Bob McLeod

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Tu Nedhe, that Bill 16, Northwest Territories Intergovernmental Agreement on Lands and Resources Management Act, be read for the third time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Thebacha, that Bill 14, Waters Act, be read for the third time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Yellowknife Kam Lake, that Bill 11, Petroleum Resources Act, be read for the third time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you. I believe we’re already seeing that happen and I think that we will continue to work with the Sahtu leadership to try to work with what the people in the region want to see happen. I think that’s the way we will approach and that’s the way the land claims have been negotiated and settled on a regional basis. Thank you.

Thank you. That’s the whole premise of the agreement under the Intergovernmental Council that the Aboriginal governments that have land claims, who are the largest land holders in the Northwest Territories – I think together they hold about 193,000 square kilometres of freehold land – the way we see it, the management regime is that each Aboriginal government would manage their own land that they own and we would work together to provide for best practices and some consistency across the Northwest Territories. Together we’ll all manage the land in the best interests of all the people of the...

The GNWT is a signatory to these agreements and there are programs and services and assets that the Deline community will be taking over, so we will be participating in all aspects of those arrangements. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think we’re all waiting with great anticipation for the results of the ratification vote tonight. Once we get the results, we’ll proceed with the next steps. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, in a little more than two weeks, the Government and Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories will be taking on new responsibilities for public lands, water and resources. For the first time, Northerners will be able to pass laws and make their own decisions about how our environment is managed and protected and our resources are developed. As we have acknowledged many times in this House, this is an historic occasion in the ongoing evolution of this territory.

We sometimes forget, Mr. Speaker, that history does not just happen, history is made. As we open an important new...

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Yellowknife Great Slave, that Bill 17, Northwest Territories Intergovernmental Resources Revenue Sharing Agreement Act, be read for the third time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Yellowknife Kam Lake, that Bill 15, Oil and Gas Operations Act, be read for the third time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.