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Happy New Year everyone!  I am once again honoured to welcome you all back.  I trust you all had a wonderful festive season with your loved ones.

As we enter a new decade, we begin our work for the people of the Northwest Territories.  Your work can be challenging, but working together as a team will ensure you make the best decisions.

I wish you a productive session with good outcomes and personal balance with life and work for each of you.

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Mr. Speaker, today I rise to provide an update to Northerners on the 2019 novel coronavirus. I would like to assure residents that at this time the risk of contracting this virus is low in the NWT.

Since the coronavirus was first reported in the Hubei Province of China, our Government and the Federal Government have moved quickly to ensure we are prepared. Our public health and emergency preparations are well underway and we will continue to monitor the situation as it develops.

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Good evening everyone, and welcome.  

Before I begin, I would like to acknowledge that we are on the traditional territory of the Musqueam, Squamish, and  Tsleil-Waututht First Nations.

I would also like to take a moment and extend regrets from the Premier of the Northwest Territories, Caroline Cochrane for not being able to join us this evening.

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Thank you. Before I begin, I would like to acknowledge that we are on the traditional territory of the Musqueam, Squamish, and  Tsleil-Waututht First Nations.

It’s a pleasure to be here today among partners from the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation and Gwich’in Tribal Council to celebrate a milestone for our local minerals industry.

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Good Morning and thank you for being here.

I’d like to recognize Premier Sandy Silver, Parliamentary Secretary Larry Bagnell and of course our partners with the Yukon, NWT and Nunavut Chamber of Mines – Anne Turner and Tom Hoefer.

I am happy to be here with each of you for this announcement, and thank you for your efforts to put together this event this morning.

Mr. Speaker, our greatest Northern resource is our people and it is our responsibility to invest in and take steps to ensure their health and well-being.

On January 1, 2020, Northwest Territories residents will be able to access new and enhanced types of employment leave to protect their jobs when faced with important or challenging moments in life. 

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise today to provide an update to the House on the launch of the territorial-wide 9-1-1 system on November 4th of this year. This new NWT 9-1-1 service will enhance our ability to connect residents and visitors with emergency services such as police, fire, and ambulance.

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to announce that female inmates have moved into the new women’s unit at the Fort Smith Correctional Complex. I had the pleasure of touring the new unit last week and was blown away by the care and attention that has gone into designing a facility that is tailored to meeting the needs of female inmates in our care and specifically in the Northwest Territories.

Mr. Speaker, hunting has a long and honourable history in the Northwest Territories. At the heart of this tradition is a deep respect for wildlife, the environment and the people of this land. Residents of the Northwest Territories have told us they want to make sure these values and practices are passed on to the next generation of harvesters.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to update Members on our economy and to discuss some of the fiscal challenges that we will face as we work to deliver our Assembly’s shared priorities.

As we move towards the first Budget of this Assembly, we must be realistic in our expectations for how quickly we can make positive changes to strengthen our programs and services and deliver on our commitments to support the NWT economy.