Daniel McNeely

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I too will be voting in favour of the budget. Recapping, before I continue, I would pay respect to all the previous presentations from my colleagues on this side of the House and the other side of the House. And when I look back at the very beginning of the Minister of Finance's announcement 13 months ago on Restoring Balance, that was the approach that we took, and knowing through experience there's going to be some hard decisions to be made. And the cost overruns have really got to be reflected to the hardships faced by the Sahtu region, particularly during last...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I too would like to recognize deputy minister Steve Loutitt and all the wonderful work and support he has given the department, particular to the Mackenzie Valley Highway and the other projects. And additionally, I would also like to recognize, on our last day of the session, the hardworking staff of the Assembly and our interpreters. I hope you enjoy the break, spring. Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This policy is a revised policy from the 30-year-old one. And I've seen a number of changes in the positions, northern Indigenous positions, in the Sahtu. I recall years ago we never had a regional superintendent from the region. Now we do, so that tells me that things have changed since way back then. However there's always room for improvements on efficiencies, and certainly similar to this policy and every policy that this government has, it's only good as the implementation. And if you want to measure that success, then we can do a survey, an analysis on the...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the winter snowfall has not been at levels we had hoped. I fear the Sahtu will suffer the same disastrous low water levels that forced Marine Transport Services to halt all shipping to Sahtu like previous summers.

The communities of the Sahtu rely heavily on our winter road system and summer marine transportation for essential supplies. When either of these critical transportation networks fail, our communities face costly consequences. Mr. Speaker, what happens if we cannot complete all scheduled deliveries before the winter road closes? What happens if...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thank to the Premier for the explanation for that previous question.

My last question, can the Premier explain the mandate of the envoy position and specifically say whether this will be a permanent position within the Premier's office or just temporarily support head of the federal election. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Further to my statement, my questions are a follow-up and directed to the Premier. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Premier has said the territory is in discussions with the federal government to push for tangible action like competitive mining incentives and a strong federal partnership. What work is the senior envoy doing to support the economic mandate of the Assembly at these discussions? Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thanks to the Premier for that clarification.

My second question, can the Premier explain the transparency measures and the process for how the work of the envoy to the Government of Canada will be reported back to the House. Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. GNWT strategies for federal engagements. I want to discuss today the Northwest Territories economic strategy and preparedness.

Mr. Speaker, in February, the Premier announced the new position of senior envoy to the Government of Canada with a presence in both Yellowknife and Ottawa. I believe this position will strengthen our engagements and relationships, but there must be clear objectives.

Mr. Speaker, there's no question that the Government of the Northwest Territories needs and depends largely on federal funding to advance its infrastructure agenda. We have heard that...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thanks to the Minister for that reply. It seems to me there was a lot of excitement on advancing in a productive kind of way during the session.

My third question: It sounds like there has been good progress. What are the primary barriers to internal trade that would remain? Mahsi.

Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My first question following up on my statement earlier is to the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment. As the chair of the committee of internal trade, what key accomplishments have been achieved under NWT's leadership? Mahsi.