Jackson Lafferty

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Early Friday morning, Norman Wells detachment members responded to the serious situation of a man with a gun. After 40 hours of emergency action, police were able to defuse a stand-off in a local residence and apprehend a young man before he could commit harm to others or himself.

This was a very serious situation that involved RCMP specialty teams from Yukon and Alberta, as well as our own “G” Division and all the hard-working members of the Norman Wells detachment.

There was excellent co-operation from all members to ensure safety of the public, the officers and the young...

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the Hon. Member for Range Lake, that Bill 3, An Act to Amend the Employment Standards Act, be read for the first time. Mahsi.

Mahsi. I appreciate the Member’s question on this specific topic. It is very important to our government system and also to the N.W.T. as a whole.

I have met with Mr. Scott Murray doing data analysis and also a survey that has been conducted. There is really a lot of helpful information within the package. This is all preliminary. I just met with him last week. Certainly, this is a document that we as a department can work with, along with Mr. Bromley and other Members, to just move forward on this. We do provide various literacy programs and funding in the 33 communities we serve. We are...

Surely. That information will certainly be taken into consideration, as we do have different sectors on the committee. They provide various inputs from different jurisdictions, so certainly that will be available.

Mahsi.

We do have a strategy in place that’s been conducted since last year: the N.W.T. Literacy Strategy summative evaluation. It consists of our department — Education, Culture and Employment — and also Health and Social Services, Aurora College, N.W.T. Literacy Council, non-government organizations, literacy service providers, aboriginal organizations, and industries. There is a strategy in place that our department is pursuing, and recommendations are being brought forward. The target date for completion of the draft N.W.T. Literacy Strategy is April 2008. Mahsi.

Mr. Speaker, I give notice that on Friday, February 8, 2008, I will move that Bill 3, An Act to Amend the Employment Standards Act, be read for the first time. Mahsi.

As other Members would indicate, we value input from Regular Members on any initiative that we pursue as a government, because we are doing this for Northwest Territories. This strategy, as I stated, is in a draft format, and it will be coming through our department to review. Prior to that happening, this information will certainly be shared with Members, because we would like to share in the feedback they receive from the communities they represent. Mahsi.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as we’ve outlined in the strategic plan for the 16th Assembly, this can certainly be one of the priorities; it will be up to the Members here to set priorities. But I’m more than willing to sit down with the Member and other Members who are requesting meetings with Ministers on various issues and concerns. This could be one of them that we’ll certainly meet on. Mahsi.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as I stated, there is discussion. They are taking place within my department and working with the day care facilities on identifying the needs of the day care facilities. This will be an ongoing discussion as we speak now. I am hoping that we can see a review document by early in the new year somewhat integrated through the strategy planning that we are strategizing for the 16th Assembly. Mahsi.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the funding is, most of the day cares in the Northwest Territories are based on the enrolment of the students. I’m sorry, the children and based on attendance. But there has been some, I would say, increase in the contribution in 2007 in the childcare facilities. So those are the things that we are looking at, that our department is planning on, depending on the priorities and planning that’s coming out as a strategy. So if that fits into that, then we will certainly work with that. Mahsi.