We’re not interested in being second-class citizens in our own land anymore, and I will commit to having conversations with my counterpart in our sister territories and see how we can work as a unit to try and address this issue.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my understanding was that funding was not addressed in any detail during the devolution negotiations as legislative responsibility for the MVRMA or its boards remain with the Government of Canada. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I would have to sit down and have a conversation with the Member and try to explain how this works. You know, the cash that’s generated from our operations in 2014-15 was about $175 million, as was reported in the public documents. We were able to generate this level of cash from our operations because of the $95 million surplus achieved in 2014-15, which included about $80 million for non-cash items like amortization expense and all the GNWT needs to account for. Again, as I said before, it is a very difficult document to read without properly understanding it, and I would be glad to sit down...

Mr. Speaker, also in the statement there was a comment that the Minister of Finance was unable to explain the public accounts, well which makes perfect sense because I was not at that briefing. It was a technical briefing given by the officials of the department, so I just wanted to make that point. To the Member’s questions, I take her point; it is a very taxing document to read. I will make the commitment to work with my officials to have it available in a plainer language that’s easier for us to understand.

Mr. Speaker, as I said before, the water rates in the community reflect the cost of delivering water in the community. For a long time the community had very low water rates that were never adjusted and there was a bit of a sticker shock when they were adjusted, but I commend the community of McPherson. They stepped up to the plate and they realized that they were doing their part. We can review the whole thing, but to go back to the water rates that they had before would probably just put them back into the position that they were in before.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, we work with the community. We explain to them the situation that was in the community and some of the changes that had to be made, that we made some adjustment to some of the rates in the community. I can be glad to say that the financial situation in the community has improved. We are looking at reinstating the council and mayor in the fall. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document entitled “Inter-Activity Transfers Exceeding $250,000, April 1, 2015, to March 31, 2016.” Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

We as well would like our public to have confidence in our ability to deal with any type of development in the land that we look after. I will have conversations with my counterparts. We have a meeting coming up with the federal Minister. We can raise the issue at the time and see what the feedback is from the federal government, and we’ll use that as a go-forward basis. If we have to partner up with our neighbours, then we will do that. Again, as I said, we do want the public to have confidence in our ability to deal with any issues concerning the land.

GNWT Ministers are going to be meeting with the federal Minister of Environment and Climate Change next month, and I can assure the Member that this issue will be raised at that time.

I’m not sure what the consequences are, maybe there’s an empty seat here, I don’t know. I will have a conversation with my officials, I’m sure we’ve met the requirements to the Fiscal Responsibility Policy, because I’m sure if we hadn’t then we’d be called onto the carpet for that, but I will confirm that and I will have a conversation with my officials.