Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wanted to follow up a little further on the trades matter in a little bit of a different direction, but the same sort of overall concept about making sure we have a good operating program.
There used to be called, and I think it still exists in some form or another, it was called the Territorial Trades Advisory Council, and it may have changed its form, but some of the members in the past who were on it resigned because they felt they were no longer being used. Is it defunct, or has it evolved into something else, including a different type of purpose? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from Yellowknife Centre. Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.
So, Mr. Speaker, it's called the Apprenticeship Trade and Occupational Certification Advisory Board, so ATOC Board, and they are still very much in play. Their current board all has current membership, and I actually rely on them quite a bit and source them for their expert opinions. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Not necessarily for my next question, but I kind of anticipated that was the only thing I could find that related to it.
Mr. Speaker, my next question is about in not that long ago, some members who were on the old trades advisory council, which is basically the same thing just rebranded, were sent to Fort Smith to do what's called marking desks, and that's when you send tradespeople to ensure that the teaching and practices have met a standard but yet they're not involved anymore, and I'm returning to the trades marking desks.
Mr. Speaker, is there any reason tradespeople aren't brought in for this overall final project marking desk anymore to ensure they're trained to a good standard? Thank you.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I would need to go follow up with the board of governors of Aurora College and their trades program specifically. I can tell you that their trades instructors are all people generally who have worked in the field, who have a tremendous amount of experience, and the apprentices then also go and work directly with employers across this territory as well. Given that it's a small territory, I would assume if there is something up that we would definitely hear about it, and I can say that I certainly like to keep my lines of communication open with our employers and businesses across this territory, and so far none of them have been shy to give me a call.
Thank you, Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. Final supplementary. Member from Yellowknife Centre.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and linking to my second question, I'll just say it's about the standards. Mr. Speaker, how do we know that the standards are being taught equivalent to what's being offered in other jurisdictions, whether they go down to NAIT or SAIT, etc.? I've been told that students aren't receiving equivalencies. Now, that said, I'm asking the Minister, how do we guarantee that they're receiving the same standard of trades education here in the Northwest Territories or as to other locations? And I can name them, but we don't have the time. Thank you.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, our programs are accredited, so they go through a process of accreditation before they can be offered, before they can be deemed programs that people turn around and then can use in life. We want to make sure that we are being safe, that we have appropriate training for people across the territory, and make sure that we're offering a program that is competitive with the south. If the Member has a specific concern about a specific program, I'm more than happy to follow up on that with him, with the college, and make sure that I can provide him with the detailed information of that, so that I can put any of those myths aside and calm them, because I definitely want people to feel that, at the end of the day, they have access to quality programs here in the territory. Both Aurora College and the Department of Education, Culture and Employment work hard on the programs that they offer, and I can say also that the post-secondary division at Education, Culture and Employment has been working hard to increase the offerings, accredited offerings, in this territory over the last year. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. Oral questions. Member from Range Lake.
