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Mr. Speaker, during the last sitting, I committed to keeping this Legislative Assembly informed about the steps our government is taking to support adult learning and community-based education in the wake of Aurora College’s decision to close Community Learning Centres earlier this year.

Today, I rise to share an important milestone in that work. Mr. Speaker, I am going to begin my update in Dene Zhatıé

[The following portion  will be spoken in Dene Zhatıé]

Today the Minister of Health and Social Services tabled the 2024-2025 Annual Report of the Director of Child and Family Services (CFS) in the Legislative Assembly.

The Annual Report provides a detailed summary of services delivered in the Northwest Territories (NWT) between April 1, 2024, and March 31, 2025. Services include adoption, family preservation, prevention supports, and protection. The report also shows trends that can help to identify opportunities for improvement and where positive and meaningful change has taken place.

“After carefully reviewing our options, the Government of the Northwest Territories is seeking an injunction pausing the discontinuance process and was recently granted a leave to appeal to the Canadian Transportation Agency’s (CTA) decision to dismiss our complaint regarding the Meander River Subdivision rail line.

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Mr. Speaker, today I would like to acknowledge the recent finalization of Master Service Agreements with Alberta Health Services. This is an important milestone. These agreements modernize our partnership, strengthening accountability for the essential supports and services delivered to NWT residents and funded by the GNWT.

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Mr. Speaker, the Northwest Territories is at the heart of several transformative projects that are vital not only to our territory’s future, but to Canada’s strength, security, and prosperity.

The Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) is developing regulations to bring the Mineral Resources Act (MRA) into effect and is seeking public feedback on the first set of policy intentions. These cover mineral resources administration (rules for exploration, development, and operation of mines), drill cores, and the removal of minerals.

This is the first of three planned engagements on the MRA Regulations over the coming months:

The Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) has released the What We Heard Report on the Budget Dialogues 2025 public engagement. This year’s engagement brought together residents, Indigenous and community governments, businesses, industry and non-governmental organizations to share their views on the GNWT’s fiscal decision-making process.

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Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Auditor General of Canada released its report on the Performance Audit of Northwest Territories Housing. The Auditor General’s findings outline several areas where Housing NWT must improve how we provide residents most in need with equitable access to housing and supports through the Public Housing and Homeownership Programs.

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Mr. Speaker, today I would like to share the meaningful progress we are making on Truth and Reconciliation Call to Action number 82, which calls upon provincial and territorial governments, in collaboration with Survivors, to commission and install a publicly accessible, highly visible, Residential Schools Monument in each capital city to honour Survivors and all the children who were lost to their families and communities.

The Office of the Auditor General of Canada has released its performance audit of Housing NWT. The audit identifies areas for improvement in equitable access to housing and housing supports through its Public Housing and Homeownership Programs.
Housing NWT accepts all recommendations and is taking immediate steps to strengthen oversight, improve maintenance systems, and modernize policies to ensure fairness and transparency.

Below is a summary of the actions underway to address each recommendation: