Norman Yakeleya

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to ask the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, in terms of the questions that Mr. Krutko, the Mackenzie Delta MLA, has been asking in regard to the outfitters. The bigger picture here that I want to ask this Minister is confirming that the government is taking all the appropriate steps to ensure that full legal compliance with the Sahtu Dene and Metis Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement in regard to this issue and probably to other issues that are going to be looked at.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As the Member for Mackenzie Delta has stated, the owners of this sale are mostly the foreign people, Americans, in terms of this new outfitting business. Now I want to ask the Minister in terms of the licensing of the outfitter areas, we have a percentage in the Sahtu. Again, does that automatically make a new licence or amend the licence so this new outfitter can operate in our region without getting the proper consent from the Sahtu people under our land claim that is constitutionally protected?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This government has an obligation to respect the rights given to the people in the Sahtu and their claim. The honour of the Crown demands no less. Mr. Speaker, at the appropriate time I will be asking the Minister questions about this matter. Thank you.

Certainly as I stand here with my friend from the Mackenzie Delta in terms of this issue, I want to again say when this issue came up...Has the Minister considered going to an arbitration panel in terms of this important issue? It’s very important in my region. Has the Minister thought to look at a process through an arbitration panel?

Mr. Speaker, I rise today on a matter of great importance to my constituents in the Sahtu region. Mr. Speaker, in June of this year I raised in the House the issue of the potential sale of Arctic Red Outfitters Limited and this government’s legal and moral obligations to honour the requirements of the Sahtu Land Claim. At this time, I question the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources about the proposed sale of the Arctic Red Outfitters and their right for first refusal for the licence that the people of Sahtu had pursuant to our land claim. Mr. Miltenberger committed to getting back...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the residential school survivors have an interagency committee within this territorial government. This has been supportive in ways that are beneficial. I want to take it a step further. I do know there is not a resident residential school advisor to the Department of Executive. Again, I would ask the Premier, once he does research this request, would he come forward to the House and have suggestions to appointing an advisor to the Department of Executive such as the Women’s Advisory Council had?

Some of the parents had sent their kids, or were told to send their kids, or kids were taken to these residential schools. Some of these parents, when they wanted to visit their children, had to stay outside the building and put their camps there and visit their children. There are lots of issues that need to be resolved there. I want to ask the Minister, the Women’s Advisory office provides a point of contact within the GNWT on issues of concern to women, would the Premier consider appointing a residential school advisor who would have a similar mandate to be a point of contact with our...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d certainly be anxious to look at the due process in terms of this licence. I’ll ask the Minister again in terms of the outfitters and in terms of the wildlife officers that do monitor the outfitters in terms of wildlife meat, my understanding is there’s just over 8,000 pounds of meat that’s being taken out by the outfitters and that is equivalent to about $75,000 worth if you were to buy that in a retail store. Can the Minister confirm to me or answer to me in terms of this wildlife food that’s being taken out, that every part of this wildlife food is being...

In terms of the monitoring, I would ask the Minister, if his department could review the obligations in terms of this government, the aboriginal governments and the invited guests, the outfitters, in terms of the agreements here? In terms of monitoring, there are certain provisions within our regulations that would be very helpful in terms of working on a committed agreement by our communities and the outfitters in terms of employment, in terms of wildlife meat coming into the communities. Can the Minister look at having a review if all parties could sit down and see where we could strengthen...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Certainly the Member for Mackenzie Delta and probably myself look forward to working with the Minister on the new Wildlife Act. Certainly, in between now and then, as the Member for Mackenzie Delta has alluded to in terms of some of the changes that we could foresee in terms of working with the land claim organizations, these are the aboriginal governments for our region.

In this issue here with the outfitter, would the Minister be committed to coming to sit down with the two respective land claim organizations and look at the issues that we need to resolve? How do we...