Floyd Roland

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, colleagues. Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Weledeh, that Bill 18, Appropriation Act, 2006-2007, be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, on the financial front, our negotiations have been working with the Aboriginal Summit and leaders across the Territories. We continue to do that. For the specific details of where certain files are sitting, I would have to have the Premier try to provide some information there. But on the front overall, our stance is still the same. We have to work together in the Northwest Territories with our partners in the North being aboriginal governments and organizations, to come up with a common message so that we can, in fact, show that we are unified in the...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we've not only in the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and the Yukon and provinces across Canada have raised the issue of fiscal imbalance with Ottawa on a regular basis; in fact, to the point where Finance Ministers have pushed on it so that the Premiers have now become involved and directed through the Council of the Federation that another panel be established. The federal government has recognized it by establishing an expert panel. We need to see what their reports will come out as, and then what will the federal government do with those reports, what...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It is my honour and privilege today to stand before you and Members of this Legislative Assembly to present the budget for the Northwest Territories for 2006-07. I would like to take this opportunity to thank my Cabinet colleagues and the standing committees for their input, particularly for the committees’ work on pre-budget consultations.

---Applause

This budget comes at an historic time. Many of us have looked ahead with hope to the day when the Northwest Territories would be self-reliant and strong, with a thriving economy, jobs and opportunities for our people. Today...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, before we get to radical solutions or options that may be out there, there's a new government in Ottawa. We have to take a different stance, we have to get the message to them, and I'm looking for the opportunity I get to sit down with the new Finance Minister to see if he thinks the arguments, the business case that we put forward is adequate or not adequate to go with what we're asking for. That will then entail what we'll need to do as a jurisdiction. But ultimately, the message that is initially sent out about fiscal imbalance is a good one....

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I give notice that on Friday, February 3, 2006, I will move that Bill 18, Appropriation Act, 2006-2007, be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I give notice that I will deliver the budget address on Thursday, February 2, 2006. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, our fiscal responsibility policy that we put forward to the federal government, and how we deal with the federal government, is based on their terms that this overpayment situation has occurred. They're aware of it; they have the repayment plan that affects every jurisdiction. It's the same plan. It's a three-year plan, and it's also based on your population, of how much is repaid on an annual basis until the third year, which is coming up in the next fiscal cycle we have.

Everything we do is processed in accordance with the rules, and so on. So I think...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to thank the Member for that awe-inspiring question.

---Laughter

Mr. Speaker, this issue is not a new one. We've been trying to deal with this, and how we can deal with our federal counterparts around this issue. We have looked at a number of issues around our fiscal policy, and what we've looked at putting forward is a fiscal responsibility policy that would look at the overall fiscal situation of the government, our ability to borrow and finance that borrowing.

The issue of the overpayment itself, as the Member stated, was a decision made by a previous...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. No, I won’t be following on my colleague’s statement about student financial assistance.

---Laughter

Instead, with it being Friday and knowing that the Pages that have been serving us here in this House for the last week are from Inuvik, I thought I would just recognize their efforts and the time they have spent with us. I have heard from many Members how they liked the service they provided, and how polite they are. That shows you that the students from Inuvik are representing their community well here. I would like to recognize the six Pages we have here. Both Mr...