there would be a hundred houses built over the four years.

Mr. Speaker, as we are halfway through our term, how many of these hundred houses have been completed as it was stated that there would be 25 per year as part of the mandate. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.