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

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 49)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize a constituent who has joined us in the gallery today. She is here as a chaperone for the Pages from the Deh Cho. She is a generous volunteer, a beloved teacher, and my aunt, Ms. June Simpson. Welcome.

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 48)

Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. There is a motion to report progress. The motion is in order and non-debatable. All those in favour? All those opposed? The motion is carried.

---Carried

I will rise and report progress.

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 48)

Thank you, committee. Next, we have agreed to consider Minister's Statement 103-18(3), Marine Transportation Services. I will open up the floor to comments or questions from committee. Seeing none, does committee agree this concludes our consideration of Minister's Statement 103-18(3), Marine Transportation Services?

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 48)

Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. Does committee agree?

Member's Statement on Hay River Town Council Elects
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 48)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, on Tuesday, November 6th, Hay River's new town council will be sworn in. While there will be some familiar faces, six of the nine members are newly elected. That means we will be saying goodbye to quite a few people, and I would like to take this opportunity to say thank you to Donna Lee Jungkind, Vince McKay, Jason Coakwell, Roger Candow, and Mike Mahar for their service over the past three years.

I especially have to thank our outgoing mayor, Brad Mapes, who has always been willing to work closely with me during my time as MLA so we could advance the...

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 48)

Thank you, committee. What is the wish of committee? Mr. Beaulieu.

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 48)

Thank you, committee. We have agreed to consider Minister's Statement 19-18(3), Aurora College Foundational Review Process. I will open up the floor to comments. Seeing none, does committee agree this concludes our consideration of Minister's Statement 19-18(3), Aurora College Foundational Review Process?

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 48)

I now call Committee of the Whole to order. What is the wish of the committee? Mr. Beaulieu.

Motion 23-18(3): Revocation of the Appointment of the Honourable Member for Hay River South, Defeated
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 47)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in this Assembly, it's a fool's errand to try and remove a Minister. As the Premier stated in this House just a few weeks ago, "he who pays the bills, plays the tune," and we all know that Cabinet controls the cheque book. That's not how consensus government is supposed to work, but that's how it works. That's why no Ministers have yet been removed, and it's the reason that during the budget deliberations, Regular Members are relegated to fighting over scraps instead of addressing large, fundamental issues. The style of governance perpetrated by Cabinet is...

Committee Motion 86-15(3): Ombud Act – Deleting subclause 15(1) and substituting the following, Defeated
Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 47)

Thank you. Minister.