R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I know this has come up a few times in the House and, you know, the last time it came up it was a heavy subject and I, you know, expressed my concern and my thoughts with the family, and I'll do the same today. Clearly this is an issue that's touched people across the territory.

So when there is a missing person, the RCMP do look into it. If there is evidence of a crime, then there's a criminal investigation that occurs. If someone is missing and there is no evidence of a crime, it's still an open case, so. I have been in contact with the commanding officer about...

Thank you. So the legislation covers costs that would be incurred by the Government of the Northwest Territories. Those could include costs that were contributed to Indigenous governments, flowing through Indigenous governments. But if Indigenous governments incurred costs on their own and tried to bill back the Government of the Northwest Territories, those types of costs are not included. I can hand it to Ms. Zimmer for a response. I knew her first name; her last name escaped me for a moment. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, in 2021 the Government of the Northwest Territories released the Northwest Territories Arts Strategy, a 10year plan to improve NWT's arts programs and services and strengthen the territory's arts sector. The first key action identified in the strategy was to complete a review of the GNWT's arts programs so that we could have a better understanding of the changes required to help us achieve our goals for the sector.

The results of this review were released in November as part of the Arts Program Review Report, reflecting the thoughts and concerns of NWT artists, craftspeople, and...

Thank you, Madam Chair. I am here today to present Bill 72, Opioid Damages and Health Care Costs Recovery Act.

The purpose of Bill 72 is to permit the Government of the Northwest Territories to file a lawsuit to recover from manufacturers and distributors of opioid drugs, the past and future health care costs incurred on behalf of Northwest Territories' residents for opioidrelated illnesses. The opioid crisis has incurred substantial costs to federal, provincial, and territorial governments who have spent increasing amounts on health care to address the fallout of opioid over-prescription.

Brit...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Residential Tenancies Act provides for any person who fails to comply with orders or directions of the rental officer to be charged with a summary offence under section 91. That charge would be heard in territorial court and, if found guilty, would result in a fine not exceeding $2,000 for individuals or $25,000 for corporations. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The rental office doesn't I guess is not a conduit for environmental health. So this is something that I can confer with the Minister of health on and get her take on it but right now that is not something that happens. They're two different entities and two different departments. Thank you.

Thank you. So I cannot commit to spending money that won't come to the Government of the Northwest Territories any time soon. I expect this to be years away if we get any type of money. And who knows what the landscape will look like by then. Perhaps Indigenous governments will be delivering health services themselves so it might be a different discussion. But the idea of this legislation is to allow us to participate in a class action lawsuit open to federal, territorial, and provincial governments. I don't think there's anything stopping Indigenous governments from starting filing their own...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Well, I can't speak on behalf of Cabinet but I can say no, I'm not content. And if I could, you know, will a new building into existence, I would do that. But, unfortunately, I don't have that ability. I do understand where the Member is coming from. I would like to see the same changes that she would like to see. But, unfortunately, we're up against the constraints of, you know, the reality that we are in, so. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In the spirit of consensus government, Cabinet has taken the approach that we are not going to stand in the way of bills presented by Members at second reading. We're not endorsing the bill but we're not standing in the way of it either. So for those reasons, we will be abstaining from this vote. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, three years ago I was mandated to initiate a review of our government's Student Financial Assistance Program with the goal of improving access to postsecondary education for all Northwest Territories residents by reducing barriers and ensuring benefit levels are meeting the needs of students. I am happy to say that we have completed our review and are now taking steps towards implementing necessary, significant changes to the program to better meet the needs of students.

The review examined the Student Financial Assistance Program's alignment with the Truth and Reconciliation...