Kieron Testart

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, Northerners keep getting told that our system of carbon pricing is more flexible than the federal model, but it seems to me that the only flexibility we have is to copy what they're doing in Ottawa when the dictates of Parliament come down to us. So can the Minister of Finance tell me, is the GNWT simply mirroring changes made to the federal backstop with our own carbon pricing regime? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, on the heels of a global pandemic and devastating floods, an unprecedented wildfire season forced more than twothirds of the Northwest Territories to evacuate. The roads were packed with cars while the largest airlift in Canadian history brought residents to cities some had never stepped foot in before. As Northerners, we are still coping with this collective trauma. In this House, we must also cope with the public's loss in faith in our governments and institutions. Communication leading up to and during the crisis was confusing and contradictory...

Thank you. Does the Premier believe that filling those vacancies will correct the issue, and we'll see the rates of timeliness improve? Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, the department didn't respond or didn't request an extension when this matter was delayed. Can the Minister respond why his hardworking staff were unable to do so? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, are these two fulltime access to information and protection privacy coordinators, or are they do they have other duties in the department? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, Kent Cooper, former executive director of the Associated Press, is often credited with coining the term "right to know." Stated as early as 1945 that the citizen is entitled to have access to news fully and accurately presented. There cannot be political freedom in one country, or in the world, without respect for the right to know. In the years since, the public's right to know has extended to public governments as well.

As noted here in the Northwest Territories, our Information and Privacy Commissioner Andrew Fox stated: Government has to facilitate the...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate that the Minister and I have been able to coordinate to work successfully on this in the past. I'd like to work with him again. When will this review be completed as access to information, the public's right to know, is a fundamental priority of any public government. So when will this new review be completed and we could consider it? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my friend, the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, was too modest. I think his hardworking staff is actually overworked staff. So I'd like to ask the Premier, in his responsibility as Minister of Justice, how the government is supporting the access to information regime in the Northwest Territories considering the high demand from the public and the low rate of responsiveness from the government as an entire entity? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, is that enough given the slow response time and the increase in requests; is two enough? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it's been in the news recently that the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs was recently ordered by the Information and Privacy Commissioner to provide disclosure to an access request. And I use the term "recently" loosely because they were six months behind their deadline.

Can the Minister respecting the privacy of the parties involved, can the Minister tell us why there was such an egregious delay in getting one of our citizens access to the information they rightfully deserve? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.