Kevin O'Reilly

Thank you, Mr. Chair. This is, as I understand it, well, let's start with this: can the Minister explain what this additional appropriation is and what will it accomplish for junior kindergarten? Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thanks, Mr. Chair. I don't always want to get the last word in, but I think and I understand the concern from my honourable colleague. There was, I think, a motion or two earlier here that does deal with the issue of the voter's list and preserving the ability for the public to scrutinize it and make corrections to it.

The intent of this motion is to ensure that the Chief Electoral Officer has the ability to make agreements with other agencies to make sure that we have a better voter's list in the first place. That is what the intention of this motion is, so I think it meets your concern by...

Merci, Monsieur le President. My questions are for the Minister of Environment and his leadership role for our climate change efforts. In my statement, I summarized the findings of the audit released yesterday that clearly shows our failures as a government to mitigate and adapt to climate change. Our GHG strategies fail to reduce emissions. We did not provide information to allow others to take action on climate change and we have serious long-standing deficiencies affecting ENR leadership on climate change have not been addressed.

For the Minister, and I would like some specifics if he can...

Thanks, Mr. Chair. This is a recommendation where the committee actually, we had a very different recommendation from the Chief Electoral Officer, and I believe it was in her supplementary report to the general election where she had actually recommended that chartered accountants be signing off on the financial reports. Although we understand the intent behind her recommendation, the fact is that there are so few chartered accountants and that they are only in the larger communities that we believe that would have formed a barrier and a significant barrier for potential candidates, so we have...

Thanks. I have spoken about the unusual nature of this funding coming through the Executive and not part of the O and M budget, not part of the regular project planning. What kind of assurance can I get from the Minister that, when it comes to other road projects, whether it is Whati or whatever, that these sorts of costs and proper project planning are going to become part of the normal cycle of developing a plan for similar projects in the future, like the Whati or the Tlicho all-season road? Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. This is recommendation 14. I move that this Assembly recommends that the Elections and Plebiscites Act be amended to enable the Chief Electoral Officer at a by-election to direct use of voting equipment, vote counting equipment, or alternative voting methods that differ from those required elsewhere in the act. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I don't want to speak on this at length, but I personally had heard a number of complaints about our students in particular not getting absentee ballots while they were down south studying. Certainly, it happened for my son. The Chief Electoral Officer did identify this as a problem and an issue, and she brought this forward as a recommendation, so I am more than happy to increase opportunities for our students to participate in our elections. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thanks, Mr. Chair. That is helpful information. I am just wondering if someone can explain, then, to me why this is not really in the O and M budget, and why this is not really part of the regular project planning for something like a new highway. Can someone explain why this is not part of the regular project funding and in the O and M budget? Thanks, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. This is recommendation 13. I move that this Assembly recommends that the Elections and Plebiscites Act be amended to enable the Chief Electoral Officer to develop and make materials available to schools for distribution to students who have reached voting age or will soon do so, including information on the NWT's electoral process, the right to vote, how to have one's name added to the register of electors, and any other matter that the Chief Electoral Officer considers useful to electors and prospective electors. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. This is the fourth recommendation. Mr. Chair, I move that this Assembly recommends that the Elections and Plebiscites Act be amended to limit and regulate third-party election advertising related to candidates and/or policy. Thank you, Mr. Chair.