David Ramsay

I recently was at an FPT meeting in Banff where Ministers from around the country were discussing Aboriginal and First Nations policing and the fact that the federal government hasn’t been forthcoming with more funding to see community constables put into small Aboriginal communities across the country.

It’s not only an issue here in the Northwest Territories but it’s something other jurisdictions are struggling with as well. I believe I was the fifth Justice Minister from the Northwest Territories to sit around that table and let the federal government know that we’re not happy with the amount...

Thank you. It is a very proud statistic for the region that we saw in Tulita the growth from six Aboriginal-owned businesses to 30 Aboriginal-owned businesses in the past few years. That’s a testament to all the activity and the entrepreneurial spirit that’s in the community. We also saw a big decrease in the amount of income support payments paid to people in the Sahtu. For the exact figure, the Member would probably want to go to ECE and get an exact figure, but anecdotally that figure was around $1 million less in income support payments paid to the people in the Sahtu last year. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I know at ITI we’ve added some positions. There are other government departments that added positions as well. So to get a comprehensive look at what we’ve put into the Sahtu, if the Member wants, over the past two or three years since the activity started, that’s something that I’d like to do for him and we can hopefully put that together and get it to the Member in short order. Thank you.

This is the first time the question has been brought to me in this venue. It is something that I can take back. I think there are a couple of other departments that we should consult with, and certainly, we could have a look at it. That’s not to say it will happen, but it’s something that I think we can look at.

Thank you. I’d have to go back and see when the policy was developed surrounding the funding here. To my knowledge, it’s been in place for some time. That amount of $15,000 has been static going back at least to ’78. So we’d certainly have to go back and find the genesis of that for the Member, and I commit to getting that information to the Member. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. To the best of my knowledge, I am not aware of any subsidy programs for businesses as it relates to low water levels on the Mackenzie River and the shipment of goods into the Mackenzie Delta.

It’s our intention, certainly once the draft requirements are ready, we will certainly look at sharing those with the Standing Committee on Priorities and Planning and the Regular Members. It is our intention to do so.

As for the date of the end of December, our time frame right now is early January, and we’re hoping to ensure that we hit that we target of early January. So, at the earliest opportunity, we will be ready to share those draft filing requirements and new regulations with the Regular Members. Thank you.

What we have is an opportunity here, an opportunity to get things right, and it is our belief that we can regulate the industry ourselves. We have put the pieces in place that are going to allow us to regulate the industry here in the Northwest Territories, and we feel very competent that who best to regulate the industry than Northerners. We’re very proud of the decisions we’ve made to date and we’re proud of the opportunities that we have going forward and certainly look forward to working with Regular Members as we continue to strive to get the best regulatory system in place here in the...

Mr. Speaker, small businesses and entrepreneurs are the backbone of our community and regional economies.

To encourage economic diversity and sustainability, the Government of the Northwest Territories has long supported the interests and growth of this highly valued segment of the North’s economic community through a variety of programs and services.

As we mark Small Business Week this year, the GNWT is moving forward with the implementation of its NWT Economic Opportunities Strategy. This

strategy offers a plan to expand and diversify the NWT economy outside of its rich resource sector in...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to table the “Economic Opportunities Implementation Plan.”