Kevin O'Reilly

Thanks, Mr. Chair. I move this committee recommends that the Mace, as a symbol of the authority of the people of the Northwest Territories, should be placed in the Chamber on its normal stand if possible and, if not, displayed in another manner in keeping with its symbolic significance during any remote sitting of the Assembly. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move that this committee recommends that the Legislative Assembly direct the Office of the Clerk to produce a reference guide for Members and staff outlining key changes and best practices to be used while sitting remotely; and further, that the Office of the Clerk be mandated to update the reference guide as needed as new practices are identified. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thanks, Mr. Chair. I do have a few comments here. In June, Members will recall that we passed changes to The Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act that now provide us with the authority to conduct remote sittings of the House. The Standing Committee on Rules and Procedures was tasked with providing some guidance to the Speaker on how and why the Assembly might sit remotely and when it would appropriate for a Member to take part remotely and what changes or amendments to rules might be needed to enable all of that. The committee reviewed emerging best practices from Parliament...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move that this committee recommends that, in the event a Member loses connection while delivering a Member's statement, the Speaker ask the Member to conclude their statement once they are reconnected, provided the House has not moved to another order; and further, in the event that Members' statements have been concluded when the Member reconnects, the Member's statement would be printed in full at the end of Member's statements. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Merci, Madame la Presidente. I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Deh Cho, that Motion 24-19(2), Changes to Committee Membership be amended by adding the following: AND FURTHERMORE, whereas Mr. Steve Norn was appointed to the Special Committee on Reconciliation and Indigenous Affairs by Motion 21-19(2) on October 29, 2020;

NOW THEREFORE I MOVE, seconded by the honourable Member for Deh Cho, that Mrs. Frieda Martselos replace Mr. Steve Norn as a member of the Special Committee on Reconciliation and Indigenous Affairs. Mahsi, Madam Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move that this committee recommends that, if a Minister attending remotely loses their connection when a question has been asked to that Minister, then the question shall be redirected to the Premier or designate to respond. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Merci, Madame la Presidente. I want to thank the Minister for that. I really look forward to counting carrots in the future. We are going to get some hard statistics. I spoke about how ITI's efforts on agriculture seem to be largely focused on business and commercial food production. I think that there is some real urgency in building a food security strategy here for the Northwest Territories. Can the Minister commit to developing a real food security strategy for the Northwest Territories that incorporates food self-sufficiency, including agriculture, country foods, inter-settlement trade...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move that this committee recommends that, when conducting a roll call, the Clerk call on the mover of the motion, followed by each Member attending remotely by order of their normal seat in the House, then each Member seated in the Chamber; and further, that, for Members attending remotely, they will be called no more than three times for their vote before the Clerk moves on to the next Member. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I want to thank the Minister for that. Could say something about fish there, but we had a great fish lunch today, too. I mentioned that the pandemic did disrupt some of our supply chains, put our food security at some risk. There was a lot of renewed interest in local food production. I mentioned some of the wonderful projects that took place this summer. It's not clear, though, whether we took full advantage of that convergence of events and interest. Can the Minister tell us what lessons we've learned about building food security during this pandemic?

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move that this committee recommends that, whenever a Member is attending session remotely, all votes on readings of bills, or on any motion that requires notice, be conducted as a recorded vote. Thank you, Mr. Chair.