Kieron Testart

Mr. Speaker, it would appear the Minister doesn’t have a lot of these details readily available for Members of this House and for members of the public. I would strongly encourage that we resolve this with a real plan for what this research centre is going to look like and communicate this new resource to the public. In fact, when we’re looking for efficiencies perhaps we could find them, but how much money is this going to save in the end, Mr. Speaker? It seems like there’s still a lot of details, but how much money will closing the library save? Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, the department indicates that it will be replacing the library with a new research centre. Can the Minister give us more detail about what this research centre is going to be all about? Are we talking about a few surplus computers in a dimly-lit room or is this something more substantial? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in almost every province and territory, organizations have been set up to provide essential legal information to the public at large. These nonprofit and nongovernmental groups believe that citizens cannot fully understand, much less exercise their legal rights unless they are informed and understand the laws that affect them. These groups differ from a lawyer’s office or a legal aid clinic by providing general information on the law rather than legal advice for specific problems. Mr. Speaker, I was curious about public legal information in the NWT, and...

Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thank you to the Minister for his comments. Can I get the total amount that it’s subscribed by in dollar figures, if the department has that handy? Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I noticed community tourism infrastructure, remains at $100,000. Does the department have an inventory of the project that it supports and can it share what that money went towards in 2015-16? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Could I have more detail about the convention bureau, what’s planned with that initiative? Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you to the Minister for clarifying that. I think that’s a very interesting example, and in the context of food security and traditional activities, that’s a very important piece of the puzzle that I wouldn’t have considered, so I appreciate the Minister sharing that with us. I think this is a way that our government can be a leader on this is if we make those kinds of decisions that listen to our people, and especially, it reinforces that nation-to-nation dialogue that’s going to be so important for Canada moving forward. I wish her all the best in this approach. I...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, certainly the issue of core need is a complex one. I don’t think any Members of this Assembly underestimate how challenging it will be to solve. What this motion does is provide clear direction that is both measureable and achievable to this government to address a serious problem here in the NWT. If it is true that the national core need statistic doesn’t apply to the North, well my constituents don’t feel it that way. They’re looking for relief in terms of affordability, and I think the same can be said for many of the constituents, at least the Regular...

Thank you to the Premier for his response. Yesterday as well we heard from the Premier that the return on investment for the Mineral Incentive Program is at three to one, which is quite commendable. In a time when we need significant economic activity here, in the North, to get our growth back on track, why have we not invested more resources into this very important program that has such a high return and impact on our economy? It sits at $400,000. In the Yukon, a similar program is at $1 million. Why have we not committed more resources to stimulate our economy directly and create some jobs...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yesterday, the Premier as Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment spoke about the government’s efforts to support the mining industry. My questions about that today: the federal government recently renewed its mining tax credit, but it remains consistent throughout the country. I’m wondering if the Premier has discussed creating a higher credit for the North out of that tax credit and working the federal government to further incentivize the mining industry by expanding that tax credit for the three northern jurisdictions. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.