Rocky Simpson

SergeantatArms, please escort the witnesses into the Chamber.

Would the Minister please introduce her witness.

Thank you. Premier.

Thank you, Premier. Mr. Edjericon.

Thank you. Are there any further questions on increase the number of affordable homes and reduce core housing need?

Seeing none, committee, we will move to pages 23 to 24: Settle and implement treaty land, resources, and selfgovernment agreements. Questions? Mr. Johnson.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, prior to 1989, this government recognized an inequity with respect to Indigenous representation in the GNWT public sector. In an attempt to address that inequity, the government of the day drafted the Affirmative Action Policy. It was a spirited attempt to place Indigenous people into the public sector workforce.

Mr. Speaker, I had the opportunity to discuss that intent with one of the original drafters. He explained to me that the intent was to increase Indigenous representation, period. Through vetting and additional drafting revisions, the objective...

Thank you, Madam Chair. You know, and I'm glad that, you know, that's happening. And, you know, I just wanted him to, you know, come and say that again so people hear it. And, you know, we need to look at a you know, we people like to see timelines because we're always, well, we're working on it but, you know, we come up with something, and, you know, it might it probably won't happen this Assembly. Maybe it'll happen next one, the one after that, I don't know. But I think that what's going to happen here is we're just going to see that that gap ever increasing. And, you know, it's going...

Thank you, Madam Chair. You know, in looking at the policy and the way it's it rolls out is that, you know, there's a flaw in there in the sense that if you have a couple and one's 65 years and over and the other one's younger, they're forced if they want to use that tax relief program, the only way they could do it is for one person, the younger one, to be removed from title, which is which is interesting because if for some reason one of them passed away, then, you know, they're they're put in a position where the where the house has to probably go through probate versus just going...

Thank you, Madam Chair. Yeah, I guess, you know, the seniors, the ones I talked to, they're concerned that, you know, there's a move to basically end this funding. So, you know, if such a decision was to be made, how would you know, what criteria would you be looking at to base something like that on? Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chair. You know, one of the big issues I guess when you look at the, say, highway Highway 1 and then where it connects with Highway 3 coming into Yellowknife is that there's a lot of traffic on that highway and, you know, there's accidents that occur. I know there's been, you know, fuel trucks that have went over here in the last that last little while and, you know you know, there's been other accidents as well.

One of the things that would really help, I guess, in you know, and provide for a quicker service is cell service along that route. Is there any indication when...

Thank you, Madam Chair. Yeah, you know, I see that, you know, the good building practices, you know, we have that. It looks like government follows that. Is that applicable as well to for private infrastructure? Thank you.