Robert C. McLeod

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There is some concern with the sugar-sweetened drinks tax. We have changed the name. It was going to be the "sugary tax," but we have decided to change it to the "sugar-sweetened" because there are a number of drinks that are sugary that are not sugar-sweetened.

The consultation, as the Member noted, ended in January 2019. We have had public meetings in a number of communities, and we have heard from members of the public. The report of the results of the public consultations is anticipated for March of 2019, so March would start tomorrow, the next day, and then March...

The direct construction costs are $185 million, as was noted previously. The total capital cost was $214 million, as was noted previously as well as some of the reasons the cost was that high. The $400 million through the P3 partnership, that would represent the total value of the 28-year contract with NorthStar Infrastructure, who are the proponents of the Whati road, of which 25 years of operations and maintenance payments are included.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Hay River South, that Bill 38, the Protected Areas Act, be read for the second time.

This bill sets out the processes for establishing a protected area in the Northwest Territories. It sets out how to nominate a candidate area to be considered for protected area status. It also provides a mechanism for entering into established agreements with Indigenous governments or organizations for the management of a protected area.

The bill sets out detailed regulation-making authorities so that each protected area may be...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Yellowknife South, that Bill 39, the Environmental Rights Act, be read for the second time. This bill takes steps to modernize and broaden the existing Environmental Rights Act. It updates language use in the current act to make it consistent with more recent legislation. It broadens existing rights under the act to request an investigation, prosecute an offence, and bring an action. The bill provides correspondingly broader protections for employees who engage in those and other processes.

With respect to the right to...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Yellowknife South, that Bill 38, Protected Areas Act, be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Hay River South, that Bill 39, Environmental Rights Act, be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I give notice that, on Monday, February 25, 2019, I will move that Bill 38, Protected Areas Act, be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Department of Finance, we are aware of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative standard for reporting. To date, the government has reported aggregate royalties rather than royalties by mine to respect the confidentiality of financial information of individual mines, as required per the Northwest Territories Lands Act.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The resource royalties for the period from 1999 to 2013 by commodity type were not provided because the information that is available combines the Northwest Territories information with data from the other three territories. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, thank you. I give notice that, on Monday, February 25, 2019, I will move that Bill 39, Environmental Rights Act, be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.