R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Earlier I spoke about the long-running Growing Together program in Hay River. It is a successful program that, unfortunately, is going to lose a significant amount of funding and, subsequently, will have to make programing cuts because ECE has re-profiled the funding pot that has been funding this organization for 22 years. I would like to ask the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment: since the department did fund these parenting programs for 22 years, is it still the position of the department that parenting programs like Growing Together are valuable and...

Mr. Speaker, your Standing Committee on Government Operations is pleased to provide its Report on the Review of Bill 30, An Act to Amend the Human Rights Act, and commends it to the House.

The Standing Committee on Government Operations ("the committee") is pleased to report on its review of Bill 30, An Act to Amend the Human Rights Act.

Bill 30, An Act to Amend the Human Rights Act, sponsored by the Department of Justice, has been referred to the Standing Committee on Government Operations for review. The bill proposes to:

Consolidate the Office of the Human Rights Commission and the Office of...

There is a motion to report progress. The motion is in order and non-debatable. All those in favour? All those opposed?

---Carried

I will rise and report progress.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I share the concerns of many of my colleagues. I have heard not a lot of support for bill; even the Members who say that they are going to support the bill are doing so begrudgingly. There seems to be a bit of a difference between the perception of Indigenous groups from land claim areas and those areas without settled land claims yet. In my area, there are no settled land claims. I know that Indigenous leaders in my region have spoken out against moving forward with this bill.

I look at the process that went into drafting this compared to something like the Mineral...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I expect, if it's new space, it's going to be a little later that the move is going to happen, and if it's just a renovation, it might be sooner. Does the Minister know, in either scenario, when we can expect the employees to be moved out of H.H. Williams into the new office space? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Could the Minister update the House as to when he expects it to be issued and, if he's willing, even when he expects it to be awarded?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Minister is giving me all the right answers today, and I appreciate it. This is the $1-million question. Well, it is not a $1-million question. I think this is probably a $50,000-a-year question. Can I assure the people over at Growing Together and all the parents and the children who rely on this service that, come April 1st, there won't be a reduction in their funding and that their programming can continue? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

That is good to hear. Since the department is supportive of this notion, what pots of money are available to support parenting programs?

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Deh Cho, that Committee Report 15-18(3) be received by the Assembly and moved into Committee of the Whole for further consideration. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I want to talk about an organization that is near and dear to the hearts of many families in Hay River and has been for the last 22 years. Growing Together is a non-profit organization that offers free programs for parents and their children aged zero to five. Before Growing Together, there was very little in terms of parenting programs in Hay River. I believe there was one that parents could attend once or twice a month.

Today, Growing Together offers a variety of programs throughout the week, and they are always well attended. It is not uncommon to see two or...