Wendy Bisaro

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I would like to make a motion. In accordance with Rule 50(a), I move that we continue to sit beyond our normal hour of daily adjournment to continue consideration of Bill 44, Hospital Insurance and Health and Social Services Administration Act.

Thanks, Mr. Speaker. Thanks again to the Minister. I guess I agree with the Minister this is not free money and we have to be careful how we borrow it and what we do with it.

So, I guess I would like to know from the Minister if there is a list of things that they are contemplating that may or may not be in the capital budget, will the Minister commit to providing that list to Regular Members so we can have some comment on that list back to Cabinet before a capital budget is determined? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I want to make a few comments about the work that committee and Minister and staff did on this bill. As the Minister said in his remarks, it has been a long-term initiative. The amendments to this act were long overdue. This is a totally rewritten act and it is going to be quite beneficial.

The actual work to get a new act has been ongoing since 2005. I think that’s when the first LP was proposed. It has gone back and forth over several Assemblies. I think we were successful in this Assembly, and with this particular piece of legislation, because there was a great deal of...

I look forward to seeing the numbers that the Minister can pull together at some point in time. I’m not surprised he doesn’t have them. It was only two weeks ago, after all.

We’ve held open houses or career fairs, job fairs, whatever you want to call them, in the South as well. I would like to know from the Minister, my understanding is that when we hold a career fair or a job fair in the South that the staff that are attending these fairs are able to offer a job on the spot to applicants who they think are credible and could take a job. I’d like to know from the Minister if I’m correct in that...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It’s a pleasure to see so many seniors here today. I would like to recognize specifically one from the riding of Frame Lake, Yvonne Quick. It’s always good to see Yvonne here. I want to just mention, as well, Carole, Loretta, Wendy, Joe, Darryl and there are many more up there who I can’t see.

As an ex-teacher, I would also like to specifically welcome the presidents of the teachers’ associations across the country. Welcome to our home. Welcome to our territory. I hope you have a grand time. I’m sure that Gayla will show you a grand time. Gayla Meredith is the president...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move that we report progress.

---Carried

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thanks again to the Minister. I have a few more questions here. First of all, this is being funded through transition funding, but presumably once it has been funded through our devolution transition funding, it’s then going to be added to the base. So, this is an increase to our budget, I’m presuming.

The Premier mentioned that through this report and through comparing Yukon, Nunavut and NWT, the determination was to add five PYs. Does that mean that this is the final decision that we’re adding five PYs to our communications and our staffing complement is going to be 32...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I have some concerns with the two items of funding on this page. The first one is under the directorate and it has to do with funding for costs associated with the communications functional review. Five hundred sixteen thousand dollars is itemized under directorate and then $335,000 under Ministers’ offices. I know we’ve been back and forth with the government a bit on this between Members and Cabinet. We have had some information about what this expenditure is for. I’d like to, first of all, I guess, ask the Minister, since this is an additional cost and I don’t believe...

Thanks to the Minister. That’s all well and good. It sounds good, but what is the department going to be doing to fill these 250 spots? There’s money here and there’s also money in ITI, so it ends up to be about $314,000. What are we using that $300,000 for? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I am in the right section. I wanted to ask a bit about the $215,000 here to provide funding for increasing immigration to the Northwest Territories in support of the NWT Growth Strategy. I’d like to ask the Minister where this strategy is. I don’t believe that Members on this side of the House have seen that strategy. I would like to know what it is that ECE is doing that will contribute to this Growth Strategy to increase immigration. Thank you.