R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think that's the plan. That's the reality. There are intergenerational housing arrangements right now, and as a government we need to ensure that we're serving the people in those arrangements. Again, there's working groups. I work with my Cabinet colleagues on a higher level, and this is the work we want to do. This is the work we have to do. We have to look at the realities on the ground and then design our policy and programs to meet those realities. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. That's a very specific question. I believe it's she's quoting page 76 of the policy manual, if my memory serves me correctly. But the Member makes some good points, and I'm endeavoring to find out why exactly that requirement is there. Perhaps there are other laws or fire code issues related to it. So I want to find that out, and then I can get back to the Member. Because if there are some easy wins, I'm always happy to do those. But I want to note that we are also working on a seniors specific income assistance stream, recognizing that there are differences between...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We'd love 100 percent federal funding. We do have to pay for this somehow. You know, that's the big question obviously. We want a new residence. We understand that it's not suitable for what we want to do with the polytechnic. And so how we're going to pay for it is the question yet to be determined. So I can stand here and I can say we need a new one. I can't say that I have it in the budget yet, but we have already begun approaching the federal government and we will continue to do so aggressively until we get something on the ground. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Inuvik Boot Lake that Bill 30, an Act to Amend the Aurora College Act, be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And, again, we can't ignore the fact that the schools were residential schools. But in terms of the age of the facilities and the technical status of them, they are in very good condition. You know, they  what the  what we don't do well is we don't keep up appearances well. So we don't refresh schools with new paint and those kind of things to make them look new but, really, the school itself is solid. And, you know, any new school would likely be, you know, significantly smaller. You know, the two schools might turn into one school based on the fact that they're both...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The GNWT uses a capital planning process when looking at what infrastructure to replace. It takes into consideration the following criteria: In order of importance, protection of people, protection of access, protection of environment, financial investments, and program needs or requirements. That being said, the fact that this school was a residential school is definitely something that we take into consideration. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, Cabinet is unable to support Bill 29. This bill proposes to amend three pieces of land and resources legislation. However, to date, there's been no consultation with Indigenous governments, industry, or the public on proposed amendments. Provision of the three acts without engagement does not align with the public's expectation of how the Government of the Northwest Territories should operate and is contrary to our agreements with Indigenous governments.

If the bill is referred to a Standing Committee, there will be opportunities for public engagement, but...

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following two documents: Followup Letter for Oral Question 54419(2) Mental Health During the Pandemic, and Followup Letter for Oral Question 69619(2) Illicit Drug Trade. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Well, the Member just brought concerns to me, and she's a representative of the people so I have to say yes, I've heard concerns from the people. The South Slave Divisional Educational Council has also reported they have occasionally received similar concerns. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The last technical evaluation for JBT was done in 2005. And I'm not aware of plans to do another one. There have been no major issues identified with this school. Issues are identified by the regional Infrastructure staff who regularly work with the school and maintain it through reports from the staff at the school, through observations from ECE staff when they're in the school, and Infrastructure has a database that produces a rating of schools, and the rating for JBT is based on its deferred maintenance and its condition, and the rating for JBT is .52, which is...