Rocky Simpson

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Most of us in the NWT understand that we co-exist with the wildlife that surrounds us. At times, the two worlds collide, which can result with the injury or worse, a fatality.

Mr. Speaker, last Friday, we all received notice that, in the early hours of the morning, a young lady in Hay River was mauled by a bear in a residential area. What transpired is nothing short of heroism. Shelley Wood, a female occupant of the residence who just received her knitting supplies earlier that day, decided to stay up late and start the process of making use of those supplies. Whether or...

Thank you, Madam Chair. I'm just going to make some comments, and I don't really need any response to save time. When I look at the budget, it kind of reminds me of when I go into a grocery store while hungry. I come back out, and I end up with a whole bunch of spoiled food. At the same time, I realize that we have to do something, and the reality of the North is that we do have limited resources here with respect to businesses and workers. We keep saying that we want Northern businesses to get all the work, we want all our people to be working. We do have enough, there is enough in here to...

The Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police proposed diverting people dealing with substance abuse or addiction issues away from the criminal justice system towards social services and healthcare. Can the Minister confirm that this is an approach the department agrees with, and if so, has it been put into practice?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'd like to return to questions I was asking the Minister of Justice yesterday. I'd ask the Minister if he can tell me: for every $1 spent in dealing with addictions, how much is spent on drug and alcohol enforcement in the NWT? If he doesn't have the information, I'll give him time to get it at some point. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. What I would like to see on that is a cost between what it costs for enforcement versus education, so I guess it would be the last line of defence versus the cost of the first line of defence. The last question I have is: can the Minister tell me how much emphasis is placed on education addiction support in the battle to reduce access to drug dependency in the NWT. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The drug trade in the territories, you seem to hear more and more about it lately. We have more youth dying because of it. What I would like to ask the Minister is if he can confirm if the direction this government is taking to combat the drug trade in the NWT is working, or is the department re-evaluating their approach to the way they deal with the drug trade?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Last week, I spoke about addictions and the need for additional supports to combat the disease. My statement today will focus on the drug trade and drug enforcement in the NWT. We often hear that drug dealers are well-known in the community and that nothing is being done to round them up or lock them up. We hear all too often that the RCMP and government are not doing their part to curb drugs entering the NWT.

Mr. Speaker, when we reflect on the impact illegal drugs have on individuals and families, it is easy to understand the frustration of our residents. We have a...

Can the Minister of Justice confirm the annual cost specifically associated with drug enforcement? This would include a breakdown of RCMP, courts, and corrections cost, knowing that there is probably an education component, a health component, and all that. It's just those three I'm asking about.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. When I look at the community of Hay River and consider our population, our proximity to the border, and the limited number of RCMP stationed there, it concerns me in that we are understaffed when it comes to dealing with illicit drugs. Can the Minister of Justice confirm the number of funded RCMP positions and support staff in Hay River and around the NWT? How is it determined that this is the number we require to provide effective policing in the NWT? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I had the opportunity to go through some of the government websites, and I noticed that there are quite a few toll-free numbers you can access to get support. I would ask the Minister: can she confirm how many calls are received on support lines, and how many of these calls are from Indigenous peoples? How many are from others? How many by community, and how is it determined if services provided by these toll-free numbers are actually working?