R.J. Simpson

Member Hay River North

Premier
Minister of Executive and Indigenous Affairs
Minister of Justice
Government House Leader

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

Hay River North
Member's Office

Yellowknife NT X1A 2L9
Canada

P.O. Box
1320
Email
Email
Phone
867-767-9141
Extension
11120
Constituency Office

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

Phone
867-874-6301
Minister
Email
Email
Premier of the Northwest Territories, Minister of Executive and Indigenous Affairs, Minister of Justice, Government House Leader

Statements in Debates

Member's Statement on Canadian Olympic Athlete Brendan Green
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 7)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we MLAs from Hay River have a tradition, a tradition that started three Assemblies ago, and I'm truly honoured to be a part of it. I speak, of course, of the tradition of standing up in this House every four years and congratulating Hay River's own Brendan Green for making the Canadian Olympic biathlon team. This is the third consecutive time that Mr. Green will represent Team Canada at the Winter Olympics, which opened this morning in Pyeongchang, South Korea.

Mr. Speaker, this is a monumental achievement and cements Mr. Green's legacy as one of Canada's...

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 7)

Mr. Speaker, your committee has been considering Minister's Statement 1-18(3), North Slave Correctional Complex Inmate Concerns; Minister's Statement 19-18(3), Aurora College Foundational Review Process; Tabled Document 63-18(3), Main Estimates, 2018-2019. I would like to report progress and, Mr. Speaker, I move that the report of the Committee of the Whole be concurred with.

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 7)

I will now call the Committee of the Whole to order, and before I ask the wish of committee, I just want to thank all the Pages who have been here this week. Thank you for all your hard work. Mr. Beaulieu, what is the wish of committee?

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 6)

Mr. Speaker, your committee has been considering Member's Statement 1-18(3), North Slave Correctional Complex Inmate Concerns, and we would like to report progress; and, Mr. Speaker, I move that the report of the Committee of the Whole be concurred with.

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 6)

Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. There is a motion to report progress. All those in favour? All those opposed?

---Carried

Question 63-18(3): Concerns of Hay River Secondary School Students
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 6)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It sounds like there are a lot of people involved in this. We have Aboriginal groups. We have Education Councils. We have District Education Authorities. We have ECE. It seems like there must be a simpler way, but I guess that's the way it is right now. Most students in Hay River can't take the bus to school because they live too close. Basically, if you live anywhere between the bridge and the "Welcome to Hay River" sign, you can't take the bus, so there are only a handful of students in DJ who actually take the bus, and now, they hear that bus service may end...

Question 63-18(3): Concerns of Hay River Secondary School Students
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 6)

The buck has to stop somewhere. As far as I am concerned, it stops here, in the Legislative Assembly, with the Members of the Legislative Assembly and the Ministers of the respective departments. That's why I want to ask the Minister of Education: other than talking to the Education Council, what can be done to expand the course selection at Hay River and other schools across the territory?

Member’s Statement on Constituency Concerns of Hay River Secondary School Students
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 6)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am the second-youngest member of this 18th Legislative Assembly, but that is not saying much. In fact, my days of being considered a youth are long gone. However, Mr. Speaker, I was elected to represent all of the constituents of Hay River North, not just those who can vote, so, while I may be old, I cannot afford to be out of touch.

That is why this past Monday, over the lunch hour, I held a constituency meeting at Diamond Jenness Secondary School that was exclusively for students. Fourteen students attended, mostly from grades 8 to 10. I was a little worried that...

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 6)

I will rise and report progress.

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 6)

I now call Committee of the Whole to order. What is the wish of committee? Mr. Beaulieu.