Michael Miltenberger

That would require a change, I understand, to the legislation.

The area that is of most interest, the preferred vehicle for everybody we talked to, is the area of new revenue that is not going to come from taxes. The things we have talked about are in terms of the population growing carefully and developing revenue streams in a broadened economic base. For example, the Minister of ITI would be glad to talk to you about the recent diamond cutting operation that has set up an operation in Yellowknife. It is an opportunity that has been realized.

Those are the types of things that I think people are keenly interested in. They tell us as well as the government...

I don’t agree with the label of “fiasco.” The Member himself has asked in this House, if I can quote from page 1194 of Hansard, June 12, where he asked the Finance Minister of the day:

“What is he doing on revenue options? What is he doing to put new revenue options on the table for the Territories to go forward so we can make up for these ups and downs in our revenue stream?”

He further goes on to say:

“The issue really is: when are we going to deal with this issue? The fact is that there are no revenue generating initiatives in this. We’ve heard: We’re going to think about it. We plan to do it...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Within government and financial administration there is some ability to move money, depending on in between activities, within activities. There is a clear process to do that. If a department is managing its budget and they have issued a number of priorities but they have funds they can move within those parameters, then departments have some latitude to do that. The issue of lapses at year-end…. Some money is specifically coffered, as they say, or identified only for the purpose that it was voted for. In government there is some ability to move money within...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We’re considering, as we look at potential taxes that were laid out in the options paper, that the new ones would probably require new legislation. As well, depending on which tax it is, it would require a new collection and administration. So, yes, those are issues that we have to factor in and subtract from the potential gains from those types of taxes.

First it was Dijon mustard; now it’s red herring. I don’t even particularly care for fish.

However, clearly, Mr. Speaker, we have left everything on the table. As we look at concluding the consultation process, we will look at all the options that are there. I laid out yesterday some very significant potential revenue generators in terms of the territorial nominee program for immigration that we believe could bring in as many as 150 new Northerners a year plus their families. I also suggested and laid out the option to look at fully using the SEAs, socio-economic agreements, which are bilateral...

We don’t have that level of detail, but we can commit to providing it to the committee.

What I would like to offer to do is to share the information we have on the issue of regulating fuel prices and gas prices with the Member, the Chair of the EDI committee, and whatever other information they may require. Then we can sit down and have a discussion so that we’re talking from the same base of information. We’ll see as we move forward what may be possible. Clearly, there’s been work done in other jurisdictions, and I’ll commit to doing that so that we can have that informed discussion.

Mr. Speaker, I am happy to be able to acknowledge and recognize a constituent of mine, Mr. Ron Shaefer. With him is his niece Renee Grandejambe. Welcome to the Assembly.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. In my understanding of a revolving fund, it implies that there’s money moving in and money moving out. With forest fires generally the money moves out as we fight fires. The budget that has been set by the Assembly has been over a number of years set to be what we think is, based on a basic average, what we could make do with, with the understanding that if there is a bad fire season — hot weather or something happens that’s untoward — we will come back and ask for more money as opposed to…. My understanding is that in previous times they would have a fairly large fire...