Lucy Kuptana

Thank you, Madam Chair. So we just spoke about this earlier, but it was incremental initiatives funding for emergency shelter programs. We talked about the increase in emergency shelter programs, the forced growth initiative, the funding for the two shelters in Inuvik, the funding for Fort Simpson shelter, Hay River shelter, and also the transfer of the day shelter and the sobering centre here in Yellowknife to Housing NWT. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Madam Chair, President Kelly will talk about the 50 unit and the builder. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Madam Chair. In terms of the HELP program -- and, again, this program was initiated probably 25 years ago, and it was working with the clients, working with potential housing tenants to take on a HELP unit. With that criteria, what we're hoping at the time with HELP was that they would pay the utilities and the overall cost for the unit and pay a minimum amount of rent to manage the unit itself. So housing would speak to the tenants themselves. If they had a steady income, they were employed, they were probably either a public housing tenant or a market housing tenant at the time...

Thank you, Madam Chair. This is something that we could bring up at our meeting with the Tlicho government when we talk about housing and our MOU, and continuing that memorandum of understanding is potential funding for -- like, a home base in another community in the Tlicho, in the Monfwi riding. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thanks, Madam Chair. Thank you for the question. Yes, that's the current plan. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Again, this program is undersubscribed, and with the funding pot itself, it's 50/50. So 50 percent from the federal government and 50 percent from Housing Northwest Territories. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am not sure what the Member is getting at. I talk about partnership and collaboration and working together. I can't make any guarantees. I am not the one operating Housing NWT. But, again --

Mr. Speaker, of course, we work with the local community in partnership. We have consultations with town councils, city councils, hamlets. Just to have conversations around build development permits are instrumental in our building and design. So these are all conversations that we have at the local level to make sure that everything fits in place and is appropriate. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, right now our local housing organizations are faced with a lot of violence within housing, and these are staff that are not necessarily trained with crime and crime prevention but they're facing it every day in our communities. And it's a really tough situation, especially for our local housing organization staff. In terms of safe growth, it's more about policy and protocol, what to do next in certain situations, how do you work with partners like the RCMP or the sheriff or the rental office or the local housing organization. But we are also expanding how...

I am the Minister but I am not the daily operator of housing. But we work together in partnership and collaboration, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.