R.J. Simpson

Member Hay River North

Premier
Minister of Executive and Indigenous Affairs

R.J. Simpson was elected to the 20th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly, representing the constituency of Hay River North. On December 7th, 2023, Mr. Simpson was elected Premier of the Northwest Territories.

Mr. Simpson was formerly acclaimed to the 19th Legislative Assembly and first elected into the 18th Assembly in 2015.

Mr. Simpson was Deputy Speaker of the 18th Assembly, Deputy Chair of the Standing Committee on Government Operations, and the Chair of the Special Committee on Transition Matters. Mr. Simpson was also a member of the Standing Committee on Priorities and Planning and the Standing Committee on Economic Development and Environment.

Mr. Simpson is a lifelong resident of Hay River After graduating from Diamond Jenness Secondary School in 1998 Mr. Simpson went on to obtain a Bachelor of Arts from MacEwan University and a law degree from the University of Alberta’s Faculty of Law.

Mr. Simpson has previously worked with the Government of Canada, Northern Transportation Company Ltd, Métis Nation Local 51, and Maskwa Engineering.

While at law school, Mr. Simpson was the President of the Aboriginal Law Students’ Association. He has also served on the board of the Soaring Eagle Friendship Centre in Hay River and volunteered with the Canada-Ghana Education Project.

Hay River North Electoral District

Committees

R.J. Simpson
Hay River North
Member's Office

Yellowknife NT X1A 2L9
Canada

P.O. Box
1320
Email
Email
Phone
867-767-9141
Extension
11120
Constituency Office

62, promenade Woodland, bureau 104
Hay River Nord NT X0E 1G1
Canada

Phone
867-874-6301
Minister
Email
Email
Premier of the Northwest Territories, Minister of Executive and Indigenous Affairs, Minister of Justice, Government House Leader

Statements in Debates

Question 541-18(2): Mental Health Services in Hay River
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 50)

It is good to hear that they're being worked on. I'll be following up with this. As I mentioned earlier as well, to see a psychiatrist when you get a referral, you have to come up to Yellowknife. Basically, you fly up. You wait your four or five or six hours. You go to the psychiatrist, and you go back to the airport, or maybe your appointment is in the morning. Either way, you are in there for an hour, hour and a half. It is an emotional session. A lot of people come out of there upset. They are crying. They need some time to calm down. What happens is, they leave the psychiatrist's office...

Member's Statement on Mental Health Services in Hay River
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 50)

Thank you, colleagues. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I don’t want to malign any of our healthcare professionals, but I’ve heard again too many times that patients do not feel that their issues are validated by the psychiatrists in Yellowknife, and patients often leave not only feeling more helpless, but also insulted.

Mr. Speaker, I haven’t even touched on the legwork that those seeking treatment are required to do just to access mental health services. There are countless phone calls to make and forms to fill out, with no one person they can look to to show them what needs to be done...

Question 535-18(2): Safe Pedestrian Access to Hay River Health Centre
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 49)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So is the Minister content with inadequate signage at this point and the bare minimum signage at some point in the future as he's committed to installing? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Question 535-18(2): Safe Pedestrian Access to Hay River Health Centre
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 49)

When can the people of Hay River expect to see their new signage installed?

Question 52418(2): Safe Pedestrian Access to Hay River Health Centre
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 49)

Mr. Speaker, Hay River was waiting a long time to get a Minister so we could get the kind of perks that Fort Smith and Inuvik have been getting.

Laughter

So we are all waiting for that Minister to step up and make that happen. Related, like I mentioned, to get to the health centre you have to walk down a road with no sidewalks, not even any shoulders. When can we expect some other improvements in terms of sidewalks and controlled rail crossings at the health centre? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Question 52418(2): Safe Pedestrian Access to Hay River Health Centre
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 49)

The Minister said they are reviewing it, so I am not sure if he will be able to answer this, but when can we expect some lighting to be installed?

Member's Statement on Pedestrian Access to Hay River Health Centre
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 49)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I live at the end of the rail line. Now that the winter roads are open, every time I look out my window I see a lineup of Super Bs waiting to fill up with fuel brought north via the rail. As soon as one truck fills up it heads down the highway and another one takes its place. I like to see this because it means people are working.

You know who doesn't like seeing those trucks? Anyone who's walking to the new health centre in Hay River. That's because the health centre was built with absolutely no safe pedestrian access. Everybody who has to walk to the...

Question 535-18(2): Safe Pedestrian Access to Hay River Health Centre
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 49)

I'm glad we got a commitment to put some lighting up there. Now I'm looking for a commitment to put some additional signage up there so that people coming down the highway are aware that there are pedestrians possibly crossing?

Question 535-18(2): Safe Pedestrian Access to Hay River Health Centre
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 49)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Earlier I spoke about the lack of lighting and signage signals at the highway crossing to the health centre in Hay River. The Minister said that there's, "A ton of signs." I just sent a scout out. There is one sign.

---Laughter

This is a description of what the sign does, "To warn road users making a turn that they will encounter a highway/rail grade crossing soon after making a turn." It says nothing about pedestrians. There are actually two signs. There's another sign indicating that's a new sign. There's one of those coming from each direction.

My point is there's...

Question 52418(2): Safe Pedestrian Access to Hay River Health Centre
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 49)

That is a shame because the lights are most needed when it is dark out, in the winter. It sounds like we are going to have to wait until the spring. In the interim, I know the Minister is the Minister of Public Works. He is the Minister of Transportation. With all the resources of these two departments at his disposal, can the people in Hay River South get some sort of temporary lighting system so that the Super Bs can see our grandparents crossing the highway on the way to the health centre? Can we get some sort of temporary measure in the meantime?