Caitlin Cleveland

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I give notice that, on Friday, February 5, 2021, I will move the following motion. Now therefore I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Sahtu, that pursuant to Section 15 of the Official Languages Act of the Northwest Territories, that Ms. Brenda Gauthier of Fort Smith be appointed as Languages Commissioner for a term of four years; and further, that the appointment be effective February 5, 2021. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

No, that's very good news, and I understand that other jurisdictions may not have plans to create a plan. We started at a different place than other jurisdictions at the beginning of 2020, and so I think that it is important for us to recognize that and for us to be prepared. What I am wondering is if the Premier can speak to the type of key milestones a plan might have or that the public can expect to see, and when they would expect to see those key milestones turned into actions?

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are in regards to the Emerging Stronger Plan, and they are for the Premier. I would like to start off by identifying which Minister is responsible for the Emerging Stronger Plan, and what role does Cabinet play in making decisions about the plan? Thank you.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, before the Emerging Stronger Plan discussions, we talked about the Emerging Wisely Plan, and that was really kind of the cornerstone event of how we were going to move on through lockdown into re-emerging from our homes and back into the world of the Northwest Territories as we know and love it. I am wondering if there is a plan from Cabinet to re-release that plan based on what we know now and what we can expect for the remainder of 2021 once people are vaccinated, once schools start to, they're going to close for the summer. They're going to...

I hear often from constituents that they are very happy with the state of the NWT as far as the safety and the health of our people. They are very excited to get vaccinated, and they're very enthusiastic about that. I encourage Cabinet to really share the successes that they have had and look forward to hearing more about that as we go through session, as well.

The fact of the matter is that, last year, residents were promised a plan, and so now they are looking for the plan and what the future of the NWT holds. What does it look like? How do we come back from this? How do we move into a...

Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. I wish to table an excerpt from the Globe and Mail of November 3, 2020, titled: "In Manitoba, an omnibus bill puts systemic racism against Indigenous people in plain view." Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. The Department of Finance houses our liquor and cannabis commission and also administers the Liquor Act. I am wondering how the Minister of Health and Social Services intends to include the Department of Finance in this process and how she sees the alcohol strategy influencing the work of the Department of Finance. Thank you.

I'm wondering if the Minister can speak to how they intend to roll out public engagement and make it accessible to everyone, given the COVID-19 restrictions?

Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. As an MLA, a lot of times, we have specific, case-by-case issues that come to our desks from constituents. Sometimes, we solve that problem at face value without looking at the bigger picture of what's going in on with the constituent and how we sometimes are able to change that situation for our territory as a whole. What I'm wondering from the Premier today is: what does she recommend that people, say, living in Tulita or living in Fort Providence or living in Ulukhaktok, do when they find a policy or a legislation that has a route of systemic racism in...

The Premier touched a little bit on my next question, but I'm wondering if she can expand on how the GNWT is doing this. My next question was about my gender-based analysis that the GNWT does with Cabinet and the Financial Management Board. I'm wondering if she can explain what tools they use to ensure that there is a systemic racism lens used in that work, as well.