Robert C. McLeod

First of all, a lot of work was done on the Whati road. The project was submitted. Funding was received for it. I don't think that you can underestimate the value of the road to the citizens of Tlicho and Whati and the benefits that it will bring to them. I don't think I need to point out the benefit, but there are a lot of benefits.

The same level of work on the Slave Geological Province has not been done yet, so I think it would be hard to compare the two, but we can never underestimate the value of making work for residents across the Northwest Territories who actually want to work. I think...

If the Member is asking if we assisted them financially to take a stake in the project, the answer is no.

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 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. 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 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.

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.

I understand that the Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment is reviewing the Mining Regulations and transparency and accountability principles, and that all will be taken into consideration as we move forward. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.