Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It is said teachers open the door for our youth. I say government needs to fix this door. The recent pleas for better housing from our territorial teachers and from the NWT Teachers’ Association should be a wake-up call for residents and for this government. A recent housing summary report asked this government to do something concrete to alleviate the longstanding issue of housing shortages and unacceptable living conditions across the North. This April 29th report further brings awareness and understanding of the current barriers faced by this housing crisis and calls for solutions to fix the door of affordable and acceptable housing for teachers.
A tall order? Maybe, but the consequences of not carrying out the number of recommendations will in itself create the ultimate fate of education in the North. We need to heed to the basic essential standards that teachers are looking for. We need to take proper care of them, which means providing affordable and adequate housing where it is needed.
We further realize that there are many other needs in our small communities, as well, and that this ask cannot trump those other basic expectations of our communities. In other words, we need to make the proper and meaningful investment in everything that is right to make our small communities safer and economically viable.
Ultimately our investment in proper living conditions for our teachers will pay dividends of better retention of these professionals, produce a higher quality of education being delivered, resulting in a higher student achievement and, in return, produce stronger and more prosperous communities.
We need to open the door to change. So I will be asking our Minister of Education, Culture and Employment later today if his department is in the business of fixing this door of opportunity. Mahsi.
Thank you, Mr. Dolynny. The Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, Mr. Moses.
