Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, on March 31st of this year, I made notes in regards to the budget and the budget this year, we went from $2.29 billion to $2.5 billion. The deficit went from $1.7 to $1.8 billion. Our borrowing limit went from $1.8 billion to $3.2 billion. And notably housing budget went from $41 million. So, Mr. Speaker, we have $1.751 billion on our Visa overdraft.
So I'm just thinking outside the box here, and my question is to the Premier. Can the Premier commit to work with ECE Minister, the Finance Minister, to see how the Jordan's Principle cuts can be restored and to restore the exclusive education program funding that is much needed as soon as possible for students who need the help in our schools today? Again, our students and youth do matter. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Premier.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have been working with the Finance Minister and the Minister of education and all of Cabinet and the Council of Leaders to try and bring in more money for education specifically related to Jordan's Principle and the reductions -- or the change of the program by the federal government. We'll continue to advocate. And my hope is that we'll see some success hopefully in the near future. If not, then we have to look at, you know, how we're operating and what that means. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My final question will be is that I just want to make sure that the Premier respects and honours our existing treaties and especially on education, and the youth from our communities do matter. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you. So I believe he wanted to make sure that I'm honouring the treaties. You know, I do my best to honour the treaties. I don't do anything that I think is dishonouring the treaties or not aligned with the treaties. So in every decision I make, I do my best to ensure you are that we are aligned with the treaties. They are foundational documents, not just for the Northwest Territories but for Canada, and we can't have a functioning system in the Northwest Territories if we're not honouring the treaties. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Premier. Oral questions. Member from Yellowknife Centre.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I had more questions for the Minister of health, and I certainly hope, as it threw me off the last time to get a yes so fast, it goes just as swimmingly.
Mr. Speaker, the first question for the Minister is is she aware of the number of beds and how many are vacant at the Stanton Legacy Hospital, the Liwego'ati, currently? Thank you.
Thank you, Member from Yellowknife Centre. Minister of Health and Social Services.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, at this time I can say that the -- I don't have the exact details, but I will get back to the Member. But what I will say is that the extended health -- or the extended care moved over to the Liwego'ati from the old Stanton -- from the Stanton hospital, the new Stanton hospital back to the old Stanton hospital, and then we just most recently opened up one house of the long-term care beds, and it is kind of a phased approach over the two floors there, so. But I can commit to getting the numbers of how many beds we have available right now and how many are filled. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'll certainly be happy to receive that information, of course.
Now, I understand that Avens provides long-term care supports similarly and as a partner for the overall solution, so I'm getting towards the next part of the question, which is I believe they provide approximately 59 beds, Mr. Speaker. And that partnership is so important.
With the changes that are coming in long-term care, does the department of health, NTHSSA, plan to continue and foster its decades long important relationship as a pillar of health care in this community? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And, Mr. Speaker, Avens and with the NTHSSA is a very important partnership. I believe that the bed projections are built around accommodating -- like, the future of the need was why Liwego'ati was built; however, it's not to replace the beds that are at the Avens Manor. And I think to be very clear, like, that partnership is ongoing, and I -- and just as most recently, I know that discussions have started as those contract discussions have started with the NTHSSA. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister of Health and Social Services. Final supplementary. Member from Yellowknife Centre.
And thank you, Mr. Speaker. All that was for the crescendo here is, where the question's going ultimately, is that the Minister's aware and many of the Members, of course, is the federal government and the territorial government have some increased long-term obligations, and there's some requirements for these obligations that are going forward. That said, I would like to hear if the Minister -- will continue to support the extra costs due to the changes for long-term care that the federal government's requiring and the territorial government's now supporting and will Avens continue to be a pillar in this health care continuum? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as NTHSSA is -- you know, I can bring that back to the health authority. The contract is with the health authority, and the health authority is the one that will be negotiating with them on the new contract, and I'm sure that those discussions are happening in regards to standards and best practices. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister of Health and Social Services. Oral questions. Member from Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wanted to ask questions to the Minister of Health and Social Services following up on the statement that she made earlier today about Deh Cho patient journey mapping, which does sound like a very important and promising approach to reforming our primary health care to really respond to what people's needs are. So it talks about a process that is going to be following the real experiences of residents, and it sounds to me almost like a research project, so I'm wondering if the Minister can explain is this a research project we're talking about? I know in the past, HSS has partnered with institutions like Hotiì ts’eeda to do research around cultural safety and health care and primary care reform. Is this a research process, or is it like a government consultation process that's going to have sort of --
-- thank you, Member from Yellowknife North. Minister of Health and Social Services.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this process is being led by the NTHSSA in collaboration with our community, culture, and innovation division at the department. I think it's really important to know that, you know, since coming in and looking at the priorities and knowing and hearing from constituents that there's a real inequity across our territory when it comes to the different health authorities that were amalgamated, and so right now this area is where we've seen the highest -- like, some of the highest needs in -- the highest amount of cabin communities and how it relates into the bigger picture of accessing care, and so this is being led, and a lot of the work has already started through NTHSSA. They've met with the staff and, like I said, and the cultural safety and anti-racism unit and their staff. And so this journey part is just another piece of the work that's ongoing. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So given that -- certainly by talking to residents, you can understand their experiences but they may not understand the why of different things that may happen to them in the healthcare system, and some of these why answers could only come from talking to the practitioners. Will this process/investigation that's happening involve interviewing and talking to the practitioners at every stage of the journey to understand some of the whys as to what is happening to patients along the way? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as I mentioned in the first response, the NTHSSA has engaged with the staff within the Deh Cho region, and this piece of it is now following the journey of the patients as I mentioned in my Minister's statement. Part of that is going to be seeing the successes through that there are the -- the things that we are doing good, so we don't disturb those things and then the gaps. And part of that will be the analysis afterwards is how do we work with our health professionals and our residents in the region to help fill those gaps. And it has to be driven. And then this is why we're saying this is kind of the driven from the ground up, not -- you know, it's coming from the patient's perspective so that when we can find ways to have these resolutions. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister of Health and Social Services. Final supplementary. Member from Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So, finally, when will we see some sort of outcome or change coming out of this project? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there's already been some changes. I know that when they went and did the assessments, some of the actual assessments had to do with building codes and when the NTHSSA did the visits to the health centres, you know, there was collaborations with other departments to make sure that these things were being repaired. And so right now as we move forward, anything that can be implemented immediately, we will be implementing. Anything that will need to be assessed more and if there is a financial means, that has to go through our processes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister of Health and Social Services. Oral questions. Member from Frame Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are for the Premier. Mr. Speaker, recommendations 14, 15, and 16 of the Standing Committee on Economic Development's Regulatory Framework Report all speak to the need for more federal support to help build the capacity of our regulatory system. Has the Premier considered packaging these needs into a cohesive request to the federal government as part of our federal engagement strategy? Thank you.
Thank you, Member from Frame Lake. Mr. Premier.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We have our federal engagement strategy that really focuses on some of the big-ticket items that we need from the federal government, whether it's transportation, infrastructure, or housing or firefighting equipment, but we also have the day-to-day business of working with the federal government, engaging with them, letting them know what our needs in the territory are. And through that process, we do have a lot of engagement. We explain to the federal government, you know, these are the areas where we need some support, these are areas that could change. And then as Ministers, in our conversations with federal Ministers, we raise those types of things. But having a comprehensive package to share, say with the Minister of Northern Affairs, is not something that we currently have in place. The question is, have I considered it? Yes, I have considered it. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And the reason I bring it up, Mr. Speaker, is because I'm suggesting that for some of the projects that they're advocating for to move forward, we need more capacity in our regulatory system. So what I'm asking the Premier is not just have you considered it, but would you consider bringing this forward as a change to the way we're doing engagement to help our system move forward so that the projects we're trying to advance can actually advance through the system. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I expected this to be the second question, so I didn't want to answer it right off the top. But I will work with the other Ministers to put together a package, a more detailed package with specific requests and suggestions to the federal government as the Minister is -- or sorry, as the Member is recommending. I won't say it will be part of the, you know, federal engagement strategy necessarily, but it will be how we -- how a number of us do engage with the federal government. I think a handy reference chart that we can say, you know, these are the changes that we need here to ensure that we're getting -- we're able to support mineral development in the territory is something important and will be very valuable. So I look forward to doing that work. And thank you to the Member for raising it.
Thank you, Mr. Premier. Oral questions. Member from Inuvik Boot Lake
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, with the creation of a new Northwest Territories Power Corporation board announced, the board now no longer has a board made up of just deputy ministers but qualified members of the public. Could the Minister responsible please talk about when or what impact this Minister now sees on this having on the power corporation, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from Inuvik Boot Lake. Minister of the power corp.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to have the chance to speak to this again. There was an announcement that went out not too long ago. We have transitioned now from what was before a board that was made up entirely of senior officials from the government who were doing this in addition to all the other work they had to do. We've transitioned now to having seven public members, two GNWT senior deputies still involved. We are, of course, still the sole shareholders of the corporation. But those seven members were chosen based on a matrix where there's a skill set that we want to see across the entire board as well as some skills we want to see individually for all board members. That's now in place. We're transitioning folks in. We've made the first appointments as of September 1st, the next group starting in January 1st, with onboarding to happen. And with that, Mr. Speaker, it's certainly my hope given the matrix, given our intentions, we'll see creativity, we'll see innovation, and we'll ultimately, I hope, see better governance and more opportunities to come for the Northwest Territories Power Corporation which benefits the residents. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And speaking of innovation and all those wonderful things that the Minister hopes to see in there, my assumption is obviously the Minister has done a mandate letter for this new board. Can the Minister speak to some of those -- realizing it's a big document, Mr. Speaker, speak to some of the things in that mandate letter. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Member is right, we have done a letter of direction to the Northwest Territories Power Corporation. It's been some time since there was a document like this done, so this was another good opportunity for some renewal on behalf of the government to the power corporation. And the letter includes strategic directions, so things -- you know, first and foremost, ensuring that we keep affordability at the front of our minds and looking for ways to enhance that affordability with, you know, increasing the diversity of energy resources available as well as putting growth targets in, seeking out opportunities, and focusing on, again, systems planning as I mentioned earlier today on other questions, but also accountability framework, so -- and operational things, Mr. Speaker. So really ensuring that there's good governance, good opportunities to take advantage of what is out there, go out and find some more opportunities to bring down the costs for residents through different types of growth targets and really make sure the power corporation is working as best as it can for us as a shareholder but ultimately for the residents it serves. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister responsible for NWT Power Corporation. Final supplementary. Member from Inuvik Boot Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I'm glad to hear the Minister talk about bringing down the cost of energy supply, Mr. Speaker. We know we have what's happening in Taltson and other areas. Can the Minister confirm that included in that and what it will mean for the new LNG energy supply being created in the Beaufort Delta and what she anticipates that impact will have on the energy consumption in that area or energy in general. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I can certainly say that the power corporation already does keep in touch with both the GNWT's energy staff, who are also involved in this issue, and together they then in turn keep in touch with those at the IRC or IDC advancing the Inuvialuit energy supply project. And certainly happy to say that I'll re-enforce to them that we want to be working together to have domestic energy supply as much as we can, increases resiliency, is certainly lower carbon than the current diesel that is often used in those communities, and we want to make sure that we're supporting every opportunity to be using domestic energy wherever we can. So certainly happy to follow up with the staff at both entities and make sure that we're doing just that. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I give notice that on Thursday, October 30th, 2025, I will move the following motion:
Now therefore I move, seconded by the Member for Range Lake, that the Executive Council of the Government of the Northwest Territories name the new 50-unit affordable housing complex on 50th Street in Yellowknife the Anthony (Tony) WJ Whitford Building;
And furthermore, that the Government of the Northwest Territories respond to this motion in 120 days.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I give notice that on Thursday, October 30th, 2025, I will present Bill 34, Trespass to Property Act, to be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Premier. Notices of motion for the first reading of bills. Mr. Premier.
