Yukon Territorial Government Spring Sitting of the 34th Yukon Legislative Assembly has begun

The 2020 spring sitting of the 34th Yukon Legislative Assembly began at 1 p.m. yesterday in front of a full gallery of visitors.

Minister of Community Services John Streicker paid tribute to Yukon First Nations Wildfire, recipients of an Arctic Inspiration Prize this year for their resilience training and healing program. 

Porter Creek North MLA Geraldine Van Bibber spoke on behalf of the Yukon Party referring to the Arctic Inspiration Prize as the Nobel Prize of Canada.

Leader Kate White spoke on behalf of the NDP. She quoted from a post on the Yukon First Nations Wildfire website which anecdotally depicted the struggles of a firefighter with PTSD who was stuck in a hole. After several attempts to find help another firefighter happened by. 

Question period began with Yukon's preparedness for responding to an outbreak of the Coronavirus in the territory, especially in light of the upcoming Arctic Winter Games. The contract with Corix for the Wastewater treatment plant in Dawson, Climate action and resource development and the Salvation Army Adult Centre in Hillcrest were also topics of debate in Question period.

Premier Sandy Silver who is also the territory's Finance Minister tabled a $1.62 Billion dollar budget for the 2020 - 2021 fiscal year. $1.25 Billion dollars will be spent on Operations and Maintenance with a Capital Budget of $369.7 Million Dollars. The government is anticipating a $4.1 Million dollar surplus.

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