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

Shane Thompson
Nahendeh
Member's Office

Yellowknife NT X1A 2L9
Canada

P.O. Box
1320
Constituency Office

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

Statements in Debates

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 29)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to recognize Ted Grant, owner of Simpson Air. In the fall of 2017, he received the Senator's Sesquicentennial Medal. Ted volunteered his time with coaching hockey and generously donates to kids' sports teams in the community. He has also showed his dedication by promoting tourism to the Nahanni Park.

Ted has been a long-time resident of Fort Simpson, dating back to his days as an RCMP officer in the community in the 1970s. His favourite thing about Fort Simpson is that he does not have to live in the city, where everything is hectic, and, in Fort Simpson, it...

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 28)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I must apologize to the House because maybe I'm not getting my question across properly. I'm not talking about Commissioner's land. We understand that. I actually proposed a 3 per cent reduction. He came back and, you know, he was actually saying it was good at 10 per cent, and then he came back to 5 per cent. You know, I'm still baffled by this, so will the Minister look at this again and actually consult and engage people properly? Not letters, not using the public, and not using us, but getting out there and talking to the people who are impacted by this decision...

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 28)

I thank the Minister for that answer. I understand, you know, he made a commitment and talked about us in standing committee in 2017, but why wasn't this information given to us saying this was going to happen April 1st? We didn't hear anything about it, and I attended a number of the meetings. I may have missed the meeting, so why weren't we informed of this happening? Because, again, it's a Christmas gift. Not one I wanted, but it's a Christmas gift from the Minister. So will he please explain why it took him until after we had the session?

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 28)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Sorry about that. I would like to inform the house that John and Sharon Herring received the Senate Sesquicentennial Medal on Sunday, April 8th, from former Senator Nick Sibbeston. It is a very proud moment when residents of the NWT are recognized for outstanding work. The medal is awarded to residents actively involved in their communities who, through generosity, dedication, volunteerism, and hard work, make their community a better place to live. Without a doubt, these two encompass all of those qualities. Their accomplishments are appreciated and are important to...

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 28)

I thank the Minister for the long answer, and well-detailed, and I appreciate that. I guess I might have missed that email, but again, I guess I love way we say, well, we sent a letter, and that's consulting people. How did we engage the residents of the Northwest Territories who were impacted by this decision? Because NWT Lands has a huge impact on, not only in the small communities that I represent, but their cabins. So how did you engage the people of the Northwest Territories?

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 28)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, on March 22nd I got a Christmas present, a little early or it might have been a little bit late, from the Department of Lands. This is a press secretary release saying that there was going to be a media announcement about the leases in there, so this has been a gift that's been given to me ever since then, and I keep on getting questions from my leadership and members in the communities. So this is my question to the Minister of Lands: can the Minister please advise why the media offer was offered to them after our winter session, and not during the winter...

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 28)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, on February 20th, 10 students from TSS, accompanied by two chaperones, travelled to Vancouver to attend the Wisdom to Action, Youth-Led Suicide Prevention Programs conference that was held at the Aboriginal Friendship Centre on East Hastings Street. Conference organizers and contributors included the Mental Health Commission of Canada, Dalhousie University, the Embrace Life Council of Nunavut, and the Canadian Red Cross.

The conference was held over two days, February 21st and 22nd, and many topics relevant to our youth and community were presented and...

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 27)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this is Societies Eligibility for the Business Incentive Policy. Would the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment please provide the following information?

It appears that the Business Incentive Policy (BIP) as is currently applied may compromise an incorporated society's right to "have all the powers, rights and immunities vested by law in a corporation," as provided by section 4(2) of the Societies Act. Please explain this possible infringement of a legal right by the Business Incentive Policy.

Some societies carry out small business activities, may...

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 27)

I thank the Minister for that answer. Mr. Speaker, if a constituent has arrears, does the department have a plan that can help them get in good standings, or is legal action that is threatened in the courts, is that still going to be moving forward?

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 27)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am not going to go onto that lease issue, because we could be here for another year dealing with it, and we would like to get it moved forward.

My next set of questions are to the Minister of Lands, and it's a follow-up from the first set of questions that I had for him when we talk about territorial and Commissioner's lands. It is my understanding that the calculations are different for territorial and Commissioner's lands. Can the Minister explain why there are two different calculations? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.