Wendy Bisaro

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move that we report progress.

---Carried

I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Range Lake, that Committee Report 28-17(5), be received and adopted by this Assembly. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It was a real pleasure to come into the House today and see so many people in the gallery, and as Mr. Bromley said, some of them have lasted through our droning, others have had to go, but it was great to see so many people. It was also great to see so many people sitting on that side, the far side of the Assembly so that we can actually see them from the Regular Members’ seats.

I have two constituents who I want to recognize, Suzette Montreuil has had to go, but Mr. Kevin O’Reilly, who both he and Suzette have been great supporters. So, thank you both of you for coming...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yesterday I covered the good, the bad and the ugly. Today I want to take this last opportunity to speak to the House and use the prerogative that comes with my age to provide some advice to the Members of the 18th Assembly.

This Assembly has accomplished a lot, in spite of my negative comments yesterday. Work has been done, reports have been written, action plans developed, and I don’t want that work to get lost, so I will again subject the House to my views about what the 18th Assembly needs to follow up on.

First – and these are in no order of importance – the promised...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just want to make some brief remarks.

The fact that we need to have this motion indicates that the GNWT, the government and the Cabinet, have not recognized that climate change is having huge impacts on us as residents and on the territory in terms of environment and our lands. I would say we’ve paid lip service to climate change. We have reacted to climate change. But this is asking for us to plan for climate change, and to plan for climate change and mitigation of the effects of climate change, and it’s long overdue.

Mr. Bromley has laid out a number of the things...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to report to the Assembly Committee Report 28-17(5), Standing Committee on Priorities and Planning Report on Transition Matters.

Thanks again, colleagues.

ENR and Lands have promised assessments for the developments that we have within the territory to chart the unknowns. Make sure that they’re done.

ENR and Lands have promised securities for those developments and liabilities to make sure that those happen and that we get the money that is deserved in order to clean up.

Climate Change Plan. The development of a Climate Change Plan is necessary.

Health and Social Services has promised us a Pharmaceutical Strategy.

The Human Rights Commission has done a wonderful review of the Human Rights Act. We need to make sure that...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My comments will be brief. I appreciate the mover and the seconder for bringing the motion forward. As a member of the Standing Committee on Social Programs, I was party to an update from the department last month on what they are doing in regard to the Medical Travel Policy. As I understand it and remember from that update, they are in the process of developing recommendations around non-medical escorts. So my preference is to wait for that recommendation and that work to come from the department.

I agree with most of what is in the suggested motion, but I can’t say...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It’s my next to last opportunity to address this House. My almost last chance to say what I want, how I want, with no worries of repercussions. Parliamentarians are so lucky to have the privilege we do in regard to speaking in the House. It seems a bit strange that I will not be back in this Chamber after tomorrow except as a visitor, but you should all know I am quite comfortable with that. I’ve made no secret that I am looking forward to retirement, and I will definitely not miss the 14-hour session days.

So I want to subject you all to a look back to my perspective on...

That kind of helps. With regard to all the developments and the potential liabilities that we have, I know that there is a listing of those, because through devolution there was a listing of everything in the territory, what the GNWT would take over and what would remain with the feds.

I’d like to know, at this point, have we done assessments on the majority of the developments that we are responsible for or that we hold? One of the examples that comes to mind for me is the Ptarmigan Mine out on the Ingraham Trail. It’s been sitting there for a very long time and nothing has been done with it...