It’s a pleasure to be here, and to be part of a conversation grounded in Indigenous leadership, partnership, infrastructure, and the future of the North.

When we talk about Arctic sovereignty, the conversation often starts with traditional military defence — military assets, surveillance, and geopolitics.
We are seeing this conversation shaped by a changing global security environment and evolving risks in the Arctic.

Those aspects of sovereignty and security are obviously important. But this cannot be the whole conversation.

Pour exploiter pleinement le potentiel de ce territoire, de simples investissements publics ne suffiront pas : il faudra aussi mettre en place un système de réglementation efficace.

R.J. Simpson, premier ministre des Territoires du Nord-Ouest

Remarque : Ce document est une réimpression d’un article d’opinion publié par The Financial Post le 17 avril 2026. L’article original est consultable ici (en anglais).

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Mr. Speaker, in the fall of 2024, our government launched the Drive Safe campaign to strengthen road safety awareness across the Northwest Territories. Today, I am pleased to provide an update on that work and how it continues to support safe communities and travel for Northerners.

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Mr. Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge International Women’s Day held on March 8th to celebrate women’s social, cultural, and political achievements throughout history and across nations. International Women’s Day also provides the opportunity to showcase commitments towards gender equality, raise awareness of the gaps that persist, and highlight initiatives that promote gender equity.

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Mr. Speaker, I would like to provide Members an update on the board governance structure and future opportunities for the Northwest Territories Power Corporation, or NTPC.

The vision of NTPC is to enrich the lives of Northerners by providing power that supports living, working, and investing in the Northwest Territories. Strong, independent governance is an important part of delivering on that vision.

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Mr. Speaker, Members of this Legislative Assembly have spoken about the importance of repairing our existing social housing units. I want to assure Members and all Northerners, that real, measurable progress is happening. Today I will highlight the work Housing NWT and Local Housing Organizations have done over the past year in repairing and improving social housing units across the NWT.

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Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the ongoing work to ensure community governments have access to resources that can better help them to build resilience against flooding. Last week, the Government of the Northwest Territories launched the Planning in Flood Hazard Areas Guide and released new flood hazard and inundation maps for five communities in the territory.

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Mr. Speaker, yesterday I announced the completion and release of the Territorial Housing Needs Assessment. This report examines housing needs across the Northwest Territories, both now and into the future. It provides the foundation for collaborative action, evidence-based planning, and strong advocacy for increased housing investment across the NWT.

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Mr. Speaker, as the 2026 wildfire season approaches, I would like to provide an update on our government’s continued investments in wildfire preparedness and resilience across the Northwest Territories.

Building wildfire resilience means investing in our communities so our people can live safely with wildfire and be ready for emergencies.

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Mr. Speaker, I wish to advise the House that the Honourable Member for Kam Lake, Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment will be absent from the House today to attend the Prospectors and Developers Conference in Toronto, Ontario.