The Liquor Act is 40 years old and parts of the legislation are no longer relevant. The Yukon Liquor Corporation wants Yukon citizens to help guide the drafting of an updated Act. An updated Act will reflect best practices, meet modern-day realities and future needs. It will also allow us to balance social responsibilities and local economic opportunities.

The Government of Yukon committed to amending the Workers’ Compensation Act to include a post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) presumption for emergency response workers. On behalf of the government, Yukon Workers’ Compensation Health and Safety Board (YWCHSB) recently conducted a public consultation to collect public input on the following two issues:

1. The Workers’ Compensation Act will be amended in 2017 to provide a PTSD presumption for emergency response workers which will apply to firefighters, paramedics and police officers. The government wants to know what other occupations the public thinks should be considered in the future.
2. The government also wants to know if the public would support amendments to the Occupational Health and Safety Act to promote the development of regulations aimed at preventing mental injuries at work.

We are modernizing Yukon’s recycling system by amending the Designated Materials Regulation. The changes will apply surcharges on electronic and electrical products at the point of purchase. The surcharges you already pay on new tires will change and new tire categories will be added. The goal of these changes is to encourage people to take their old tires, electronics and electrical items to the landfill or recycling depot and keep these items out of Yukon’s wild spaces, while also balancing the needs of retailers and businesses.

We want to hear your views on which products should be included, how much surcharges should be, and when these changes should come into effect.  

The Government of Yukon is updating legislation for pharmacists and rural permit holders (physicians who dispense drugs) to improve pharmacy services and standards. This is part of a larger legislative framework that governs the pharmacies and rural dispensaries where these professionals work.

From April 21 to July 21, 2017, the public was invited to provide feedback on the proposed:

• Pharmacists Regulation;
• Standards of practice for pharmacists;
• Standards of practice for rural permit holders; and
• Code of ethics for pharmacists and rural permit holders.

We know we don’t always get public engagement right – but we want to take steps to improve. This initiative was about you telling us what a meaningful conversation and meaningful public engagement looks like to you.

What is public engagement?

It’s a process that links public input – like yours – into a decision using problem-solving or discussion between governments and the general public. It’s not a single event, but rather a journey that we hope will build trust and a stronger relationship between you and government.

This engagement was about creating a long-term vision for tourism that all Yukoners could see themselves in. The steering committee recommended the strategy, Sustainable Tourism. Our Path. Our Future, to the Government of Yukon on November 23, 2018.

The strategy is guided by the core values expressed by Yukoners and lays out a ten-year vision for tourism to be a vibrant, sustainable component of Yukon’s economy and society for the benefit of future generations. The document lays out these values as well as goals and strategic actions to form the basis for future action plans.

We asked Yukoners to share their thoughts on the draft Yukon Tourism Development Strategy before October 3, 2018.

The Herschel Island-Qikiqtaruk Management Plan sets long-standing priorities and new considerations for park operations at Herschel Island-Qikiqtaruk Territorial Park.

The plan is currently being reviewed by a joint committee representing Yukon government and Inuvialuit organizations.

The purpose of this pre-engagement was to learn how a public engagement process should be designed, so that members of the Yukon LGBTQ2S+ community and their allies feel safe and included. We also wanted to learn about the needs and priorities of LGBTQ2S+ Yukoners that could be discussed further during the public engagement process. By designing a safe and inclusive public engagement process, we can prioritize areas for improvement, so that government laws, programs, and services meet the social standards of non-discrimination.

We invited participation by posting the public engagement on Engage Yukon and by reaching out at the grassroots level. People who wanted to participate were encouraged to contact QMUNITY or the Women’s Directorate.

The information we collected will help us have safe, confidential, and inclusive conversations with the LGBTQ2S+ community in the future.

The Government of Yukon wants to ensure we are meeting the rules and social standards for LGBTQ2S+ non-discrimination. To do so, we are conducting a review of legislation, policies and practices.

This long-term project includes updating legislation to be more inclusive of LGBTQ2S+ Yukoners.

In spring 2017, we made amendments to the Vital Statistics Act and Human Rights Act.

On March 6, 2018, we tabled a Gender Diversity and Related Amendments Bill to:

• Support increased gender diversity on several Yukon government boards and committees that currently have potentially discriminatory language related to nomination and membership requirements.
• Add “sexual orientation,” “gender diversity,” and “gender expression” to an existing clause that sets out prohibited grounds of discrimination under the Public Service Labour Relations Act.     

We invited feedback from stakeholders on these proposed amendments to ensure that the final bill is as inclusive as possible.

Help us chart the future of Yukon’s territorial parks. The Government of Yukon has developed a Draft Yukon parks strategy to set the direction for Yukon’s system of territorial parks for the next 10 years. The strategy is about the full range of territorial parks, including wilderness preserves like Ni’iinlii Njik (Fishing Branch), natural environment parks like Tombstone, and recreation parks like Wolf Creek campground. The strategy will provide guidance on managing the parks system to ensure communities across Yukon experience the benefits of parks: healthy land, healthy people, and a healthy economy.