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Mr. Speaker, I rise today to update Members on the work being done to recruit and retain health and social services staff in the Northwest Territories. This work responds to the mandate commitment of the 19th Legislative Assembly to increase the number of resident health care professionals by at least 20 percent.
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Mr. Speaker, today I am pleased to acknowledge the efforts of Indigenous governments and the federal government on their approach to addressing housing and infrastructure needs. I would like to congratulate the Gwich’in Tribal Council, the Tłı̨chǫ Government and the Délı̨nę Got’ıne Government, on the recent federal funding announcement of $78.6 million for community infrastructure and housing.
This funding includes:
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Mr. Speaker, since becoming the Minister Responsible for Housing Northwest Territories, I have repeatedly spoken on the theme of partnership. This is because the Northwest Territories is in a housing crisis that cannot be solved by any one government alone.
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Mr. Speaker, June is Senior Citizens Month, a time for us to acknowledge and celebrate the important role Seniors have in our families and communities. Seniors teach us about culture, tradition, and history. Their wisdom is integral to making wise decisions that will impact future generations of Northerners.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to provide an update on the Department of Lands’ progress related to enhancing transparency and client experience for residents of the Northwest Territories.
Mr. Speaker, the Department of Lands is an active member in the Government of the Northwest Territories Open Data Initiative, which aims to increase government transparency and accountability by proactively making data available to the public, while respecting our privacy, security, and legal obligations.
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Mr. Speaker, our highways and roads are critical infrastructure that connect communities, allow for delivery of goods, and provide access to the rest of Canada.
Regular maintenance is crucial to ensuring our roads serve the public safely and effectively. That work makes the NWT’s highway system resilient to climate change and creates employment and training opportunities for residents.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to recognize the athletes, coaches, managers, and mission staff who will be representing Team NT at the 2022 Canada Summer Games being held in the Niagara Region of Ontario from August 6 to 21. The Canada Games provides our nation’s high-performance athletes with venues to compete in hopes of continuing their athletic journey to Team Canada for the Olympics or other international events.
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When I became Minister of Health and Social Services in August 2020, I had the opportunity to add two personal priorities to the Premier’s mandate letter for me. One of the two was to reduce the toll of substance abuse on the residents of the Northwest Territories, by leading a whole of government, interdepartmental approach to developing evidence-based policies and programs and the development of a robust addictions treatment aftercare regime, including a territorial alcohol strategy.
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Mr. Speaker, Environmental, Social, and Governance, or ESG principles have become more prevalent over the past few years in the mineral resources industry, with investors, demographic groups, and the general public demanding stronger ESG investments from business and industry.
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Mr. Speaker, wildfires are an important part of the boreal forest, and naturally occurring fires are essential to ensuring forests remain healthy and sustainable.
Allowing forest fires to burn when possible allows forests to regenerate and helps to avoid larger and more dangerous fires later. All wildfires in the NWT are monitored and managed to ensure they do not pose a threat to people, communities, infrastructure, or other assets.
