Bob McLeod

Yes, I do, Mr. Chair.

In his letter, he indicated for the first two years, they would double the infrastructure funding budget that was billed in Canada. That is a question of interest to all the provinces and territories. We have met with Minister Morneau, the federal Finance Minister, where we raised and discussed infrastructure funding. I did talk to the Prime Minister about social infrastructure, green infrastructure, and also the Building Canada Fund. He has indicated that he recognizes the importance of those infrastructure funds. I indicated to him that as a small territory, obviously, our preference is base...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I did meet with Prime Minister Trudeau about a week ago, and I raised the matter of the cost of living and he reconfirmed that he had committed to doing something about it, specifically, the northern residents tax deduction. He did not specify a timeframe or timeline, but we all know that Minister the federal Minister of Finance has committed to filing his first budget in March, and we will wait and see if it makes that first budget. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'm very pleased to recognize in the gallery Mr. Darrell Beaulieu, the recipient of the Skookum Jim Award this year, and also a constituent of Yellowknife South, Mr. Peter Vician. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

About some of the rationale for moving this amendment, and we have had experiences with our toilet facilities and also in the past, as I mentioned, with emergency shelters, so we have those kinds of concerns, Mr. Chair. I would also call for a recorded vote on the amendment. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Our territory is endowed with scenic territorial parks in all its five regions. The government has committed to providing quality public tourism facilities at territorial parks throughout the Northwest Territories. These parks are great assets for tourism and many tourists make use of the services and facilities provided at these parks. Currently, we maintain 35 territorial parks including 14 wayside or day-use areas which are established to provide for the enjoyment or convenience of the travelling public. Many of our wayside parks are situated around areas of scenic...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. To my left, I have Penny Ballantyne, secretary to Cabinet, and to my right, Mike Aumond, secretary to the Financial Management Board. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

We have reached out to the federal government, both through our Minister with lead responsibility for Infrastructure and also Minister of Transportation. We have had some mixed signals, but we are taking steps to reconfirm our bundles. Bundle number two, as the Member knows, was submitted before the federal election. We are reconfirming very soon bundle number two, which is in the neighbourhood of $100 million, but the Prime Minister himself has indicated that there is still $185 million allocated for the Northwest Territories that he has said would be going out.

We have had the Member of...

Minister Carolyn Bennett, the Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs, did come to the Northwest Territories in January. I forget the exact date, but she did travel to Norman Wells to talk specifically about Nutrition North, since Norman Wells is one of the communities that is covered under Indigenous North, and she did consult with the affected people.

There is no indication of when this will come into effect, but she has certainly indicated the government is prepared to move on it fairly quickly, and again, the way governments work, I don't expect there will be any indication one way or...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to acknowledge a man who embodies leadership, innovation, and dedication. Loyal and committed to the public service for 35 years, Peter Vician will retire as deputy minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment. Since its inception in 2005, Mr. Vician has guided the department through its evolution and has been a leader in the development and diversification of our economy. Mr. Vician was a key player in the Government of Northwest Territories achieving devolution, helped build our diamond industry, led the development of the Economic Opportunities Strategy...