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

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 126)

Yes. Thank you.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 126)

Thank you. So under the previous capital standards, gyms were included once a school hits a certain number of students. If the school did not have that base number of or that number of students, then there would be no gym, and the gym that the school would get once they hit that number of students was small and it would gradually get bigger as the population got bigger. What we've done with the new capital standards is included gyms in all schools and increased the sizes according to the enrolment. So I know there are some schools with very, very small gyms, and we won't be seeing those...

Recorded Vote
Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 126)

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, that Bill 48, Arbitration Act, be read for the third time. And, Mr. Speaker, I request a recorded vote.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 126)

Thank you. So the new capital standards, which were approved in 2020, include provisions for child care spaces in a school facility if the spaces are warranted. Thank you.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 126)

Thank you so the work is being done at the site but I don't believe the project's been tendered yet. We're expecting it in fiscal year 20242025 to be completed. Thank you

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 126)

Thank you, Madam Chair. So the Member mentioned two projects in this capital plan. Colville Lake School planning and Colville Lake School three portables. The three portables are in the process of being constructed. They will be on the winter road in the new year, and they will be set up and ready for school in the upcoming school year. The school itself is still in the planning phase. As the Members are aware, we have adjusted how we budget for capital and so we are only budgeting for the planning phase, which is what we actually expect to spend. We're not budgeting for, you know, builds that...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 126)

No. Thank you

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 126)

Yes, I do.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 126)

Thank you, Madam Chair. So the federal government does not fund schools. Bridges are one thing, schools are another. There's a division of power in Canada under the Constitution, and the federal government does not want to get into funding schools, which is generally provincial/territorial area. And so the Tlicho government informed us that they would like to take the lead on approaching the federal government to find funding. I never told them to go find it themselves.

And in terms of what would happen if there was a failure at the school, we don't wait until schools are, you know, about to...

Question 1228-19(2): Polytechnic University
Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 126)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'm not aware that that would be an official designation. But I think that given the number of jobs in Fort Smith that are education related, the amount of money that the GNWT flows to the community in terms of education, probably more per capita than anywhere else in the territory, I think in that sense, yes, Fort Smith is the education capital. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.