Delivered on February 28, 2017
Mr. Speaker, I rise to provide an update on plans to move the operations of the Western Canada Lottery Program within government and the Department of Municipal and Community Affair’s response to the Sutcliffe Report.
Delivered on February 28, 2017
Mr. Speaker, one of the most important areas we can invest in is early childhood development and the Government of the Northwest Territories has made a commitment in its mandate to do this by implementing its Right from the Start Framework. Ages zero to five are the most critical time in a child’s development, and the work that the Departments of Health and Social Services and Education, Culture and Employment have been doing in partnership have been helping all of the children in the NWT.
Mr. Speaker, today is national Pink Shirt Day, a day celebrated during the last Wednesday of February of each year. We provided pink carnations for all of the Members, and I am pleased to see all the pink in the House today, marking our acknowledgement that bullying in any form is unacceptable.
This initiative was started by two brave young men in Nova Scotia, David Shepherd and Travis Price, who gave away fifty pink shirts after a grade 9 student was bullied for wearing a pink shirt to school.
Mr. Speaker, the Government of the Northwest Territories has made a commitment in its mandate to continue implementing the Early Childhood Development Action Plan to improve early childhood development, and by enhancing access to early intervention services for children zero to five years of age, and supporting community wellness initiatives with early childhood development funding and subject matter expertise.
Mr. Speaker, last December, the Department of Public Works and Services took measures to secure the core assets of the Northern Transportation Company Limited, or NTCL a company that went into receivership after serving the Northwest Territories through more than 80 years of operation.
NTCL was the largest marine transportation services provider in the Northwest Territories, delivering essential petroleum products and cargo, including consumer goods and construction materials, to communities along the Mackenzie River and across the Western Arctic.
Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to announce that the Government of the Northwest Territories has, for the third time, been selected as one of Canada’s Top Employers of Young People.
Mr. Speaker, the Legislative Assembly has identified education, training and youth development as one of its priorities and the Government of the Northwest Territories has made several commitments in its mandate to advance that priority. Work in these areas is foundational to the future success of our territory, and we have seen some solid progress on many initiatives in education, training and youth development.
Mr. Speaker, the Government of the Northwest Territories has made a commitment in its mandate to capture opportunities for investment in transportation infrastructure by working to secure funding to improve access into the Slave Geological Province. Today I would like to provide an update on the Department’s progress on this project.
Mr. Speaker, the Government of the Northwest Territories made a commitment in its mandate to support and participate in the National Inquiry into Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women and Girls in collaboration with families, Aboriginal governments, the federal government and other organizations. I would like to update Members today on the work our government is doing to fulfill that commitment.
