Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want to start by honouring all of the artists who gave me permission to purchase and honour their work in this House. Mr. Speaker, I stand in front of you today wearing the same earrings that I wore my first day in this House. These earrings are vintage beads set one by one in tanned moose hide by local artist Jessie Lafferty. Jessie's work is pristine, with focused and deliberate skill. In every design, stitch, and finished piece, she carries the mastery of her great grandmother who passed her skills to Jessie. Art is beautiful, but it is far more than a thing of beauty. Art connects people to themselves, is a conduit of healing. Art connects people to one another. Art connects people to culture, land, and elders. Art is an important to our wellbeing as it is to our shared and individual histories, Mr. Speaker. And Jessie's art marks generations of love, storytelling, healing, and beauty through art.
I believe that art helped me solidify my journey in this House. While my experience as a public servant was invaluable to my understanding and knowledge of government, I believe it was my private industry business experience and the connections with residents afforded to me through my artbased business that solidified my honour in serving the residents of Kam Lake. Jessie's artwork were my good luck charms during the 2019 election and followed me from forum to forum and helped me start my journey here. It's important that we never forget where we came from in these roles, Mr. Speaker, and celebrating northern artists every time I step into your House was, for me, an important reminder of my roots as an artist and entrepreneur and the intimate connections fostered with residents.
Mr. Speaker, my greatest gratitude today starts with the residents of Kam Lake who trusted me to serve them over the last four years. I want to sincerely thank every single one of you who reached out with issues, concerns, and lived experience through emails, phone calls, and in person meetings. Working with residents was and truly is the best part of this job. You have made me a better northerner, and I am forever grateful to you.
Mr. Speaker, during the Commissioner's February 2020 address, we had not yet seen a global pandemic or record floods and wildfires spurred by the climate crisis. And as the Commissioner reflected on the mandate of the 19th Assembly, she said, quote, our plan puts people first and recognizes that government succeeds when we support the success of every person in the territory. It is a holistic plan that takes into account the physical, social, wellness, and employment needs of residents. We know that people need a strong and secure foundation on which to grow beginning with the basics of food, shelter, and health. End quote.
This very core foundation was dismantled for so many residents during evacuation. So I would like to start there, Mr. Speaker. Residents' evacuation stories are drastically different.
First, Mr. Speaker, I have a tremendous amount of gratitude to the frontline workers. Folks on the ground did an amazing job both within the private sector and multiple levels of the public sector. For many, that grind has not stopped as they continue to plug away at this year's fire season that got a jump on spring, ravaged the summer, and pushes into fall. So thank you to firefighters, essential workers, volunteers, and all who stepped up. I'd also like to extend a thank you to many other parts of Canada who welcomed evacuees and even offered something special to those who found themselves spread from coast to coast, but especially to Alberta who went above and beyond for NWT residents.
Mr. Speaker, yes, I have a tremendous amount of gratitude. But you can have both gratitude and at the same time anger, sadness, and frustration for what went wrong, the traumas, and losses of residents, and the numerous asks that went unfulfilled. Mr. Speaker, as this government still works on this year's fire season, the next one is only six months away. The next Assembly needs to prioritize public safety and emergency management. Every year of this Assembly has been marked by unprecedented events but at what point does unprecedented become expected, and we accept that our changing world is marked by new highs and lows where the name of the beast might change, but the demands it places on this government are to be expected. In addition to a clearly required emergency business continuity plan to support residents, this government also needs to determine how it supports its workers who are the ones that show up to the frontlines time and time again.
The week of evacuation, I came across a handful of public servants serving different roles in our community. They were undersupported, they had not slept all week long, and were all at their breaking points. People who should have stayed did not, and this left multiple public servants in dire positions, from nurses sleeping at hospitals with no relief, to public servants working solo trying to operate critical infrastructure without the staff, to staff working without tools to serve residents or the authority to create them. But the term essential worker, Mr. Speaker, does not mean lone wolf, working 30 days straight with no reprieve, and then expected to return to work as normal on the 31st day with compensation no different than colleagues who didn't work. This government has a number of public servants who have shown up crisis after crisis in this Assembly, and they are burnt out.
Mr. Speaker, this government needs to sort out its emergency communication and cannot continue its siloed approach. It currently relies on Cabin Radio to consolidate information from multiple social media pages and regurgitate it in digestible form. If Cabin Radio closed its doors tomorrow, crisis communication would be hooped.
Mr. Speaker, we have heard multiple calls and commitments in this House for a fire season and evacuation review. The review needs to be independent, transparent with included itemized costs, and include input from departments, anonymous public servants, NGOs, and the public. Mr. Speaker, not all evacuations were built and supported the same. There was no equity. I recently saw a quote that read, quote, survivors aren't only healing from what they endured but the ways they were treated when they asked you for help, end quote. These stories need to be captured and solutions implemented. What happened this time can never happen again.
But, Mr. Speaker, it is clear that the Northwest Territories has no substantive preventative plan to address climate change, no cautionary plan to address changing environments, and no plans for business continuity during an evacuation of our capital city.
Private industry is the backbone of this territory and continues to show up in a big way for residents. I am truly worried for our private sector here in the Northwest Territories. They have weathered storm after storm in an environment that, while resilient, has its breaking point. Through COVID, inflation, and rising interest rates, then evacuations, our private industry is suffering. We need more business, more entrepreneurs, not less, Mr. Speaker. And thriving business communities across the Northwest Territories are markers of a healthy economic environment. And let's be honest, thriving business communities are one of the strongest job securities for public servants. So learning how and not if you can support local industry not only puts food on Northerners tables, but ultimately puts food on your own.
Mr. Speaker, it's not only private industry whose bottom line is in jeopardy. This year, this government had to literally pull back the couch cushions to afford its fire season and subsequent evacuations all but draining the surplus they had worked hard to leave the 20th Assembly. I am worried about the financial state of this government paired with the expectations of Northerners. The 20th Assembly is going to need to continue addressing the continuing costs of this year's wildfire season. Already underfunded municipalities have incurred significant costs as a result of this season, and residents cannot afford to cover these additional costs. The municipal funding gap needs to be a greater focus in the next Assembly. In addition to wildfire expenses, much of the North's infrastructure is coming of age at the same time. This is going to cause significant strain on multiple municipalities concurrently while simultaneously putting added financial pressures on this government as it works to maintain its own assets. This government needs an infrastructure deficit plan, Mr. Speaker, because we cannot afford to have our arenas, schools, or housing fall into further states of disrepair.
This, Mr. Speaker, does not even touch on the continued increasing funding demands on much of the remainder of the system, including education, health care, infrastructure, and yes, MLA O'Reilly, that includes affordable housing. All these northern issues are national issues because they all ultimately relate to Arctic sovereignty and Arctic security. The next Assembly is going to need to make difficult decisions, and the 20th Assembly needs to be willing to have uncomfortable conversations. Psychologists Adam Grant says, quote, when you have an open mind, a challenge to your ideas isn't an attack on you. It's an opportunity to learn something new. End quote. My wish for the next Assembly is to find the balance of spirited debate.
But it isn't all doom and gloom, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in each of these, there are great opportunity. Yesterday Bill 85, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People, passed third reading in this House. This marks a historic event and I am both excited and curious to see how this will impact the work of governments. The Education Act will move to phase 2 of a complete modernization of education legislation that stands to truly help support students to become, in the words of Chief Jimmy Bruneau, strong like two people. I am impatient but excited for the work of the homelessness strategy, integrated service delivery, and housing solidifying its place in a social envelope department. To accomplish this work, we need a public service that empowers residents service representatives and not government gatekeepers. And successes need to be measured in outcomes for residents, not outputs by department. I hope to see a 20th Assembly plan that continues to put people first.
Mr. Speaker, the status quo doesn't work anymore. Not for programming, not for service delivery, not for budgeting. But to challenge the status quo, the public service needs to be empowered to work outside the confines of their cubical. People are naturally creative. Not all creative draw, sculpt, paint or bead. For many, their creativity is born in how they see the world, how they interpret solutions, and how they communicate. Some corners of the public service need permission to get creative. Mr. Speaker, there is much work to do but is work worth doing.
Well, Mr. Speaker, this has been an interesting work environment. Nothing could have prepared me for what the inside of this building would be like. I want to thank my colleagues who invited me to their homes, argued passionately about our political differences, and invested in discovering our commonalities. We do not get paid to pick our colleagues, Mr. Speaker, but we do get to serve our constituents by learning about one another and leveraging one another's strength to serve our collective goals. I want to share some of what I am most proud of from our communal committee work.
As Regular Members, we excelled at being stubborn together during budget negotiations thanks to our chair, MLA O'Reilly, and our deputy chair MLA Semmler. In those negotiations, we achieved strong winds that impact all of our residents from funded items like housing dollars to client experience navigators, to business supports, to policy and legislative pushes that will continue to help shape future Assemblies. I was always thankful for our ability to stick together in those moments that mattered to the people we serve.
Mr. Speaker, I was also thankful for our relentless pursuit of holding NWT housing accountable. We heard the Minister say this week that 600 million housing dollars were committed to this territory in the life of this Assembly, and I know we, on this side of the House, played a role in that as well as changing the core values and policies of Housing NWT with our housing motion.
Mr. Speaker, I also want to reflect on more of our work of committee. I had the honour of serving my colleagues as the chair of the Standing Committee on Social Development. I have to say a huge thank you to the multitude of staff that supported our committee work, especially to those who endured the workload of social development. I look forward to our social development meeting later today. I'm totally kidding, and I'm glad you all laughed. We decided at the start of our term that we wanted to work different, Mr. Speaker. My proudest markers of our work were our intentional inclusion and elevation of youth voices in our work. I'd like to thank Home Base YK for their support on this.
In addition, Mr. Speaker, we ensured that we applied three key lenses to all of our work. The Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls Calls for Justice, the Truth and Reconciliation Calls for Action, and the Articles of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. I hope these are both practices that continue in the 20th Assembly.
There are no shortages of opinions about people in politics, Mr. Speaker. I didn't grow up wanting to be a politician. I grew up loving the North, its people, and believing in its great potential. And I still do. Mr. Speaker, as we get closer to election, I have had the opportunity to sit down with many NWT residents considering putting their name forward. I want to thank them and congratulate them on even considering it. One of the most common questions is what makes it work. And for me, the answer is support supportive residents, family, friends, and mentors. This is not a job you can do alone. You need people who will tell you the hard truth, challenge your belief, foster your growth, and sometimes stand you back up, dust you off, and send you back in.
We rely on people outside this room, Mr. Speaker. My support network starts with Leslie Straker. Leslie and I first met when I was a toddler. She worked with my parents in the architectural and engineering division for public works. Her career spanned 30 years of public service where she had the privilege of working with people like John Quirke, now clerk of the Legislative Assembly of Nunavut. She worked here in this building in the Nellie days. And she worked for executive before she retired, or tried to, in 2019. I have one ask, Mr. Speaker, and that's that none of you in this building tell her that this is not what retirement is supposed to look like.
Leslie's compassion, empathy, knowledge of government, and keen communication skills make her an asset to my support team. I could not have served the people of Kam Lake without her. I'd also like to thank her husband Randy for putting up with our late night phone calls and middle of the night text conversations.
Mr. Speaker, I would also like to thank my fan club. It has two active members my mom and my dad. Mr. Speaker, I'm fairly confident that I could fall down the stairs of the Great Hall and that my mom would high five me for a great landing. My dad would turn around and offer me advice on how to improve my tuck and roll based on 14 scholarly articles he's recently read. I appreciate that about both of them. I want to thank my younger brother for teaching me compassion and never letting me forget that I am short. I'd like to thank my older brother who tells me when I'm wrong but makes me crumble when he reminds me that he's proud. I also owe an apology to all of his staff who have had to listen to every day that we are in session in their workplace for the last four years.
Session is a crazy time. We are often in this building 12 plus hours a day, working through constituency issues, committee work, and work in this House. As a parent and one with a travelling spouse, I owe a huge amount of gratitude to my inlaws, Bev and Johnny Bowden, who have both prioritized my session and committee work schedule so that I always knew my children were cared for on our late nights.
Mr. Speaker, over a decade before I ran, a woman campaigned door to door here in Yellowknife and was told she shouldn't be running, she should be home with her children. Four years ago when I ran, questions of if I could give this role what it needed and still be a parent with the same values made their way back to me. Another person told me, you know, your kids are only young once as a concession for why I shouldn't run. I felt that, Mr. Speaker or I felt that, Mr. Speaker, yesterday as the MLA for Yellowknife South and I updated a fouryearold photo of our five kids in front of the Legislative Assembly. And I still feel that. But I think every working mother, also known as mother, feels that as do fathers and as do caregivers.
In reality, Mr. Speaker, I spent the Assembly chasing the MLA for Nahendeh for the most constituency issues, emails sent to Cabinet, sat as the chair of social development supported by my very supportive committee members on this side of the House, and together we reviewed the most pieces of legislation. And later today, I hope to see my Private Member's bill move through third reading.
Before I ran, I spoke with past politicians and the children of past politicians. Their perspective of those who grew up in these halls were incredibly important to me as I made my decision to run. While each of them acknowledged that sometimes they resented sharing their parent, none had regrets and all acknowledged their own growth and unique experiences inside this building. I want people to think about putting their names forward to know that with a solid support team, you can do this job. And I want to thank my colleagues for their role in helping me create a space for my children in this important work.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for welcoming my youngest child Dalyn during our weekend board of management meetings after he had already shared me during busy weeks. I sincerely appreciate that. I want to thank staff for their animated conversations about politics with my oldest son Jackson. But this Assembly's support of my family extended beyond the walls of this building. I want to thank my colleagues for relentlessly cheering on my middle child Owen, and for those that welcomed all of us into their homes and constituencies. Mr. Speaker, I am a mother, and it is my most important job. But we all wear multiple hats. None of us are defined by only one. My kids are both my greatest weakness and my greatest strength. And I want to thank them for sharing me with this role.
Last, I cannot pay enough gratitude to my husband, the first husband of Kam Lake, Yellowknife bud. In all seriousness, Mr. Speaker, I could not have survived this term without his unwavering support. On hard days, he was the one who picked me up, dusted me off, and sent me back in. Throughout this Assembly, he has worked full time, completed his MBA, sprinkled his normal quiet service in our community, and continued his love of volunteer for kids sport. I am incredibly proud of you. He is my champion, my confidant, and he is my lobster. When I told him I wanted to run for MLA and that I wanted to ask for the trust of the residents of Kam Lake he simply said, then do it. And for that, I am forever grateful.
Mr. Speaker, this morning a staff member joked, we can't miss you guys until you leave. So colleagues, I think we have officially worn out our welcome, and I wish all putting your names forward in the upcoming election the very best. And I want to thank those spreading their wings for all of their service in the last four years.
Thank you, Member for Kam Lake. Replies to Commissioner's address. Colleagues, we will take a short recess.
SHORT RECESS
Replies to Commissioner's address. Member for Tu NedheWiilideh.
Out of respect for Jackie, I think I'll let him go.
