Joe Handley

Mr. Speaker, there has been a lot of work done over the last 20 years. I think until a year ago, we had made a considerable amount of progress up to July 2005, in fact to the point where the aboriginal leaders were going to recommend or the negotiators were going to recommend to their leaders acceptance of an agreement-in-principle on devolution. That took us to the six issues. Mr. Speaker, I don’t think the federal government should start from a clean slate. I think there is a lot of work out there that’s been done and I think they should start with that. My recommendation to both Minister...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. No, that is not my personal belief. I believe that when someone brings this kind of situation forward -- and I realize it is very difficult for them to bring it forward -- that we have to make assumptions that what they’re bringing forward is valid. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, all of the six questions are between the Government of Canada and the Government of the Northwest Territories. All of them are of interest to aboriginal organizations and governments as well, particularly the one that deals with how we will treat offshore resources. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Let me say, first of all, that I have issued an apology for the comments that I made. I realize they were inappropriate and they may have hurt people, and I am sincerely sorry for that. Mr. Speaker, I always have to take ownership about any comments I make, whether they’re taken out of context or not. Mr. Speaker, whether it’s a phrase out of something I said or whatever, I hold myself responsible for those comments. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Member’s question is with regard to what we are doing with industry and that falls within the responsibility of the Minister for ITI. I will refer it to him. I recognize that he also carried on with some discussion about fiscal issues as well. I will leave it to the Minister of ITI to respond. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. On June 21st, the people across the Northwest Territories will once again be celebrating National Aboriginal Day. This year marks the 10th anniversary of National Aboriginal Day celebrations in Canada. It is also the fifth anniversary of the National Aboriginal Day Act, which made the Northwest Territories the first and only jurisdiction in Canada to recognize the day as a formal statutory holiday.

---Applause

Mr. Speaker, this is important to me as Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Intergovernmental Relations and as Premier because it demonstrates how strongly we feel...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. On June 21st, the people across the Northwest Territories will once again be celebrating National Aboriginal Day. This year marks the 10th anniversary of National Aboriginal Day celebrations in Canada. It is also the fifth anniversary of the National Aboriginal Day Act, which made the Northwest Territories the first and only jurisdiction in Canada to recognize the day as a formal statutory holiday.

---Applause

Mr. Speaker, this is important to me as Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Intergovernmental Relations and as Premier because it demonstrates how strongly we feel...

Mr. Speaker, in recent months we have seen energy prices reach record levels. The continued high demand for energy resources in growing economies such as India and China will likely mean energy prices will remain high for the foreseeable future.

As a result of these worldwide pressures on energy supply and costs, it is imperative that the Northwest Territories address our own energy usage and underlying cause of increased energy costs. In the short term, this means we must do more to reduce consumption and increase energy efficiency. We must also recognize our longer-term goal of identifying...

Mr. Speaker, in recent months we have seen energy prices reach record levels. The continued high demand for energy resources in growing economies such as India and China will likely mean energy prices will remain high for the foreseeable future.

As a result of these worldwide pressures on energy supply and costs, it is imperative that the Northwest Territories address our own energy usage and underlying cause of increased energy costs. In the short term, this means we must do more to reduce consumption and increase energy efficiency. We must also recognize our longer-term goal of identifying...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I think Members have raised some good points here. There are some requests for information that neither the client department or Public Works have tonight. We can go on and on about why things didn’t happen or why we didn’t do this or that, or we could do a vote and make another decision that a lot of people feel is foolish or wrong. With that, Mr. Chairman, I think it’s necessary to get more information. ECE doesn’t know how much space they would need if they were going to build a new building. We need that kind of information. So, Mr. Chairman, with that, I move...