Kieron Testart

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. On November 3, 2015, the Minister of Health tabled "Mind and Spirit: Promoting Mental Health and Addictions Recovery in the Northwest Territories." This is the mental health strategic framework for 2016 to 2021.

Mr. Speaker, mental health is a critical issue that this government must address, not just for our citizens today but also for future generations of Northerners. I'm glad to see this government recognize this with its new strategy, and I'm equally pleased that the federal government has allocated to the Northwest Territories $6.1 million over a 10year period to...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think the Minister has laid out his position on this, and what it really hinges on is that strategic plan. I again call on the Minister to table that at the earliest convenience and give a firm deadline to this House. It is of great interest to the public.

My final question, Mr. Speaker, the strategic plan seems to be predicated on the labour market analysis that ECE has done. In fact, they have moved their Aurora College operations or support into the labour division within the department. My question is: is this strategic plan that the government is assisting with...

Maybe I was not clear enough. Are the dollars we are saving from identifying these efficiencies being reinvested into postsecondary education, with Aurora College or any of our other postsecondary partners, or back into SFA? Is any of this money going into postsecondary education, or are we just making cuts and the savings are going back into general revenue?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, honourable Members. Mr. Speaker, people with mental illness and addictions are more likely to die prematurely than the general population. Mental illness can cut 10 to 20 years from a person's life expectancy. It keeps people from being productive at home and at work and for too long has held Northerners back from achieving their full potential.

With a new action plan and new support from Ottawa and Indigenous governments, now is the time to take a stand and assure Northerners we are taking real action on mental health and addictions. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The plot thickens, it seems, with this third party consultant. When was that contract signed with the consultant, and how long has this work been going on for?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thank you to the Minister for those numbers. I think we all want to ensure we are getting value for money for our dollars and making the biggest impact. The students involved in this program, it's called a lifechanging program and it gives them real opportunities. So with an eye to that, does the Minister agree that this program, while not a full degree and perhaps not performing at full efficiency, will the Minister agree that this does give Northerners the opportunities to receive academic credentials to enter degree programs down south that may be lost if it wasn...

Mr. Speaker, the government through the Department of Education, Culture and Employment provides contribution agreements to other post-secondary partners as well. Does the Minister or the department have the same relationship with those other organizations, like College nordique and Dechinta? Do they work with them on value for money on their contribution agreements or are those contributions agreements given to those organizations and they're allowed to compete in the free market, so to speak?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak of recent developments with Aurora College and the announcement of the ending of two important programs for students enrolled in the education faculty, specifically in regards to the Social Work Diploma program.

In the 2014-15 fiscal year, 25 first-year students registered for this program. Out of those, six students graduated with diplomas and six graduates were hired or offered jobs immediately after ending their program. In fact, in the overall education program's division, full-time student enrolment has increased by 28 per cent in...

The honourable Member does so wish it, and I believe honourable Members of the Standing Committee of Social Development would like to see that as well, if the Minister could make that commitment to provide details of this consultant's work with both myself and Members of the Standing Committee on Social Development.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Education has made several statements about a need to ensure value for money at Aurora College, and I need to ensure we have adequate programming to support our fiscal bottom line and the contribution agreements -- the government's and Aurora College's fiscal bottom line. I wonder if that's not part of our strategy moving forward. I've asked questions in this House, to the Minister, about an apprenticeship strategy, and I was told money will not be allocated to that until the plan has been put into effect. Do we have a working draft of that...