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 , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 146)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the DAP was evaluated and approved following the 2021 flood and, again, is under revision this year as we have learned since applying it to the 2022 flood. While no policy is perfect, we are confident in meeting the intent to help communities and residents recover from a widespread disaster.

Mr. Speaker, DAP is not a compensation program and is not an insurance program that covers all losses. It is a governmentfunded assistance program to ensure essential community functions and covers the essential basic needs of residents and businesses. Thank you, Mr...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 146)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The definition in the disaster assistance program are in line with the disaster assistance policies across Canada. The definition of "emergency" does not exclude tornados and has provisions to include any other sudden events of unusual proportion caused by nature's phenomenon. This leaves the opportunity for tornados to be considered if either criteria for applying this policy are met and if the results is a widespread situation. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 146)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, Irene (nee) Bertrand was born April 9, 1955, on the Liard River in a boat while travelling on the way to the old Fort Liard Health Centre. Irene was raised by her parents Gabriel and Verna with help from her Grandma Selena and Grandpa Michael Bertrand. They lived about a mile above the BC border on the Liard River. The majority of her upbringing was with her Grandma Selena until she passed away. As Irene grew older, she was sent to residential school in Fort Simpson. She stayed at Lapointe Hall and attended Thomas Simpson School. Later, she was sent to...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 146)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I give notice that on Wednesday, March 8th, 2023, I will present Bill 74, Forest Act, to be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 146)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'm more than willing to meet with the Member and then reach out to the finance minister to have those conversations. Again, this is the finance Minister's responsibility but I'm more than willing to work with the Member to meet with the Minister on this. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 146)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I thank the Member for the question. And the Member did bring it up to my attention and I did a little bit of research on that.

So the honorarium rate is set out with the financial administration manual with the Department of Finance. I can't speak on why or when the rate was set, but I can say that the honorarium is paid to individuals attending the meetings and other official businesses. But I'm willing to meet with the Minister with the Member and the Minister of Finance to get further information on this. And, again, I'd like to thank the Member for bringing...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 146)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the definition of "emergency" speaks to events of unusual proportion. The criteria clearly outlines the requirements for an event to affect a large area or a number of people. Across Canada, and the majority of the world, disaster assistance programs are not applied to events affecting a single property. The intent of such disaster assistance programs are to ensure the continued function of a community. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 146)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the disaster assistance program is a governmentfunded assistance program to ensure essential community functions and cover the basic needs of residents and businesses. That is not an insurance program that covers all losses or is applied to events affecting a single property.

Mr. Speaker, the requirement is for only applying the DAP for widespread damage in line with the disaster assistance policy across Canada with the criteria of the federal disastrous financial assistance arrangement. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 145)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, caribou have sustained Northerners and communities across the Northwest Territories for generations. Today, caribou herds face pressure from a wide range of natural factors and human activities throughout their range, including the impact of climate change. We all want to see healthy caribou herds that can sustain harvest and cultural traditions for generations to come. With the winter’s harvest underway and weather getting warmer, I would like to speak today on respectful harvesting, why it is important, and what our government is doing to encourage safe...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 145)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I thank the Member for the question. Current provisions for recreational or residential leases does not allow for commercial activities such as an Airbnb. Having a home business or a B and B is considered a commercial endeavour. In most jurisdictions, it requires a commercial lease as well as business license. Commercial leases are available to the public now in appropriate zoned areas. If this is a desire, lessees should reach out to the department to discuss the parameters for changing the use of their lease and potential issues that may need to be considered...