Statements in Debates
I think I'm going to move on because I'm not getting anywhere. I want to ask about the status. Is there any money in here for there was supposed to be a new NWT Arts Strategy, and I'm not sure where that falls between ECE and ITI. Maybe I could get an update of the status of that and what involvement ITI has and whether there is any money in here for that. Thanks, Madam Chair.
Thanks, Madam Chair. Yes. I appreciate that. I just want to get a little bit more clarification of what this work bid forfeiture actually is. Does this mean that Husky has surrendered its exploration licence and that they are not going to be carrying out I think it was over $300 million worth of work that they were required to carry out to keep their exploration licence in good standing? Is that what has happened here? Thanks, Madam Chair.
Thanks, Madam Chair. Okay, so now I've got a total of $300,000. The Minister, I think, mentioned $350,000 in her opening remarks, and then I got a figure of $200,000 here. Look, I'm not an accountant, but something just doesn't seem to be quite right, there. Can I get a better explanation? Thanks, Madam Chair.
Thanks, Madam Chair. I want to put some questions about the revenue somewhere because this is the only place revenues show up for this department. There are a couple of ducks here that need to be flushed out. The line on 204, licenses, rental, and other fees, the main estimates for last year showed $2.4 million, but the revised estimates actually show $47.7 million. Is this a typo? Thanks, Madam Chair.
Thanks, Madam Chair. I do have some questions about those other items. I see that they are covered through the other activities, so I'll wait until we get to those other ones. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thanks, Madam Chair. I appreciate that response. Is there a publicly available plan or schedule or anything to do this work? I have yet to see that, and I am as anxious as the Minister to get some of this work done. I am not aware of any public plans or schedules to do this. Thanks, Madam Chair.
Thanks, Madam Chair. Committee would like to consider Tabled Document 286-19(2), Main Estimates 2021-2022, with the Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment. Thanks, Madam Chair.
Thanks, Madam Chair. If it walks like a duck, talks like a duck, smells like a duck, it is a duck. This is core funding. Look, I'm sure that meeting every two weeks with the chamber is great. I wish that all NGOs had that kind of access to our departments. That's really great, but I don't see a similar sort of increase for other NGOs that get core funding. I am just going to leave that there for now, Madam Chair. I want to go over to the line item on 215, which is Mineral and Petroleum Resources Act implementation. The Minister, in her opening remarks, talked about how there is $360,000 for...
Merci, Monsieur le President. I want to thank the Minister again for that. This government's anti-poverty strategic framework dates from 2013. Many of the key indicators around income disparity, food security, housing, and more have actually gotten worse since 2013. Can the Minister tell us when there will be a formal evaluation of our poverty work and more systemic solutions put forward such as guaranteed basic income, a living wage, or even economic restructuring? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thanks, Madam Chair. I want to continue on the line of my colleague about staff that we have that are dedicated to oil and gas. Look, I know some of these people. They are hardworking. The reality is: there hasn't been any exploration, seismic drilling, since devolution, seven years ago. I'm not quite sure what everybody does, but yesterday, we heard about OROGO having a third-party assessment done of their resource needs. Is that something that the Minister is prepared to look at in terms of the oil and gas function within ITI, having a third-party assessment to look at resourcing? Thanks...