R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I also think the NGOs in Yellowknife are well placed to reach out to the Indigenous governments. We can provide phone numbers, contact information, and they can make those connections themselves. What is needed is alignment between the NGOs and between the Indigenous governments so that they can actually work together. And so once we have all of these discussions, there might be opportunities to put together an Indigenous government with an NGO as in try to get them together. But it's really not up to the GNWT to do that type of work. I think the NGOs are more than...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The camp did not reach its maximum capacity continuously. I don't believe it reached its maximum capacity ever, actually. But it did not prevent people who needed a home from having a home because there was still -- I know the Member asked about a home but there was shelter space available in Yellowknife, and so there was always shelter space available even for those who could not go to the on-the-land camp. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As Minister of Justice, I provide the RCMP with their policing priorities. Priority number 1 is to address the impacts of drugs and alcohol on our communities, so illegal drugs and bootlegging on our communities. That's my first priority that I've given to the RCMP. So that's step one.

In this fiscal year, we funded a new crime reduction unit to be made up of RCMP officers who are going to focus on organized crime and drugs. They'll have the time and the specialized training to undertake investigations and hopefully -- well, not hopefully. They're going to make a dent in...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We're lucky to have a number of distinguished guests with us today in the gallery, and so I would like to recognize them. I'd like to recognize President Marc Whitford from the North Slave Metis Alliance, of course; Major Tony Brushett from the Salvation Army, a strong partner with the Government of the Northwest Territories; as well as from the Northwest Territories Teachers' Association, executive director Matthew Miller who was the president in the last term, and I worked with him closely, and current president, Ms. Rita Mueller, my former deputy minister and a...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So we are expecting the report back from the camp operator in the coming weeks, so we'll have a look at that and see what it says.

I will note that a number of the participants at the camp appreciated that it was a sober camp, and that helped them in their journey. So I think that's something that we need to consider, is that there are spaces if you -- you know, you aren't sober, but there really wasn't a lot available if you were, and so this offered people that opportunity. There is going to be a working -- there's going to be meetings coming up in March with the city...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I believe it was in the last fiscal year there were two positions added to the detachment in Behchoko. Last year -- this fiscal year I think there was one in Whati, and next year there's another one. And so there's a number of positions going into the Tlicho region. What we -- the way we work with the RCMP is that they identify the pressures in different communities, and we work with them to resource them as necessary. And so there are pressures around the territory, but we have recognized those in the Tlicho region and responded.

The RCMP have also implemented their new...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There is a committee in Canada that is made up of all 13 provinces and territories as well as the federal government. That's the committee on internal trade. Each year a different jurisdiction chairs that committee. Starting in 2025, the NWT is the chair of the committee on internal trade. Last week, Minister Cleveland called an emergency meeting of the committee. They met on Friday, and they brought forward recommendations. They're very high-level recommendations, but they speak to many of the things the Member is talking about. We are looking to reduce internal trade...

Mr. Speaker, a year ago, I delivered the first Sessional Statement of the 20th Legislative Assembly. We had not yet established our collective priorities, but we had begun to establish the relationship essential to the work of consensus government, which continue to shape our efforts today.

When I presented my candidacy for Premier, I spoke to a vision of a thriving and prosperous NWT, 50 years in the future, built through partnership and collaborative governance with Indigenous governments. This is the foundation of my hope and of the optimism and positivity I strive to bring to the Office of...

Thank you, Mr. Chair, for using your discretion, giving me another chance. I guess I was just -- it just, it seems redundant, and so I was wondering if there was something that I was missing. But maybe the chair wants to address that in closing comments on this item. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I just want to make clear that Cabinet doesn't have a position on this. All the Cabinet Ministers may vote the same way but there is no Cabinet position; this is a -- these are motions about how this House functions, and Members are allowed to vote as they please. We all have different experiences, and it's all very procedural.

My issue with this motion is that, you know, I've -- like one of the previous speakers, I've been a Regular Member, I've been a chair of Committee of the Whole, I've been a Minister, and so I have some perspective on things. And my concern about...