Mr. Speaker, the North lost one of the true pioneers of governance in the NWT with the passing of Tom Butters. Tom served in the Legislative Assembly from 1970 to 1991. As one of the longest serving MLAs in the North, his respectful and steady approach was admired by those who served with him.
The flags outside the Legislative Assembly have been lowered to half-mast today out of respect for Tom Butters and all he did for the people of the Northwest Territories.
Born in Vancouver, BC, in 1925, Mr. Butters moved North in 1947. He was a prospector in the Yukon and worked on the Alaska Highway with the Department of National Defence before joining the federal Department of Northern Affairs and Natural Resources as a northern services officer in Ottawa, Churchill and Baker Lake.
He moved to Inuvik in 1961 and became regional administrator in 1963. He left the government two years later to establish the local weekly newspaper, the Drum – now the Inuvik Drum – to serve the Inuvik area, and he established a travel business in the Western Arctic. Tom also served a term on Inuvik town council, where he was deputy mayor, before running in the 1970 territorial election.
Tom Butters was elected five times by the people of Inuvik and served in 13 different ministerial portfolios including:
Minister of Natural and Cultural Affairs
Minister of Economic Development and Tourism
Minister of Social Services
Minister of Health
Minister of Education, Justice and Public Services
Minister of the Public Utilities Board
Minister of Finance
Minister of Government Services
Minister of Energy, Mines and Resources Secretariat
Minister of Housing Corporation
Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs
It was during his time as Finance Minister that Tom took on the responsibility for the GNWT finances. Until that time the Commissioner, appointed by Ottawa, had controlled the financial portfolio. Tom worked tirelessly to ensure a smooth transition. Notably it was during his tenure as Minister that the northern residents tax deduction was introduced.
Tom was a hard worker and famous for his early breakfast meetings, something that appears to be a necessary characteristic for any Finance Minister. He was a very good listener and a fair man. He was soft-spoken, open to others’ ideas and treated everyone with respect.
It is fitting, and certainly no coincidence, that such a man played a key part in the independence of the Northwest Territories. This earned him membership in the Order of Canada in 1994.
Mr. Speaker, I invite Members to join me in thanking Tom Butters for all he contributed to the Northwest Territories and Nunavut, for the legacy he left every one of us, even those who never met him. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Premier McLeod. The honourable Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Lafferty.
Mr. Speaker, the Department of Education, Culture and Employment provides a better quality of life for some of the most vulnerable residents of the Northwest Territories through its Income Security Program. I’d like to speak today about a significant improvement that is being made to the Income Assistance program as well as two very important initiatives that are underway.
Starting in April 2015, income assistance clients will receive more money for food and incidental expenses. These benefits will continue to increase each year for the next four years. The increases to these benefits will allow our clients to receive benefit levels that reflect the actual cost of healthy foods for their families regardless of the community they live in. Healthy, educated people who are free from poverty is a goal of this Assembly, and making this vital enhancement to the Income Assistance program will help meet this goal.
I am also pleased to report on a joint initiative that is underway with our colleagues at the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation. ECE will be transferring the NWT Housing Corporation responsibility for administration of 75 market housing units available to income assistance clients. There will be 55 units in Yellowknife, 10 units in Inuvik, and 10 units in Hay River. Income assistance clients in these units will have reduced rent, and resources are being transferred from ECE to the NWTHC to operate them, so it will be cost neutral to the GNWT. People in these units will also experience an easier transition to the workforce due to the Housing Corporation’s graduated rent to income scheme.
Mr. Speaker, I’ve said before that our people are our territory’s greatest resource. Having more skilled NWT residents entering the workforce will strengthen our economy.
We are working to improve the NWT labour force through the creation of five new employment officer positions. These positions will provide individual support to employable income assistance clients so they are able to gain employment or enter into training programs. The intent of these new positions is to further reduce income assistance caseloads, which have continued to decrease over the past five years.
Mr. Speaker, addressing high living costs and giving Northerners the tools they need to find and keep work, including stable housing, are priorities for this government. I am proud of the innovative approaches and work completed to support and contribute to this Assembly’s goals of Northerners leading healthy successful lives free from poverty. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. The honourable Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, Mr. Miltenberger.
Mr. Speaker, with more than 4,338 interrelated species and counting, the state of biodiversity in the Northwest Territories provides us a rare chance unavailable in most other regions in Canada or the world: the ability to proactively plan a healthy future for land, water, wildlife and people. Our land, rich in biodiversity, contributes to the high quality of life we all enjoy in the NWT. Our food security and traditional economy rely on maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem integrity in the North. Making sure land in the NWT remains healthy for future generations is a priority of the Government of the Northwest Territories.
A key premise of devolution is that decisions influencing our economy and environment are best guided and managed by the people who live here. As such, the GNWT developed the Land Use and Sustainability Framework for lands management. This means making balanced, collaborative decisions respectful of Aboriginal and treaty rights in the context of sound environmental stewardship. To do this, we consider ecological, social, cultural and economic values in our decision-making to ensure maximum benefits to current and future generations.
We acknowledge the significant contributions of our regional and community partners through the Protected Areas Strategy. We have worked together to successfully define the natural capital of many special areas, initiate discussions on the management and monitoring of candidate areas and, in many instances, have begun the important collaborative decision-making phase of the establishment process.
We are proceeding with a made-in-the-North approach to conservation planning to ensure biodiversity and ecosystem integrity are maintained into the future. Devolution has provided an opportunity for the people of the NWT to create new conservation areas using “northern tools,” allowing for increased participation in and accountability for the management of these areas.
We have adapted conservation science methods used elsewhere in Canada and around the world to identify the NWT’s ecologically representative core areas and assess gaps. We will work with communities to outline mutual objectives for territorial designations, shared governance and management. Objectives that support balanced land decisions made collaboratively by Northerners and fit within a broad comprehensive conservation planning approach, one that includes land use planning, park and protected areas establishment, and ecological representation network planning. Collectively, these initiatives will ensure the progress of responsible economic development in the context of sound environmental stewardship.
As we proceed with our northern approach to conservation planning, we will be looking for partners. Some of the most successful initiatives in the NWT, such as the transboundary water negotiations, the Species at Risk Conference of Management Authorities, or the new Wildlife Act, were only possible through collaboration. We know that in order to be successful, to create the best conservation network possible, true collaboration and partnerships must continue.
The timing is right to prepare for our future. It is important to take advantage of the science behind best practices, such as ecological representation for managing land use and creating core areas, and combine it with traditional knowledge from our Aboriginal partners. When we work together using the best information available, we ensure the development of a culturally, environmentally and economically sustainable Northwest Territories.
People of the NWT want a healthy land for their grandchildren. The NWT has a rare opportunity to be a leader in conservation and apply lessons learned elsewhere in the world and across Canada to achieve sustainable resource management. It is far more efficient to preserve land now than try to restore land later. A new NWT conservation network not only maintains our unique northern landscapes, it also provides more clarity and certainty for developers, industry, residents of the NWT and beyond. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I just want to make a few brief comments on the Auditor General’s report on Justice and corrections that was tabled, and there was a press conference last week with the folks from the Auditor General’s office.
The work of any of the departments in our government, including the Department of Justice, is an ongoing work in progress. We all know that none of these departments is everything they can be, but anything that we’re trying to build and trying to improve is a work in progress.
We elect Members of this Assembly from amongst ourselves to represent us on the other side of the House to take on responsibility for various aspects of the work that this government does. Many of them are not just representing one area; many of them are representing many areas. So, in the Minister’s comments yesterday, he mentioned we cannot support change by ourselves, it takes support by our leaders, our communities and other service providers and it also takes the support of Members on this side of the House.
The spirit and intent with which the Auditor General’s report was delivered, I believe, was to point out and identify things that can be done differently and that can be done better. The way this report was received by our Minister of Justice, I believe, was in that same spirit and intent. It was received humbly and it was received with dignity and admission that there’s more that we can do.
Sometimes we do have to stop and celebrate some of the things that have occurred, some of the things that Members on this side of the House are very interested in such as a Wellness Court. That’s something that we, together with the Minister of Justice, worked towards and we made progress on during the 17th Assembly and we need to celebrate that as well as another specialized court, a Domestic Violence Treatment Court, and some of the healing programs that have been initiated out there.
Mr. Speaker, we have many challenges before us in all areas of work that we do as leaders and as legislators. When criticism is necessary, I think it should be constructive criticism. I think that we, at the same time, need to admit that no one on this side of the House or on the other side has a magic wand. It is a work in progress that is building on the work of former Ministers of former governments of former leadership in departments and we advance the goals and the outcomes of these departments as we work together.
I would like to say that I appreciate the work of the Auditor General’s office and sometimes it isn’t always good news, but I would be reluctant to politicize it, as sometimes the media does, by referring to it with words like “scathing” and that somebody should be taken to task. Mr. Speaker, we need to advance the cause of justice together. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Member for Range Lake, Mr. Dolynny.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Sometimes policies make sense and sometimes, well, they don’t. Point in question, let’s look at the widely popular NWT Housing Corporation Housing Choices suite of programs. This suite of programs is offered to all residents of the Northwest Territories, helping to maintain and manage a sustainable housing environment. Assistance is provided at various levels based on the applicant’s income, helping NWT residents not only become more independent but also assist them in becoming successful homeowners.
One such housing choice is the CARE program, which stands for Continuing Assistance for Repairs and Enhancements. By offering forgivable loans up to $90,000, CARE helps homeowners make necessary repairs to ensure a safe and healthy residence and to increase the useful economic life of their homes.
Mr. Speaker, all good so far, so what’s my concern? Well, it’s the little caveat on the NWT Housing website that says, “Generally, applicants can’t have outstanding arrears with the NWT Housing Corporation.” The word “generally” had me raising some red flags, so I decided to do some investigation.
Well, it seems if you owe money on your land lease or property tax and you live in a market community, you are ineligible for a free forgivable loan. This makes sense to me. However – and this is the kicker – if you owe less than $5,000 on your land lease or property tax and you live in a non-market community, you’re not eligible for this loan program. This is the one that does not make sense to me.
How is it you can have two sets of rules, depending on your market, on money you owe, and still qualify for more free funding? This does boggle the mind.
Furthermore, to the legality of such asininity, how does a policy like this stack up constitutionally?
I’ll be asking the Minister later today for some clarity on this policy. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Dolynny. Member for Deh Cho, Mr. Nadli.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We know that tourism is an important industry in the Northwest Territories. In its 2014-15 Marketing Plan, NWT Tourism has identified several major focus categories, including outdoor adventuring, Aboriginal travel, and sport hunting and fishing. Growth in the German, Swiss and British markets show particular interest in Aboriginal cultures in a natural environment. It’s a great sign for regions like the Deh Cho. But at the same time, we also know that for both Canadian and international travelers, travelling north can be expensive. As a result, our tourism strategies must convince travellers not to only turn their NWT dreams into realities but also deliver the authentic northern experiences these travellers seek.
As exciting as international tourism can be, in reality 80 percent of visitors to the NWT come from within Canada, primarily from Alberta, British Columbia and Ontario. Often, too, these travellers come by road, either in regular motor vehicles or in RVs designed for touring. Travellers cover a range of demographics from adventurous students to vacationing families, to retirees. In fact, tourism planning for the region often highlights the Deh Cho Travel Connection, a circular driving route that travels through multiple provinces and territories including ours. Surely our goal must be to make the NWT worth notable stops, including the beautiful Alexandra and Louise Falls, the highlight of this route.
With noted tourism priorities for authentic northern experiences, spectacular landscapes, educational opportunities, opportunities in Aboriginal cultures and road touring, the Deh Cho is primed to offer enticing options to all manner of adventurers and explorers, including minimal impact activities that allow visitors to appreciate our spectacular territory without leaving a large footprint.
But not all the pieces are in place. The deteriorating condition of the Liard Highway is noted as having a significant impact on the traffic in the Deh Cho. With so many road travellers, not to mention our own residents, highway infrastructure is a clear priority.
We also know that natural disasters can impede tourism. I hope that our tourism strategies continue to promote the NWT as a safe and viable destination after last year’s forest fire season.
Finally, I’m proud to highlight two residents of my riding, Vi and Eric Bartlett, who won the 2014 Hospitality Award for their work at the 60th Parallel Visitors Centre. Thanks to their hard work, tourism presence at the NWT and Alberta border is strong. But further down the Mackenzie Highway…
Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement. Mahsi.
---Unanimous consent granted
To build tourism in the NWT, there is room for growth and improvement in and around the hamlet of Enterprise and throughout the NWT and Deh Cho. Tomorrow I’ll speak further about the hamlet, and later today I’ll have questions for the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment. Mahsi.
Thank you, Mr. Nadli. The Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Before I begin, I want to thank the good folks at the NWT Bureau of Stats. They’re a very important pillar of our government because they provide very important information each and every day to folks like me so I can do my job.
Because of that very important information, I can see that 35 people left the NWT last year when I compare the final quarter of 2013 against 2014. That really comes down to one person in the Northwest Territories left every 10 days. That’s a net loss. We’re losing transfer payments. That’s an additional $25,000 per person walking out of the Northwest Territories every 10 days. That potential also means we’ve lost tax filers in the North, we’ve lost community vitality. Every community is not immune from that suffering of people leaving.
The question is, why are they leaving? Well, you don’t have to look too far to the announcement the other day that the NWT Power Corp once again said another increase is on its way. The continued tsunami of increases weighs very heavily on the everyday family trying to get by.
Now, I know the government dreams, it may dream big some days when they say they want to attract 2,000 people to the Northwest Territories, but let’s be clear, I don’t know how they’re going to come when we pay some of the highest costs across Canada.
No, I don’t blame the good folks at the NWT Power Corp. I know many of those people and I know many of them do their job very well every day. They try as hard as they can to ensure that our system is accountable and reliable. To that, they certainly deserve and get my respect. That is not the issue. It comes down to the government’s mismanagement of this particular problem. The government has to start to realize that it can’t just let this essential service, as described by the Minister of Finance, become such a cost it’s too prohibitive to live here. There’s not a day goes by that somebody starts to tell me or sends me an e-mail or bumps into me at the Co-op or the other grocery store and says, “You know what? I can’t afford to live here anymore.”
We must make choices. So when Northerners pay two, three, four times or more on our power bills, how is the everyday family going to get by because our salaries are not two, three and four times they are in equal and comparable jurisdictions.
I’m going to end by saying it’s time this government become the master of its own destiny with some social engineering that helps Northerners live in their own homes. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. The Member for Frame Lake, Ms. Bisaro.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. For some time now we’ve had an Official Languages Act which specifies that there shall be two languages boards, an Aboriginal Languages Board and a Languages Revitalization Board. Although these two boards and their membership is clearly laid out in the Official Languages Act, the GNWT is not following its own legislation, nor is the government, specifically the Department of Education, Culture and Employment, heeding the advice of the 16th Assembly Standing Committee on Government Operations, which did a thorough and comprehensive review of the Official Languages Act in 2009.
That review resulted in an excellent report, titled “The Final Report on the Review of the Official Languages Act, 2008-2009, Reality Check: Securing a Future for the Official Languages of the Northwest Territories.” In that report there were recommendations for, one, amendments to the Official Languages Act and, two, a new structure for language governance and management.
To his credit, the Minister for ECE has made some changes in the management of languages. We now have a secretariat for French language and a secretariat for Aboriginal languages. These changes go some way towards acknowledging the recommendations from the 2009 report, but it has put in place two secretariats where one was recommended.
What has not been acknowledged at all by the department is the need to make legislative changes to the Official Languages Act. The 2009 report recommended the amalgamation of the two languages boards into one languages board. As far back as October 24, 2012, the Minister stated in the House, “We are exploring legislative options to change roles and structure of the two existing Aboriginal languages boards.”
Now, two and a half years later, there have been no changes to the legislation governing these two boards. Instead, the Minister has changed the composition of the boards to suit the results of negotiations with the Federation Franco-Tenoise and the establishment of the two languages secretariats within his department. The Minister now flouts the law his very own department is responsible for. The Official Languages Board does not have any representatives for either English or French language as is required by the act, and the Aboriginal Languages Revitalization Board now operates without any representation from Inuktitut language communities.
We’re well past the time for some action in regard to legislative change for the Official Languages Act. The 2009 report made firm recommendations for change which have been ignored for too long. The Minister must do one of two things: heed the requirements of the Official Languages Act or bring forward the necessary legislative changes.
I will have questions for the Minister at the appropriate time.
Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. The Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, Mr. Moses.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I too had a look at the Auditor General’s report on some of the issues dealing with the Department of Justice and corrections, and it got my attention in terms of the rehab services, mental health services, and just the treatment that our inmates need to go through or lack or don’t have. However, I want to take a different route on this one.
When I was reading this, I was conflicted in the sense that we have people who are in the jail who have mental health issues, and if we actually had the services in the communities, they might not be there. As my colleague mentioned, they referenced the report as scathing, and it’s been getting a lot of media attention. It has been getting media attention here in the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and the Yukon. Like I said, if we had those services in the communities, we can’t forget about the people who are struggling in the communities.
I know some Members from this government did a tour of the North Slave Correctional Centre and it was great. Inmates had three meals a day, they had a fitness centre, they had programs, services, stuff that we don’t have in our communities. It makes me go to wonder: do we have to get the Auditor General to do a report on our small communities to get the services there? Because when an Auditor General report comes out we jump all over it, we say we’ve got to do this, we’ve got to do that, and it’s binding, but we fight for every service on this side of the House throughout the year, throughout the government, but sometimes we don’t see anything, nurses, RCMP, mental health, psychiatrists. But when it comes out in a report, then we jump all over it and say it needs to be in place, it needs to get done.
We can’t forget about the communities that need these services, and we need to look at how we can put some of these programs and services that we are putting into the institutions that can help the people who need the help. We’ve got to find ways to prevent people from going to the institutions now rather than later and wait for another Auditor General report to say we have to do it again.
I will have questions for the Minister of Justice on how we’re preventing people from going into the institution and how we’re rehabbing them back into the communities so that they can become a member of society once again.
Thank you, Mr. Moses. The Member for Weledeh, Mr. Bromley.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. A primary function of government is to ensure citizens are safe. In my mind, we are failing on at least one front and within sight of this building yet. I am speaking about the stretch of Highway No. 3 from the Niven Lake access to 49th Avenue.
While GNWT and the city have argued over jurisdiction of this piece of highway and the costs associated with remediation and maintenance of it, an entire subdivision has been built and grown into a busy and vital community right across the highway. But thousands of Niven Lake residents have been left without safe, convenient pedestrian access to downtown, despite increasing highway traffic and narrow shoulders which increase the danger every year.
After seven-plus years since this issue was first raised, the Explorer Hotel is slated for expansion and another hotel has started development, further congesting this area with yet more traffic and destruction of some existing trails. This unacceptable delay has put the residents of Niven Lake, who commute to downtown by walking or bicycling, in an unnecessarily and increasingly dangerous plight. There is no safe time for pedestrian commuters between the Niven Lake access and downtown where so many work or go to school, but the situation is much worse in winter when it is dark. They are walking with parka hoods up, roads are slippery and windshields may be fogged. A proper walking trail or sidewalk and a safe, regulated crossing are required for safe passage of people walking with their children, dogs and arms full of groceries.
Encouraging people to live a healthy lifestyle, reduce their carbon footprint, leave the car at home and walk when possible are all legitimate suggestions from the government, but we must do our part and ensure they can be done safely.
Eight years of luck without an accident is blessing enough without prolonging this issue further. Another summer is approaching, with walkers on the shoulder, dashing across the highway with little protection from vehicles. Both foot and vehicle traffic along this treacherous piece of road will be increasing again. It is only a matter of time before someone gets seriously hurt. I have suggested one temporary partial solution of a crossing light, but the Minister of Transportation was hardly encouraging. After almost a decade of saying no, when will the Department of Transportation say yes?
When will we do what it takes and make this walking/biking route a safe one for our people, both walkers and drivers? Surely for the safety of our families, and recognizing our clear responsibility here, we can come up with something workable in the time left of this Assembly for such priorities. Let’s not risk serious regret any further. Let’s act now. Mahsi.
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. Member for Sahtu, Mr. Yakeleya.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I want to talk about the potential of the resource development we have in the Northwest Territories. We have seen it in the Sahtu region. Like any new technology, there’s always risk. We deal with that every day, from the time that Henry Ford came out with the Model T car to the vehicles we deal with today. There’s always potential risk with the technology that’s coming out.
Do we have the tools to manage these risks? I believe so. Again, like the vehicles, we have the tools to manage those risks. There are risks going to be involved.
We also need more research over time to look at some of these new technologies and the risks that they could be.
In the Sahtu, last year we had experience with the fracking with two wells at Conoco. Surprisingly, I didn’t know that in the early ‘70s the first acid frack was in the Cameron Hills. Fracking has been happening since the ‘40s. Over a million wells have been fracked in the United States, and 175,000 in Canada, most in Alberta, Saskatchewan and BC.
Oil and gas development has changed over the years. It’s been well documented. Regulatory has been well defined over the years. They were looking at how to minimize the risks, tracking what’s happening in the oil and gas field. Strict regulations, strict liabilities are in place in oil and gas.
We in the Sahtu are in the driver’s seat, as we’ve been told when we went down to North Dakota at Falcon’s fields. “You guys are in the driver’s seat. You can control it.”
When we see this vast potential in the North with the oil and gas, we must seize the opportunity with the tools that we have at hand. I want to say that the Sahtu people are now experiencing the downfall of the low oil prices. There is no work and it’s stressful for our people.
Mr. Speaker, I’ll have questions for the Minister of ITI on this potential in the Sahtu.
Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Menicoche.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I believe we are missing a significant opportunity to live better, eat better, diversify our economy, create local jobs and be more independent in the Northwest Territories. We must grow in quantity more of our own food.
A constituent tells me, “Have you ever thought what happens when the food trucks stop coming north?” We tend to forget that the southern half of our territory is very sunny and has some potentially good agriculture land. Hay River has had some degree of success and so could Fort Simpson and probably other communities as well. It is a vision shared by some of my constituents and others throughout the North. The problem is access to land. We have a huge and great land, but the rules for using them are pretty heavy duty, especially considering that farms are so common all over Canada and they have easier access.
I’m not sure if devolution of land and the taking over of a federal application process has complicated things. In the Deh Cho for a lease or sale of Commissioner’s land, the GNWT must seek the approval of the affected Dehcho First Nation. That’s fine; it’s only a 30-day process, in theory anyway. It is set out in the Interim Measures Agreement.
Where the Dehcho Land Use Planning Process fits in is not so clear. The planning committee’s website refers to economic and political barriers to agriculture, and that’s about it. Then we have our departments of Lands, and Industry, Tourism and Investment. ITI is working gung-ho, well, sort of, on the Agriculture Strategy, and Lands department seems to have a bunch of rules they may or may not be sorting out.
But let’s not leave out the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board, the purveyor of permits under federal rules. As I understand it, if land needs to be cleared with heavy machinery, then a would-be farmer has to apply for a land use permit and then wait for it. On the other hand, if land is already cleared, it seems no land use permit is required. To me, it looks like anyone who wants to farm or wants to grow healthy food for us all to eat had better be a darn good lawyer as well. The rules are not clear. It is no wonder applicants are frustrated.
I will have questions later on for the Minister of Lands during question period. Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Blake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Earlier in this session I asked about the progress of the on-the-land program as the closing date for expression of interest was the end of January.
As we get closer to spring, I am hopeful we have this program in place as the spring is, in my opinion, the best time to be out on the land. This is a good opportunity for those in our corrections facilities, and I’m positive there will be a lot of interest.
I’ll have questions for the Minister later today. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have a return to oral question asked by Mr. Dolynny on March 4, 2015, regarding the Auditor General Report on Corrections in the NWT – Department of Justice.
This government is committed to supporting an environment of continuous improvement in the corrections service and throughout the GNWT. The annual performance audits conducted by the office of the Auditor General support this commitment and provide us with an opportunity to receive valuable feedback on our programs and services.
The office of the Auditor General conducts independent audits and studies that provide objective information, advice and assurance to the federal and territorial governments. There was no mention by this independent and respected office in the report or in any of the numerous meetings held between the staff of the office and departmental officials of any wrongdoing by the Department of Justice or its staff.
I’ve accepted all of the recommendations in the Auditor General’s report on corrections in the NWT. Indeed, as the Premier stated in the Assembly last week, several changes have already been implemented or are underway, and if an audit were conducted today, the findings would be quite different. I’m confident that the steps taken by the Department of Justice, and it’s planning that is underway, will address the concerns highlighted in the Auditor General’s report.
Respectfully, any suggestion that we should investigate laying charges against the very people in the corrections service that we know are doing the hard work to make the improvements required is both unnecessary and demoralizing. If the Member has specific questions or concerns about the audit report, I’m sure that these can be addressed either by me or by the department staff during the hearings of the Standing Committee on Government Operations that will be coming up in May. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’m very pleased to greet a resident of Weledeh, Karen Johnson, and, of course, her daughter is serving as a Page today in the House, Linnea Stephenson, and I’d also like to recognize Jacob Schubert who is also a resident of Weledeh. Mahsi.
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. Mr. Miltenberger.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to recognize Ernie Bernhardt, a former Member of the Legislative Assembly but, more importantly, my roommate back in residential school many, many, many years ago. I welcome him to the Assembly.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Mr. Premier.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’m very pleased to recognize two Pages from Yellowknife South, Megan Vu and Lucas Heal, and also – we went to Grandin College together – Ernie Bernhardt. Thank you.
