Yellowknife – Members of the 18th Legislative Assembly have set out an ambitious range of priorities for their next four years of work on behalf of the people of the Northwest Territories.

The 19 Members plan to tackle the NWT’s high cost-of-living, deliver more effective education and training, improve community wellness and safety, promote diversification of the economy, mitigate climate change, and optimize new powers to manage resources and the environment.

In doing so, the 18th Assembly plans to work on a government to government basis with Aboriginal governments. Completing land, resources and self-government negotiations, and implementing existing agreements, will be a very high priority.

Community governments and organizations can also expect a new era of collaboration.

Members are determined to increase transparency and accountability in the Assembly and government, and have already initiated a process to strengthen their Conduct Guidelines.

The priorities of the 18th Assembly are the result of several days of intense work, including a productive summit with northern leaders, and consideration of advice from the 17th Assembly’s Special Committee on Transition Matters. Finally, Members held a public forum to discuss their priorities, encompassing what they heard from the people during the election.

However, priority-setting is only the first step in establishing an effective government. For the first time in history, the newly-elected Cabinet will respond to the Caucus’ priorities with specific measures to implement them. This proposed mandate will be reviewed by all Members, amended as needed, and ultimately voted on during the winter 2016 sitting.

The 18th Assembly’s priorities, mandate and annual business plans will assist Members in tracking their progress, leading to a mid-term review of performance and priorities prior to the fall 2017 sitting.

“Members of this new Assembly have worked hard in their first few weeks on the job,” noted Caucus Chair, Ms. Julie Green. “But this is just the end of the beginning. In January – besides their work on the government’s mandate – they will set up their standing committee structure and prepare for the first extended sitting, scheduled to commence in mid-February.”

Caucus Chair, Ms. Julie Green, will host a news conference on the priorities of the 18th Legislative Assembly in Committee Room A of the Legislative Assembly building at 10:00 am on Friday, December 18, 2015.

For more information, please contact:

Julie Green, Caucus Chair
Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories
P: 867-767-9010 ext 12000 or 1-800-661-0784
E: Julie_Green@gov.nt.ca

Tim Mercer, Clerk
Legislative Assembly of the NWT
P: 867-767-9130, ext 12012 or 1-800-661-0784
E: Tim_Mercer@gov.nt.ca