Caroline Cochrane

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following two documents entitled "NWT Post-Secondary Education Strategic Framework, 2019-2029"; and "The Operating Plans for the Northwest Territories Education Bodies for the 2019-2020 School Year Ending June 30, 2020." Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, this government is committed to ensuring that the people of the Northwest Territories have access to a wealth of high-quality post-secondary education opportunities. Educated citizens are critical to a healthy northern society and a strong and prosperous economy. Our government is acting on the 18th Assembly's mandate priorities to expand opportunities for post-secondary education, trades-oriented learning, and northern educational institutions, and to foster the knowledge economy.

Mr. Speaker, we have developed the territory's first-ever overarching post-secondary education...

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document entitled "Supporting Access to Child Care in the NWT 2019-2020 Supplementary Action Plan." Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Absolutely, yes. We want daycare providers in every community. Fort McPherson does have the Aboriginal Head Start currently, but it is only a couple of hours every day and it's not enough. One of the big things we need to do, though, in every community, because every community is different, is find out how many children might be interested. That's the critical question. Does it make sense to open up a centre if you've only got two or three kids in a community who might want daycare, or does it make sense to promote a licensed family home? We are more than willing to go in to work with their...

Although we continue to face challenges in this area, I know that the work done during this Assembly will have a lasting positive impact. We have increased rates for all licensed spaces, from infant to preschool, increased the number of early childhood scholarships up to 30 this year from 10 and remodelled our funding programs for licensed early childhood programs.

The supporting access to childcare action plan outlines our way forward. It addresses challenges and suggests solutions to meet childcare needs across the territory. We are focusing on community-driven programs, increasing available...

Yes. As a mother, even as a social worker, I think I would advocate to maintain that as it is. There are a lot of people. We do want people licensed. The ideal world would have licensed family care homes. We have grandmothers, and we have mothers, and we have like people, our sisters and stuff who are providing really good care. That means to me, as a mother and as a woman, that we need to be flexible in how we do that, so we don't penalize people for being unlicensed, but we do have additional support and financial support for people that are licensed. Anyone out there who is not licensed and...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There is funding available, and we are trying to get people to know that, so I am glad to actually answer that on the floor. We have start-up funding, and it goes up to, I believe, about $25,000 just for starting their business up, and then we have health and safety funding on top of that. That is up to $10,000, and that is for making sure that you have the proper things, fire extinguishers, et cetera, that you need to actually provide services in a daycare.

We will work with any daycare provider that wants to be licensed. We need more, and we will provide whatever...

Mr. Speaker, the early years, from birth to age five, are among the most critical for a child's development. The Department of Education, Culture and Employment recognizes the need to support safe and high-quality early learning environments for children to grow into healthy adults and fulfill their potential as capable people.

We know that parents and caregivers have the greatest responsibility and influence on their children's development. An effective and integrated early childhood system that provides the necessary services, supports, and resources to families with young children is...

Mr. Speaker, our culture is our identity, and throughout the North, we have many individuals and organizations working to preserve, revitalize, and promote our cultural practices. I want to recognize the recipients of the 2019 Minister's Culture and Heritage Circle from our ceremony this morning.

For the Youth Award, we have Mr. Corbin Sinclair from Fort Smith.

For the Individual Award, Ms. Karen Novak of Yellowknife.

The Elder Award goes to Alfred Taneton of Deline.

The Group Award goes to the Northern Life Museum and Cultural Centre in Fort Smith, represented by Ms. Rachel Dell.

The Minister...

The small community employment fund is actually one of the successes of this government, in my opinion. It is actually putting money into the communities based on where the community thinks that it would be most appropriate. I can't stand here and say what successful projects are, because, in my opinion, every single community is a successful project because that community has defined where they want that funding to go.

One thing I would like to say, though, and I have said it to the communities that I have had access to, is that most of the applications that I have noticed coming in for the...