Bill Braden

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. My question this afternoon is for Mr. Miltenberger as the Minister responsible for energy and renewable resources, and it regards the state of our caribou populations, Mr. Speaker. We've essentially seen, from many indicators, that as the herds have been declining, we've known that for some time, but the rate at which they're declining is speeded up, it is now something that is really causing a lot of concern. Mr. Speaker, what is the government doing to manage the alarming trend of declining caribou herds and avoid the terrible legacies of the past as it plundered the...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I’ll speak in favour. My position is in favour of this bill. I think if we can take advantage of a technical way of doing something better, minimizing our exposure to, as the Minister said, the volatility in any market, especially the fuel market, then it’s a good one and we should proceed with it. I guess what I’d like to do, though, Mr. Chairman, is just get a sense of the scale or the scope of the dollars that we’re talking about here. I don’t need a huge, detailed picture, but what are the volumes and perhaps the dollar values that PPD deals with on an annual...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

WHEREAS the Legislative Assembly has recently instituted a number of changes to its budget review process to improve public access, transparency and efficiency;

AND WHEREAS in recent years the sitting hours of the Legislative Assembly during the winter budget session are frequently extended;

AND WHEREAS the Legislative Assembly is committed to remaining accessible and transparent to all residents;

NOW THEREFORE I MOVE, seconded by the honourable Member for Frame Lake, that "designated budget days" be implemented on a provisional basis;

AND FURTHER that Monday, Tuesday and...

Mr. Chairman, I move that we report progress.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I’m sorry; that’s not quite what I meant in asking the question. It is where the airport authority will set out certain rules and conditions and if I am found to be in violation, what mechanism, then, do I have to seek an appeal or have my side of the story heard? This is maybe where I’m not using the right word, but that’s what I meant by accountability. If we’re exercising authority here, then where is…Okay. I will continue to use the word “accountability.” Can the public have a way of testing, and probing, and challenging where it might be required of these...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I am interested in the aspect of this bill that covers the provision of airport lands to businesses and other tenants, especially the case at our larger airports, Mr. Chair, where there is more business and commercial activity. Of late here in Yellowknife, I think a relatively long-standing issue has cycled up again. This relates to the ability of businesses to access our airport lands on a leased basis and then, of course, the comparative cost of that land to other commercial options. Perhaps a question of the core of this is, to what extent could, or should...

So then, if I could offer a bit of advice, it’s that you shouldn’t do as I do in the stock market. You should not buy…How does it work now? I can’t even figure that one out. You don’t want to buy high and sell low, for what it’s worth. Mr. Chairman, finally, will the department be able to sort of track its performance once we start using this methodology here so that we can get some sense of have we actually achieved some savings, or potentially have we cost ourselves some money? Would that be able to be measured and reported, Mr. Chairman?

Mr. Chairman, has the vision run any scenarios? Again, I’d just like to get a sense of if we had this instrument and we had this practice in place, say, over the past fiscal year, given the volatility and the conditions of the market, do you have a scenario…Does the division have a scenario or even some good estimates of what we may have saved if we’d had this in place? Again, Mr. Chairman, just to give me an idea of the scale and the scope of the kind of money we’re talking about here. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Briefly, this is a motion that, of course, I moved it, I'm speaking very much in favour of it. It is consistent with initiatives and efforts that all Members agree would be desirable for the efficiency and the improvement of our business. But I think, Mr. Speaker, the biggest advantage that I see in giving these new rules a try is that it will make us more accessible to the general public through the media, through the provision of doing our business more during hours that are more accessible to the public.

I remember very much the hours spent in this Assembly, Mr...

So then there is no established or procedural or formal manner of appeal or, as I say, challenge other than through the, if you will, the administrative route. There are no rules on that. I guess, given the range and the scope of authorities that are sought here, why isn’t there some kind of established route or mechanism by which I could seek redress, or appeal, or challenge something that I feel is not right? It needn’t be sophisticated, but something where I know, for instance, that I have a certain timeline. There is a definite place that I can go so that I know my case will be heard and...