Kieron Testart

Thank you. Well, I suppose I will have to take questions to the Premier. But this emergency supports framework, how does the Minister understand this working then? Because it sounds like it's not a system-wide framework that's going to change things. It sounds like these are still up to individual things, at least according to his understanding. So can he clarify what this framework is supposed to do from the perspective of his department? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, earlier today I've heard in this House before that the Department of Executive and Indigenous Affairs and municipal and community affairs are leading the development of an emergency social supports framework to better integrate NGOs into emergency management planning. So I'd like to ask the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs if the SPCA and other organizations involved with the welfare of animals are involved in these plans. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there are provisions that allow that Francophone minority language communities to ask for education services to be provided if they demonstrate a need. Can the Minister explain what processes are in place to ensure that when rights holders are applying for their constitution, their Charter rights to education, that those are met regardless of capacity challenges from this government. But when a right is asserted, it needs to be honoured. So does the department have processes in place that when Francophone communities are asserting that, or language...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'd like to recognize my former colleague and good cousin Michael Nadli who is here in the gallery today. Great to have you back in the House. And I'd also like to recognize some pages from my riding of Range Lake:

Ava Fuentes

Hayden Purcka

Savannah Martin-Maitland

Tristan Taggart

Mathew Sison

It's great to have you working. You've been good spirits with long days and lots of talking, but we couldn't do this job without you. Thank you so much for being here.

Thank you. Well, apologies to the Minister. I thought leading meant both departments were playing a more or less equal role. But the Minister has worked to update emergency plans, incorporate recommendations from after-action reports. So has the Minister made any steps with the EMO and with those emergency plans to incorporate the SPCA and organizations involved in animal wellness into emergency plans? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And yet they keep getting sued, Mr. Speaker. So clearly something's not working. So will the Minister commit to a full evaluation of this system? And let's take one aspect of it, the 85 percent capacity threshold for enrolments, will she convert that to a capacity threshold on non-rights holders as they have in the Yukon so we can allow these schools to grow, to thrive, these students to thrive, and Francophones to have their rights respected in the Northwest Territories? Thank you.

[Translation] Mr. Chair, I have questions for the Minister of Education regarding French language education as a first language.

[Translation Ends].

I won't do them in French because I am a product of the immersion system, so I will spare the House that.

Our French, how we manage our commission scolaire is very different than our neighbouring territory, the Yukon. The Yukon government gives far more flexibility to the commission scolaire to make their own decisions within the policy set where our government has very restrictive -- restrictive models of controlling admissions and other aspects of...

Merci, Monsieur le President. The Northwest Territories is home to a strong Francophone presence that has long been part of our territory's diverse multilingual tapestry. Since the earliest days of the fur trade, the Franco-Ténois community has carried their legacy forward through generations of our shared northern history. This is no easy task in our smaller and more remote communities where French language services are often limited. Yet despite these challenges, Francophone families continue to pass on their language, culture, and pride, keeping this living heritage strong across the North...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, on one of the early meetings I had when I started working as an MLA was with shelter providers about this very issue, and it was clear from then that the need for a 24-hour shelter in Yellowknife is crucial to supporting the shelter services that we currently provide. There's a whole host of issues of why having operational windows for a shelter service is letting the population that depends on this down, and it's also making things harder for shelter providers. So there's a definite need for this. It will definitely improve conditions on the ground. And, you...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. This is another recommendation that committee looked at in conjunction with the foundational piece of looking at the National Housing Strategy Act and how it operated, and committee was very interested in the role of the federal housing advocate and even looked into whether or not the federal housing advocate could also be the Northwest Territories Housing Act similar to how the Auditor General of Canada is our auditor -- our independent auditor for our government. But it was felt that having someone on the ground who is -- and, well, there's challenges with that act too...