Premier Sandy Silver and his cabinet met with Council of Yukon First Nations Grand Chief Peter Johnston and Yukon First Nations chiefs on Oct. 7 at the Sternwheeler Conference Centre in Whitehorse for the third Yukon Forum of 2022.
“This might’ve been the most positive one,” Johnston told reporters via teleconference after the forum.
“It was a very touchstone moment in Yukon Forum’s history.”
Silver said the forum provides an opportunity to check in and reflect on solutions and concerns of the day.
“All of our governments face capacity challenges, and this forum has enabled us to mobilize our governments with some limited resources towards our shared priorities,” Silver said.
Silver said the group discussed the Yukon’s sexualized assault response team (SART) and expanding services to communities outside of Whitehorse.
He said SART will begin discussions this fall with First Nation governments and service providers to get a grip on existing services and the needs of victims in the communities while establishing the service in the capital.
Silver said increasing the housing supply and keeping people housed also came up at the forum. It follows up on the auditor general of Canada’s dire report from earlier in 2022 on the state of housing in the territory.
“How can we maximize dollars and stack funds to hopefully address in the best way possible housing crises and needs that are different in each community?” the premier asked rhetorically.
Contact Dana Hatherly at dana.hatherly@yukon-news.com