R.J. Simpson

Mr. Speaker, I just have to reiterate the Premier's comments from yesterday, when she suggested that anyone who feels that they have a claim against the school should seek legal advice. That's the appropriate recourse in this situation. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The department actually recently completed a review. I guess we completed it back in June. It came to this House. We came looking for more money. We found more money internally, and we really enhanced the SFA program. The Member speaks to completion rates of postsecondary students. So one of the things that we've done is we've removed the barriers to completing programs in terms of the financials. So sometimes residents, they might not do very well in a semester. We're not going to punish them for that. We're going to continue to fund them so that they can move forward...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And the Member's pointed out that, you know, there is a gap between what the jobs that are going to be in demand that are needed and the education and skills of a number of our residents. And the fact is that has been the case for a long time. We bring a lot of people up from the south because there are a lot of jobs here already that our residents can't fulfill. So, really, this is the land of opportunity. You talk to people who come up here from the south, and they'll tell you oh, I can't believe, you know, the opportunities. If you want to work, if you want to work...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want to recognize some people I have in the gallery here who I've been working with at the Assembly for four years. My ministerial special advisor Rona Sherigan, my EAC Sheila Kotchille. They were a team that was already together when I became a Minister, and I was so happy that I was able to hire both of them. Working with them in the last Assembly, I knew that you know, I knew what a good team they made. I think all Ministers probably think this, but I'm sure we have the busiest office here in the Assembly of all the Ministers, and they manage to keep it organized...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it is a mandate of this government to increase our education outcomes to the same level as the rest of Canada. And we've taken a number of steps to advance this goal. This month, we began trialing an adapted version sorry, Mr. Speaker, last month. This was written before the evacuations. Last month, we began trialing an adapted version of British Columbia's curriculum. It will be fully implemented in all our schools over the next five years. This partnership has been years in the making, and I am happy to see it come to fruition.

British Columbia is one of...

Thank you, Madam Chair. So right now there already is a vote. There's not a motion, but there's a vote, if there is a bill that is deemed not ready to go into Committee of the Whole. Someone will call that bill if they want, and then the committee will vote whether or not they want to bring it to Committee of the Whole. So, you know, during this Assembly, we have lengthened the amount of time it takes to get through legislation through additional, you know, public processes, Intergovernmental Council processes, the protocols that we've signed. And going forward in future Assemblies, I imagine...

Yeah, no, I mentioned we don't have witnesses. I just wanted to bring this to the House's attention. I'm not asking any questions as there's no one to ask. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document: Operating Plans for the Northwest Territories Education Bodies for the 20232024 School Year Ending June 30th, 2024. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I've met with chiefs from Yellowknife on a number of occasions to discuss the economic opportunities that could arise from the North Slave Campus. It is much too early to nail down what those might be. And it's difficult to plan to make a longterm plan when, you know, a part of that plan the land that we could potentially use is sort of unknown what the status of it will be. Perhaps, you know, a future Indigenous government doesn't want wouldn't want to partner with the college. However, I'm very open to that. I think that would be great. You know, when we do things...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There will be engagement if it's shown that the Tin Can Hill site is viable as an option for the new campus. Right now, they are undertaking a phase 2 environmental assessment. The phase 1 assessment showed there is moderate potential for contaminated soil or groundwater and so that work is happening. I believe that we were expecting it to be done this fall but because we were evacuated, the expectation is for the spring. So once that information is in, that will be provided to the board and to the college. They will look at it and make a determination if they want to...