R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'm not -- I haven't been a part of those conversations with the legal representatives. I haven't actually gone down to the encampment and spoken with the folks there. So I can't tell the Member or the House what their desire is to move at this point. Maybe they have no plans to move and even if we had a great spot for them, they wouldn't want to go. So I can't make any commitment about what a private citizen is going to do. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There have been discussions. I'm not -- I'd have to get back to the Member to find out if, you know, a specific address was provided. But those conversations have begun. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And the Member's correct, we did take a number of steps to ensure there were enough shelter beds, and so that was funding NGOs to increase the number of shelter beds. We had the on the land transitional housing program running for a couple months in the winter. We hoped to already have a transitional housing setup for this summer but it's been delayed a little bit. So between the shelter space increase and the transitional housing increase, we were hoping to be able to address any shortfall that we have in spaces, beds. That being said, people are going to do what they...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And so that question really gets to integrated service delivery. And so we are advancing integrated service delivery across the territory. We're starting small. Once again. We don't want to try and do this all at once. We want to learn lessons on how we can better work together and better empower employees to make decisions that are in the best interests of residents and aren't administratively burdensome. So we're establishing regional locations in five communities to explore how to reduce the regulatory and policy burden on both the public service and the residents...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So I'll answer one of the questions in there. So what's happening now is that the different entities who are involved in this are meeting. The Government of the Northwest Territories, the city of Yellowknife, the RCMP, a number of different organizations are all meeting. Everyone is coordinating, putting their mind towards this issue. We are looking at more suitable locations and then working with the folks at the encampment and their legal representatives to try and relocate to those suitable locations. And we're identifying any other barriers that might exist, any...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There's no delay. The work is happening right now. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, as I mentioned yesterday, understanding that even with adequate space there will be encampments, we want to ensure that where those encampments might set up are places that are not disruptive to neighbourhoods, and so we are looking at different locations around the city trying to figure out where might be an appropriate location, then the plan is to try and work with those at the encampments and their legal representatives to try and relocate them to a more suitable location. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to share that the Government of the Northwest Territories has launched this year's United Way Workplace Giving Campaign. This annual campaign gives GNWT employees a simple and meaningful way to support programs that make a real difference in communities across the territory. Through payroll deductions, employees can choose to direct donations to United Way NWT, helping fund local organizations that tackle poverty, support youth, and improve community health and well-being.

Mr. Speaker, over the past few years, Northerners have come together during some very difficult...

Mr. Speaker, thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Member is mentioning mischief. I'm not sure if that's reference to the Criminal Code but if it is, if there is something in the Criminal Code that would allow the RCMP to go and address this situation, I would not -- I don't have the ability to direct the RCMP to do that. The Justice Minister does not have the ability to direct the RCMP to do that. We have a contract with the RCMP that makes very clear that we do not direct to the RCMP. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And so I think one thing that the House needs to be aware of is that there's no legal authority to actually -- for us to remove an encampment. We can't go down there with a bulldozer and knock it down. We have to work with the individuals who are staying there. And so that is the plan, is to work with those individuals, find a -- help them find somewhere to stay -- whether that's a shelter, whether that's a different location -- that's not as disruptive to business and the general public downtown. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.