Julian Morse

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'd like to ask the Premier some questions related to mandate implementation. In particular, can the Premier provide me with an update on the mandate commitment to better streamline administrative processes, policies, and legislation across government to enhance the capacity of the public service to work better together. What actions to date have been taken to implement this commitment? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Part of me wonders if that's -- whether they are even aware of the office.

Mr. Speaker, since 2021, what specifically has the Department of Finance done to investigate having a Crown corporation like SGI Canada provide affordable home and fire insurance in the NWT, and how would this be regulated? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I do want to address a small technicality on the recognition of visitors in the gallery today and congratulate councillor Tom McLennan on his purchase of a new home in the Frame Lake riding. Very excited to welcome him to Frame Lake. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I certainly appreciate that answer, and it sounds like the Premier had more to say so I would encourage perhaps a more fulsome response in writing.

Mr. Speaker, I'd like further an update on the mandate commitment to empower the public service by ensuring they are provided the flexibility to deliver programs and implement policies in ways that best serve residents. Mr. Speaker, can the Premier describe what changes have been implemented in the public service to better empower staff? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So, Mr. Speaker, I think that the suggestion is not necessarily that we establish our own Crown corporation but could SGI be brought in, as they've done in other provinces, to provide insurance in the Northwest Territories and thereby give Northwest Territories access to a larger base, the way we do for some other things. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Continuing on the insurance theme. Can the Minister tell us if the Office of the Superintendent of Insurance have received complaints from homeowners and/or businesses that they are essentially unable to access affordable insurance? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And, Mr. Speaker, I'd like to build upon the statement made by my colleague just now. Mr. Speaker, home insurance is proving to be a growing barrier to homeownership in the Northwest Territories and a financial challenge for homeowners.

Mr. Speaker, my constituents have told me about their inability to obtain home insurance in some cases or costs of their insurance skyrocketing year over year. Some residents with insurance policies have had them cancelled because of wood pellet boilers being installed. As bad as it may be in Yellowknife, I can't imagine how difficult it...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, when I think of empowering staff, I think about reducing hierarchy and actually empowering staff to make decisions to implement programs. Can the Speaker talk about how they're reducing hierarchy in the public service. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it's hard to see from my seat but you recognized them earlier, and I'm not sure if they're still there. But Frame Lake constituents, Jeremy Bird and Angela Gzowski were in this the House earlier. And I'd also like to recognize the Premier who I had the pleasure of working with in her capacity as education Minister and a Premier when I was working as a city councillor. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. And I just want to be very clear that, you know, I -- I'm not necessarily suggesting that that needs to be the case with this contract. It's more just ensuring that we've got robust controls around our contracting. Just knowing that, you know, we see costs overruns a lot. And it's important to note that, you know, a lot of the projects that the government does, virtually all of them, are for essential infrastructure, like this, like a school. Like, this is not something that MLAs are going to turn around and say, you know, we're just going to have to cancel this. Because...