Statements in Debates
Thank you. The Aboriginal Advisory Committee and the Employability Committee, have they had a chance to develop or, I should say, seek out responses from employees to ensure that the employer, which is obviously the Government of the Northwest Territories, is certainly meeting the needs of a diverse and sensitive culture that we’re trying to build in our government? Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the answer from the Minister, the willingness to pursue something new and different. Mr. Speaker, does the Minister see a problem in the existing state of affairs where seniors’ issues are spread out throughout the government without a clear mandate or a coordinating role, and that being said, a Minister directly responsible for seniors and elders program? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In my Member’s statement today I talked about the need for an NWT charter for seniors. I think we could develop something that brings clear focus to your beliefs and principles on caring for seniors and elders. If you look across the government, there is no clear coordinating role. The Minister responsible for Seniors is title alone. There is no direct mandate to seniors and certainly as the Minister responsible for Seniors, they have no specific money targeted in order to help and support seniors.
Mr. Speaker, I think that’s a sad state of affairs, and I certainly hope...
Mr. Chairman. Perhaps the more efficient way of doing it is making it a part of our service level agreements we’ve cast in...(inaudible)...some type of compromised negotiation in having the agencies that we actually negotiate directly with. In other words, the Department of Health directly negotiates and draws up service level agreements with certain groups. Why don’t we have them have these groups phone people as part of the Aftercare Program on a contiguous basis of some manner to make sure people are on track with their programming? Would it not serve some interest in everyone’s efforts, be...
What’s stopping the department from making it part of the programming dollars we supply to various service agencies that provide addictions treatment and support for obligating them as part of the service agreement to provide an aftercare phone line for people to talk about, perhaps, the strains of fighting their addictions? If it’s good enough for Poundmaker outside of Edmonton to have a follow-up line where they actually do follow-up calls and whatnot to ensure the clientele have gone through their program so that they know they’re still supported outside once they’ve finished the program...
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Recently I have inquired with the Department of Health and Social Services to follow up on some costing and focus on what we do for the Quitline and that would, of course, be people who have quit smoking. As many of us know, I guess it is a cessation phone line you call to speak about your woes of smoking cigarettes. I haven’t called it myself so I don’t specifically know, but I believe it’s set up in that context.
As I’ve learned from the Department of Health and Social Services, the response from the Minister, I believe $24,000 has gone to radio advertising and there...
It comes as no surprise of the Minister that I worry constantly about ensuring that there are fair opportunities for everyone in this regard, both Aboriginal and the disabilities community, and I’ve raised my concerns ensuring that the disabilities community certainly gets a good foothold.
With our government having, I believe, about a 0.5 percent representation, what type of awareness campaign, be it both seeking out further Aboriginal candidates for senior management positions or in the same type of gain for people with disabilities to ensure or reach out and show that this government wants...
Mr. Speaker, I raised this issue with no intent of taking away from the hard work that has been produced, but any branding expert can tell you that when you expand and harmonize a branding product, you make sure that you overlap and in particular ways. That way your target audience, clients or potential buyers can all recognize the synergy is all enveloped in your messaging. For example, you can say experiencing the NWT without taking away the spectacular concept provided and promoted by NWT Tourism, or furthermore, as one more example, you can say only in the NWT and that would help, again...
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I’d like to highlight the accomplishment of an excellent educator in our Yellowknife education system: Mr. Paul Bennett, principal of Ecole J.H. Sissons School.
Mr. Bennett is in Toronto at this very moment as one of 32 educators from across our country receiving the Outstanding Principal Award for Canada’s Learning Partnership for 2011. Canada’s Outstanding Principal Awards are presented to administrators who have made unique and crucial contributions to publicly funded schools and this year we are lucky to have one of our northern principals as a recipient.
Paul...
When can the public have an expectation to be able to see something that they can put their hands on or read to see where the government is fully going? I have heard the Minister’s response each time when she says the Joint Working Group’s direction, we’ll call it that, when they cast a position and it seems to be the one that the government’s following, but like anything, the devil is always in the detail and that’s where they’re a little nervous. So, in other words, when can we expect something in paper form or official form? I’ll say it that way. I don’t really care if it’s in paper or not...