Lesa Semmler

Member Inuvik Twin Lakes

Minister of Health and Social Services
Minister Responsible for the Status of Women 

Lesa Semmler currently serves as the Member representing Inuvik Twin Lakes in the 20th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly, having been re-elected to the position. Born in Yellowknife, NT, and raised in Inuvik, where she still resides, Ms. Semmler has deep roots in the Northwest Territories. 

A Registered Nurse, Ms. Semmler graduated from the Aurora College Northern Nursing Program in 2000 and earned her Community Health Nurse Certification from the Canadian Nurses Association in 2008. With 15 years of frontline nursing experience at the Inuvik Regional Hospital, she focused on Acute Care, Homecare, and Public Health. Her career also included roles as the Manager of Acute Care Services and eventually the Regional Manager of Acute Care Services under the Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority. Notably, she served as the Inuvialuit Health System Navigator at the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation, assisting Inuvialuit Beneficiaries in navigating the healthcare system. 

Beyond her healthcare career, Ms. Semmler has actively contributed to education and community service. She served on the Inuvik District Education Authority, assuming the role of Chair from 2015 to 2018, and chaired the Beaufort Delta Education Council. Ms. Semmler participated in various working groups at the territorial and national levels, including the Inuit Tuberculosis Elimination Board and the Inuit Midwifery Revitalization. Her commitment to social justice is evident in her voluntary work as a member of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls National Family Advisory Circle, where she worked to ensure northern voices were heard and represented. Lesa Semmler's life and career reflect her passion for healthcare, education, and advocating for the well-being of her community.

Inuvik Twin Lakes Electoral District

Lesa Semmler
Inuvik Twin Lakes
Member's Office

Yellowknife NT X1A 2L9
Canada

P.O. Box
1320
Email
Email
Phone
(867) 767-9143
Constituency Office

125 Mackenzie Rd
Unit 203
Inuvik NT X0E 0T0
Canada

P.O. Box
3130
Constituency Phone
867-678-2429
Minister's Office
Email
Email

Statements in Debates

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 81)

I just hear people saying 'agreed'.

Sorry, okay. All right. There's a motion on the floor to report progress. The motion is in order, non-debatable. All those in favour. Motion is carried.

--- Carried

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 81)

I now call Committee of the Whole to order. What is the wish of committee? Member for Frame Lake.

Oral Question 781-19(2): Progress on Housing Priorities
Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 81)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As a final supplementary, you know, I go back through -- like I said, back through my Member's statements and throughout the two years I've been stating that we have over -- we've had over a hundred people on the waitlist and for my community to get two units, you know, it is hard to hear because as the Minister was there, we have many, many residents that are living in emergency shelters, in the homeless shelters, and couch surfing. So as a priority, we've talked about many different things in this House, a lot of social impact. So I think my question to the Minister...

Oral Question 781-19(2): Progress on Housing Priorities
Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 81)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So my question was how many were completed. So I think I got four out of the Minister. Can she confirm how many are actually in the process of being built right now in the Northwest Territories, of that hundred? Thank you.

Member's Statement on Progress on Housing During the19th Legislative Assembly
Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 81)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it has been two years, and we have passed the halfway mark as our term of MLAs. During the last two years, we've faced many challenges, many issues from our constituents have been raised in this House. Many of the challenges and issues remain with us today, as I read through my Member's statements from the start of this Assembly, from housing to many of our social programs, from jobs to sustainable economy, from the health of our residents, our territory, Mr. Speaker, we continue to face outstanding challenges as well as new ones.

We've been dealing with the...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 81)

Mr. Speaker, your committee has been considering Tabled Document 435, 436, 437, and would like to report progress, and Mr. Speaker, I move that the report of Committee of the Whole be concurred with. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 81)

Thank you. Does committee agree?

Committee Report 17-19(2): Report on the Review of Bill 23: An Act to Amend the Public Utilities Act
Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 81)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Committee Members heard anecdotal reports from constituents who must improvise methods to regulate the temperature in public housing due to poor build quality, deterioration of the units, and insufficient maintenance. The committee has heard about tenants in NWT public housing whose units do not adequately retain heat in the winter due, for instance, to interior doors being installed on exterior walls. As a result, tenants may resort to using their stove to heat their unit. The committee also heard about tenants in NWT public housing who must open the windows in the...

Oral Question 781-19(2): Progress on Housing Priorities
Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 81)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So we should have 90 completed by the end of this term going into the next term. So how many actual units will be built in my community? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Oral Question 781-19(2): Progress on Housing Priorities
Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 81)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there was a commitment in this House as part of the 19th Assembly priorities to increase the number of affordable homes and reduce core housing needs, and then that -- and part of that mandate there would be a hundred houses built over the four years.

Mr. Speaker, as we are halfway through our term, how many of these hundred houses have been completed as it was stated that there would be 25 per year as part of the mandate. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.