Rocky Simpson

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the events of last years' flood is fresh in the minds of those affected, and questions continue to be unanswered for some residents when it comes to future mitigation.

Mr. Speaker, the community of Hay River is situated along the shore of Great Slave Lake and the Hay River. The reality is that a portion of the residential, commercial, and industrial area is in a flood plain and will always be subject to potential flooding.

Mr. Speaker, this government talks flood mitigation but does not appear to understand that it is not reasonable to expect a...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, can the Premier confirm when the business plan for the Hay River Harbour remediation went into the federal government? Thank you.

Blue skies and warmer weather. Mr. Speaker, it is the time of year for events meant to welcome warmer weather. Last weekend it was K'amba Carnival. Now in Hay River, on the 17th to the 19th is now time for Polar Pond Hockey.

Mr. Speaker, to bring this event together requires a lot of work from a lot of dedicated volunteers, along with sponsorships from a great number of local businesses. It means clearing massive amounts of snow off the river down by Fishermen's Wharf, then it is on to laying out ten rinks and preparing them for flooding. As all that is happening, a setup crew is installing Big...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I was hoping that when I saw Mr. McLeod up in the audience there that he actually had a cheque for this project. But I see he's ran away.

Mr. Speaker, has application for permits required to remove silt from the channel in the harbour been submitted for approval, and if so, when can we expect to hear a response or approval for that? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Can the Premier confirm if it was just the one department, or did it go to any other departments in the federal government? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Seems like we're at a navy meeting here or something. I'd like to recognize Brad Enge; Michael McLeod, our MP; Mr. Sholto Douglas; and Mr. Jackson Lafferty, grand chief. Welcome. Welcome back home. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just got to run over and his questions.

Mr. Speaker, can the Premier confirm if any support for the application is requested from communities, Indigenous governments, businesses, or industry who rely on the services of MTS? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'd like to ask the Minister when physicians are hired through NTH SSA, what is the priority for determining where they will be located, and how is location determined. Are they given a choice, I guess, to go to Hay River or Yellowknife or Inuvik or Fort Smith, or is it just kind of they just say that, you want to stay in Yellowknife, or do we encourage them to stay in Yellowknife. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, one bright spot, if we can see it as that, is that Indigenous representation in senior management has reached its highest level since 2013 and currently stands at a whopping 19.7 percent. Can the Minister tell me what may have contributed to this little increase and can we expect to see exponential increases going forward? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, Indigenous representation of public sector is at an all time low right now, at around the 29 percent. Can the Minister tell me what may be contributing to this as we have had a policy in place for some 30 plus years? Thank you.