Member Hay River North

Premier
Minister of Executive and Indigenous Affairs

R.J. Simpson was elected to the 20th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly, representing the constituency of Hay River North. On December 7th, 2023, Mr. Simpson was elected Premier of the Northwest Territories.

Mr. Simpson was formerly acclaimed to the 19th Legislative Assembly and first elected into the 18th Assembly in 2015.

Mr. Simpson was Deputy Speaker of the 18th Assembly, Deputy Chair of the Standing Committee on Government Operations, and the Chair of the Special Committee on Transition Matters. Mr. Simpson was also a member of the Standing Committee on Priorities and Planning and the Standing Committee on Economic Development and Environment.

Mr. Simpson is a lifelong resident of Hay River After graduating from Diamond Jenness Secondary School in 1998 Mr. Simpson went on to obtain a Bachelor of Arts from MacEwan University and a law degree from the University of Alberta’s Faculty of Law.

Mr. Simpson has previously worked with the Government of Canada, Northern Transportation Company Ltd, Métis Nation Local 51, and Maskwa Engineering.

While at law school, Mr. Simpson was the President of the Aboriginal Law Students’ Association. He has also served on the board of the Soaring Eagle Friendship Centre in Hay River and volunteered with the Canada-Ghana Education Project.

Hay River North Electoral District

Committees

R.J. Simpson
Hay River North
Member's Office

Yellowknife NT X1A 2L9
Canada

P.O. Box
1320
Constituency Office

62, promenade Woodland, bureau 104
Hay River Nord NT X0E 1G1
Canada

Minister
Premier of the Northwest Territories, Minister of Executive and Indigenous Affairs, Minister of Justice, Government House Leader

Statements in Debates

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 32)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So I'll speak a bit to my experience in my previous role. You know, I was generally given a slate of options for capital projects and some of those include accessibility options, and so as Minister I would move forward with those that I personally prioritized those. In this instance here, these repairs -- or sorry, these renovations are resulting from a human rights adjudication panel decision about the accessibilities of the washrooms. And, you know, that's why we have the human rights adjudication panel so that when there are issues like this identified, they can be...

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 32)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. With me on my left is Charlene Doolittle, the deputy minister of the Department of Justice. And on my right is James Bancroft, the director of corporate services with the Department of Justice. Thank you.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 32)

Mr. Speaker, I give notice that on Tuesday, October 29th, 2024, I will present Bill 12, Business Day Statute Law Amendment Act, to be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 32)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Yellowknife courthouse was built in 1977 and 1978, and the existing washrooms on floors 2 to 6 are original to the building. These washrooms have a 90-degree enclosed vestibule entry with doors on each side of the vestibule. Obviously, this is not an accessible washroom, and upgrades are required to ensure that all residents are able to use these facilities. Thank you.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 32)

Yes, Mr. Chair, I do. Thank you.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 32)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'd like to recognize the 8th Premier of the Northwest Territories, Mr. Stephen Kakfwi, who was in the gallery today; I'm not sure if he still is. In addition to being Premier, he served as a Cabinet -- survived as a Cabinet Minister for 16 years. I'd also like to welcome Kyla Kakfwi-Scott, the deputy secretary in the Premier's office and her daughter Sadeya. I'm happy to welcome all three generations. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 31)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And yes, the Residential Tenancies Act, it will be reviewed by this upcoming summer. That is stipulated. And we'll see what we can do in there. I want to look at every avenue that we have to ensure that we're protecting communities, not supporting drug dealers and drug houses, and finding every way to give communities and the RCMP the tools they need to protect communities. Thank you.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 31)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And as the Member alluded to, there is cross-jurisdictional scans that will be required. There's examination of the Charter challenges that have been brought forward. There's going to have to be discussions, obviously engagement, throughout the territory on this, engagement with other jurisdictions who have had the legislation. So there's a lot of work, and I don't plan on making this an unconstitutional hammer. There was a challenge in the Yukon recently. There was a decision rendered that one minor section -- or one section -- I won't say minor, of that SCAN Act was...

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 31)

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Hay River South, that Bill 7, Miscellaneous Statute Law Amendment Act, 2024, be read for the third time. And, Mr. Speaker, I requested a recorded vote. Thank you.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 31)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Well, we're a little early in the process to start giving direction on how to proceed. I want to see those jurisdictional scans, I want to see the research that is done, and then we can figure out how to move forward. But to the Member's point, I do want to ensure that this -- there's differences between a small community perhaps with no RCMP and somewhere like Yellowknife. And so it's going to -- you know, it won't be easy to find that balance, but I'm confident that we can do that. So the Member can rest assured that we will be taking into consideration the needs of...