Shane Thompson

Member Nahendeh

Speaker

Shane Thompson was re-elected to the 20th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly after serving in the 18th and 19th Assemblies representing the constituency of Nahendeh. Mr. Thompson is the Honorable Speaker of the 20th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly.

Mr. Thompson was first elected to the 18th Assembly in November 2015 and served as Chair of the Standing Committee on Social Development. Mr. Thompson was also a member of the Standing Committee on Priorities and Planning, the Standing Committee on Rules and Procedures, and the Striking Committee.

Mr. Thompson was born on July 11, 1963, in Hay River. He has lived in Kugluktuk (Coppermine), Inuvik, Hay River, and in Edmonton, while at the University of Alberta. Fort Simpson has been his home since 1992.

Mr. Thompson previously served two terms (three years each) as an elected official with the Fort Simpson District Education Authority, spending the last four years as the chairperson. Over the past 35 years, he has served on various community and territorial boards.

Mr. Thompson was employed as the Senior Sport and Recreation Coordinator with Municipal and Community Affairs (GNWT) in the Deh Cho region before being elected as a Member.

Mr. Thompson completed the Community Recreation Leaders Program at Arctic College in 1989 and is currently working on a Masters Certificate on Evaluation at the University of Victoria and Carleton University. He also completed three years towards an Education degree at the University of Alberta.

Mr. Thompson is an active volunteer with Northern Youth Aboard, CBET and Fundamental Movement, and HIGH FIVE®. As well, he is a past member of the Sport North Federation Board, NWT Softball and of NWTRPA, and the past president of Seven Spruce Golf Course.

Mr. Thompson is the father of seven children - five daughters and two sons – and has nine grandchildren.

He has been a Justice of the Peace since 1991.

Nahendeh Electoral District

Committees

Board of Management
Shane Thompson
Nahendeh
Member's Office

Yellowknife NT X1A 2L9
Canada

P.O. Box
1320
Email
Email
Phone
867-767-9141
Extension
11128
Constituency Office

9706-100th Street
Fort Simpson NT X0E 0N0
Canada

Phone
867-695-3780

Statements in Debates

Member's Statement on Recognizing Volunteers in Nahendeh
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 76)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yesterday I spoke about a pay it forward program in Fort Simpson. Today I would like to speak about a second program established in the region. It is largely in part to Mr. Troy Bellefontaine. In the summer of 2016, Troy began researching Dolly Parton's Imagination Library and, in November 2017, he began accepting registration for this literacy program.

The Dolly Parton Imagination Library is a program that sends one book a month to children between the ages of zero months to five years. The program is partly dependent on donations, as the cost is $3.55 per child per...

Question 749-18(3): Polytechnic University
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 76)

In light of the fuel supplier's responsibility in providing fuel that did not meet the specifications required by the department, I'd like to ask the Minister: what sort of recourse is available? Will the GNWT be able to be reimbursed for the cost of the fuel and for sending it back?

Question 733-18(3): Foster Care
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 75)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Foster parents are a very important part of our child and family system in the Northwest Territories. I greatly appreciate the selfless work that they do to help our children as they grow and develop during difficult times. Mr. Speaker, I have some questions for the Minister of Health and Social Services. Can the Minister tell us how many foster parents we have in the Nahendeh region, including those families who make their homes available for emergencies? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 75)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I totally agree with the Minister on that. I greatly appreciate that answer. This is just more of a commentary, and I am going to try to be real quick. I know, in the Deh Cho proper, they are doing some pretty amazing things. They have a new system. They are looking at it because of the challenges that we are facing. Our EDI scores are not as great as they should be. We had junior kindergarten in our region prior. We used that as a pilot project.

I have to give credit to the education system, the divisional board. They are trying to find new ways of doing it, trying to be...

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 75)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. My next question is: when we have junior kindergarten and kindergarten, are they part of the funding formally that we have presently? Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Question 741-18(3): Equity Leases
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 75)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I thank the Minister for allowing us this exchange here today, and I appreciate the information he's providing here. Again, I'm not talking about a new equity lease. I'm talking about an existing equity lease that the person purchased, because right now, as soon as they purchase a lot and it turns over to a lease, there's a whole bunch more rules to it, which puts up blocks for businesses and opportunity for people to build homes, because then there's a clause there that they have to actually pay money to look after it, to remediate it back to its original state...

Question 741-18(3): Equity Leases
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 75)

Can the Minister advise us in what circumstances can a partial refund of equity lease payments be made under the equity lease process?

Question 733-18(3): Foster Care
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 75)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate the answers that the Minister has provided us here today. Mr. Speaker, one of my concerns I hear is sometimes we don't have enough foster homes. We can't get children into emergency homes. What happens if we, as the department, do not have places for them to go? Where do we place these individuals? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Question 733-18(3): Foster Care
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 75)

Can the Minister tell us: How does the department recruit foster parents throughout the year, or does the department or the NWT Health and Social Services Association have a blitz once a year?

Member's Statement on Pay it Forward Program in Fort Simpson
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 75)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There are often community members who make great contributions to a community who go unrecognized, mainly because these individuals seek results rather than recognition. They humbly and selflessly serve others. Today, I would like to recognize a few of these individuals from the Nahendeh region.

Currently, the Northern Store in Fort Simpson is operating a pay it forward program. This program started six years ago, when resident Mrs. Pat Waugh heard of a homeless resident having to be medevac'd because he consumed discarded food.

Pat started the program at the local...