R.J. Simpson

No. I don't have those numbers now because part of those numbers would involve capital infrastructure costs, because it's hard to call something universal childcare if it's only a subsidy for the lucky few who can access it. We need more infrastructure. We need more trained individuals before we can say that we are providing universal childcare. I don't have those numbers.

That being said, the federal government has expressed an interest in some sort of a national universal childcare program. I will be meeting with the federal Minister next week to be discussing this to see exactly what that...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The take a child to work program is a great program. It has been offered for many years. It's very successful. Unfortunately, in this last year, due to COVID, it went online, and so it was not at all the same experience. It will be back in full force in the fall, and I can look into any potential changes and get back to the Member. Thank you.

I am not personally working with the opposition party, the critic or whoever that might be. However, our Premier is. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It's a high priority for me. I told the federal Minister sometimes it may be difficult to figure out where we lie as a government, given that you can't just say we're this party or that party and you can basically understand our platform. That's why I told him, "Let me assure you that we are fully committed to advancing universal childcare and it is a high priority." That work is already done.

The Northwest Territories is unique. The Yukon is unique. I don't know if we are going to be more like the Yukon, but I think that we do share the goal of eventually providing some sort of universal childcare. The Yukon just announced this yesterday. We reached out to them immediately this morning. We don't really have any details on what exactly their plan is, how much it's going to cost, or anything like that, but we are going to have those conversations. Once we get that information, I want to give the Minister in the Yukon a call and see how things are rolling out, what led them to this...

The Member is sort of jumping around with her questions, topic to topic, but that's okay. I get where she's coming from; it all ties together in the end. Right now, the government has a mandate to advance universal childcare, and that's what we are working on. We are going to be making some advances in determining just how we are going to do that, and we are going to be making those advances in the coming months.

As for right now, standing up here and saying universal childcare at Aurora College, I can't say that. I would love to be able to say it, but we're not there yet. The fact is, there...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I would like to recognize and congratulate Max and Julia Trennert, who are celebrating their 60th wedding anniversary today. Max and Julia first met 61 years ago in Inuvik. He was working as a surveyor and also managing the Mackenzie Hotel. She was a student at the time. They say it was love at first sight.

Max and Julia were married on February 5, 1960, in Inuvik. That's also where their first three children were born. From Inuvik, they moved to Fort Simpson, where their fourth child, Brendalynn, who most of us know, was born. Max and Julia then relocated close to...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think a feedback loop is the most important thing in terms of communication. We have to know what the people on the front line are thinking. That's where the expertise lies in the day-to-day operations, and if we don't have that, this is all for naught. This is going to fail. If someone feels like they are not being heard, they can talk to their supervisor. If that's where the problem is, you can talk to the union. If you still feel like you're not being heard, talk to the ADM. If that doesn't get you anywhere, talk to the deputy minister. This is actually what the...

I think communication causes most problems, not just in corrections, but everywhere. Lack of communication really leads to misunderstandings; it leads to problems not being resolved. The first thing that happened after this report came out is that senior staff, senior management, went to the different facilities. They presented this information, and they listened to the staff to hear what they had to say directly, not through a consultant. From that, they are compiling a "what we heard" report so that they can then distribute it to staff and say, "Are we hearing you correctly?" Because...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I thank the Member for her persistent advocacy on behalf of her constituents. This is a very concerning situation with some history. The Member's statement was quite a retort to my statement, and it explained the long history of this. I will not be tabling that report. When this report was initiated, the staff were told that it would be kept confidential.

While there was obviously a risk of it being released once it was distributed to all staff and to other parties, that was a risk that we knew we had to take. Despite the fact that it is publicly available, I will...