Kieron Testart

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'm pleased to support this motion as well. I think the motion we just spoke to is a more general one about this Assembly, about the committees of this Assembly, about us working as one to realize housing is a rights-based approach to housing while this one is specifically aligned to government policies and programs and makes some very meaningful recommendations for reform to our housing legislation and operations that I think will bear good fruit in ensuring that housing is, in fact, a human right in the Northwest Territories. I look forward to the...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Department of Health and Social Services has an excellent cultural safety unit that has made huge progress on decolonizing the government's -- the health department's approach to dealing with Indigenous peoples in the health care system and creating a safe environment for Indigenous peoples. I'm wondering -- and MLAs have all been part of that process as well, and I can speak from personal experience that it was a good one. Is the Premier willing to move that unit into the department of executive and take a whole-of-government approach to cultural...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the Statement of Consistency for Bill 3: Carbon Tax Repeal Act. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Northwest Territories health care system has seen a dramatic increase in the use of private agency nurses since the COVID1-19 pandemic. Many Northerners are concerned about the costs of agency nurses and their impact on health care staff recruitment and retention.

I have questions for the Minister of Health and Social Services:

Can the Minister provide a breakdown of the total costs for public agency nurses by fiscal year since 2019-2020;.

Can the Minister provide a breakdown of the total costs for private? Agency nurses based on expenditure categories...

Thank you. And I know our friend, the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment, is a big supporter of this program. So I'll ask will the Minister in her capacity as a Member of Cabinet, a Member of this consensus government, lend her support to the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment to increase the total amount of Mineral Incentive Program to at least double, if not triple? Thank you.

And I'm glad to see the Minister spring into action to support our mineral's industry.

Mr. Speaker, if the federal government's not going to fund it, what are we going to do? What tax credits and incentives can the Northwest Territories offer to our exploration industry to make it more -- to level the playing field with other jurisdictions? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It does confuse it somewhat. So I mean, Premier Smith's been pretty clear that these changes are taking effect and, you know, these are transphobic and, you know, atrocious policies that no health system in Canada should have, so are they -- is the Alberta government making exception for NWT patients within this policy? I'm just -- want clarity on that. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'm sure many are relieved to hear that; I certainly am. When these individuals are going for treatment, where are they going? If not Alberta, is it British Columbia? Is it Ontario? Saskatchewan's out of the picture. Alberta's out of the picture. So where are we sending these folks to get the care that they need? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my friend from Yellowknife Centre was just saying it's a shame the government is so pessimistic about our ability to successfully navigate the national fabric of relationships that allow us to be successful at leveraging funding to realize a future for the Northwest Territories. But I digress.

Mr. Speaker, this is a new government. This will be -- this is a new committee. These are new Members. And one thing I heard loud and clear on the campaign trail is that carbon tax, not just high cost of living, not high cost of groceries, not high cost of fuel -- of...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, can the Premier extend that training to middle management as well, so it's not just the deputy minister level and our honourable colleagues here but also managers of the public service who are really doing the day-to-day operations of the GNWT? Thank you.