Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. The Legislative Assembly Retiring Allowances Act and the Supplementary Retiring Allowances Act currently provides survivor benefits to a Member or a former Member’s dependent children if they are less than the age of majority or if they are under the age of 25, unmarried and attending school or university on a full-time basis.

The amendments to the Legislative Assembly Retiring Allowances Act and the Supplementary Retiring Allowances Act will broaden the definition of a child to include an adult child who is dependent on a Member or a former Member for the necessities of...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’m privileged to second this motion here today. I know my views have changed over the last year and a half here, but there’s a lot of concern out there, especially in my riding. All the water in this territory comes to the Mackenzie Delta. It comes right down the Mackenzie River from the Sahtu. My constituents are very concerned about what kinds of pollutants will come down in the future. They’re not thinking about today.

We may make a few million in this territory over the next couple of years, but what is that going to cost in the future, to have our waterways...

By the fall, I believe, is too late because by then we’ll have freeze-up. Just this week the ferry just went in in the community.

Why can’t we have this portable trailer in the community starting this summer?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It has been over a year and a half since the commitment to have RCMP overnight in Tsiigehtchic, and to this day not once has the RCMP spent the night in the community.

People in the community would like to see a better presence from the RCMP. This has been an ongoing issue. When are we going to see positive changes from the department and the RCMP?

I’ll have questions for the Minister later today.

Mr. Speaker, I seek consent to proceed with third reading of Bill 66, An Act to Amend the Legislative Assembly Retiring Allowances Act and the Supplementary Retiring Allowances Act.

---Consent granted

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I’ll refer that to Mr. Mercer.

I seek unanimous consent to waive Rule 74(2) and have Bill 66, An Act to Amend the Legislative Assembly Retiring Allowances Act and the Supplementary Retiring Allowances Act, moved into Committee of the Whole.

---Unanimous consent granted

I seek consent to proceed with the second reading of Bill 66, An Act to Amend the Legislative Assembly Retiring Allowances Act and the Supplementary Retiring Allowances Act, today.

---Consent granted

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Premier mentioned that this morning we had a number of awards here at the Legislative Assembly today. Of those recognized of the single window service centres, I have three constituents out of those 22 people. Ms. Shandel McLeod, Ms. Diane Koe and Mrs. Maureen Cardinal-Clark were the three GSOs who we have in our communities.

They do a lot of work on our behalf, going visiting elders and people who cannot come out to the offices. They’re a great help to our communities and I hope that as we move forward that this program continues. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I move seconded by the honourable Member for Kam Lake, that Bill 66, An Act to Amend the Legislative Assembly Retiring Allowances Act and the Supplementary Retiring Allowances Act, be read for the second time.

Bill 66 amends the Legislative Assembly Retiring Allowances Act and the Supplementary Retiring Allowances Act so that the definition of child includes a child who is dependent upon the Member because of mental or physical impairment. The bill also makes adjustments to the definition of recipient so that the same terminology is used in each act.