Kieron Testart

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As per my Member's statement earlier today, why are students in Range Lake being told that they have to pay late fees and other costs through no fault of their own due to the department's lateness in getting payments out the door to kids on SFA? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you to the Minister. As the former jury administrator for the Northwest Territories, this is a deeply-held issue for me because I dealt with so many people in the system who were doing juries. We actually compensate jurors around $80 a day. The same committee report recommends increasing it to $120 a day. Ontario has already done this. Nunavut pays between $100 to $150 a day. This eases with the time commitments required for a jury. Will the Minister increase fees for jurors to $120 a day? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, colleagues.

The Standing Committee on Social Development recommends the Government of the Northwest Territories, through Housing Northwest Territories, enhance transparency and reporting of distinction-based funding allocations to ensure that the needs of each community and the overall advancement of housing in the territory are being met.

The Standing Committee on Social Development recommends the Government of the Northwest Territories provide more transparency surrounding the specific age and condition of housing units allowable under the Homeownership...

No, thank you. That was a bit of a navel-gazing question so I appreciate the Minister's patience with it. But that's why I wanted to ask these questions around the OCIO because the privacy concerns are at the forefront and to make sure that it is being done properly according to our rules and according to the standards that are set by our legislation.

So with that in mind, if another department is pursuing -- so I'll use an example with health. If NTHSSA is pursuing an AI-powered electronic medical record system as part of the replacement when that RFP goes out or if, you know, the geomatics...

Mr. Speaker, each year Northerners and students head to colleges and universities across Canada where they can proudly tell their peers how the Northwest Territories helps them study without racking up thousands of dollars in student loans thanks to our first-in-class SFA program. At a time when higher education costs are rising, that kind of assistance is truly unique and has become a covenant of growing up in the NWT. Unfortunately, late this summer, Range Lake constituents began contacting my office for help because their SFA payments were late, and they had received no update. Some feared...

Thank you to the Minister for that. And I know it's emerging, and I know governments are still coming to grips with it and are moving slower than the private sector. But does the OCIO have a mandate to look at AI integration, like strategic AI integration to capital systems? I mean, I don't know what to call it, but that's kind of the idea here is to say have you tasked the OCIO to do this kind of work to be proactive about the implementation of emerging AI technology and tools into existing or new systems. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. And, certainly, these schools are not alone. There are many, many schools in the Northwest Territories that are in high need. And taking stock of those assets is important; however, in the context of, again, the riding I represent and the district that my children attend, these schools are important to me, and it is very concerning that this one school in particular missed its retrofit, has water that is -- you know, you can't consume, that exposed staff in a very troubling way. The Minister's well aware of that. It seems like those reasons alone -- like the lead in the...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. For the water system remediations in schools that have identified elevated lead, will the Minister commit that any remediation of infrastructure will be paid for by the GNWT? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. The roofing or roof repair projects for Yellowknife schools. Can the Minister be specific about which roofs will be repaired? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate that bottleneck has been cleared. That's what I've heard. But the issue -- the question I asked was will the Minister pay for those late fees. Students shouldn't have to shoulder that burden because of a capacity issue. So I'll ask it again because the Minister didn't answer it: Will the Minister direct the department to pay the late fees and costs associated with these late payments for our students? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.