Jane Groenewegen

Thank you, Minister Miltenberger. Next under general comments I have Mr. Nadli.

Thank you. We’ve made general comments. Could I direct Members’ attention to page 27, which we will stand down initially. Actually, we’ll go first to general comments. General comments on the Department of Finance. Any general comments? Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you. Does committee agree?

Thank you, committee. We will commence after a brief break.

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I’d like to call Committee of the Whole to order. The Speaker has listed some of the things that are before Committee of the Whole today. What is the wish of committee? Ms. Bisaro.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I’ll be very brief. There’s been reference made in these general comments and this discussion to our revenues by way of our transfer payment, which is somewhat based on the population of our territory and our government’s desire to attract more people to live in the Northwest Territories to curb our declining population. My question, I guess, and comment for the Minister is, if you were listening to the debate and discussion amongst us about this at any given time, you would think that every potential job in the Northwest Territories was a Government of the Northwest...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It sounds, from what the Premier is saying, that the focus of the second Energy Charrette is going to be away from the infrastructure more to breaking it down to the consumer.

Is the make-up or the composition of the people who will be participating in the second Energy Charrette going to reflect that shift in focus? Thank you.

So it sounds like the first Energy Charrette, then, did produce some very positive results and some recommendations and some plans.

I would like to ask the Premier if we as a government are in a position financially to act on some of those long-range plans.

Has there already been action taken or is there some action to come that we can afford to undertake in the government? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Although not technically in the gallery, just on the other side of that wall, I’d like to recognize my constituency assistant today, Wendy Morgan, who is celebrating a very special milestone birthday. So if you see her today – I don’t want to name the number, but you can guess. It’s a big one.

---Laughter

Wait a minute. I didn’t mean that. It’s an important one. It’s an important one.

Wendy has worked as my assistant for over 15 years. I just texted Mr. Miltenberger; his assistant, Denise, has been with him since he was elected, I believe. So I think these two ladies hold...

I would like to ask the Premier if the recent statistics on the low water and the impact that had on our hydro production has caused any shift in the plan that was developed as a result of the Energy Charrette. Obviously, we don’t know how long this is going to continue to be a problem, but it might have resulted in some kind of correction to our plans going forward given the outcome of this past year’s water levels and hydro interruptions. Thank you.