Kieron Testart

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Again, this is another way that we can ensure transparency around the stated goals of carbon pricing to make sure that the impact on cost of living is going towards its intended purpose of mitigating the disastrous effects and deleterious effects of climate change on our fragile northern environment. The stated goals of this need to be around greenhouse gas emissions. Otherwise, why do it? This motion calls for exacting reporting on how effective the tax is being in meeting its stated public policy goals. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. During committee's review of the early stages of the carbon tax bill, the committee wrote to the department several times and encouraged them to bring forward reporting like this. There are models of carbon pricing in Canada, most notably in British Columbia, that require a tax plan to be tabled every four years, in the BC legislature, that clearly lays out how all of the money is being raised, where it is coming from, and where, ultimately, it is going to be spent. That is part of their budgetary process.

That kind of transparency and clarity is, the committee believes...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. This House is well aware of the shortfall to the municipal financing formula that is putting increased cost pressures on our local governments in the Northwest Territories. We have heard many of those governments be concerned that they will be passing on costs to their residents as a result of the shortfall.

The concern that the standing committee heard directly from the NWT Association of Communities is that, without specific rebates or grant programs provided to municipalities in light of the carbon tax, the additional taxes that will be paid on municipal vehicle fleets...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. This motion applies to much of the work of the standing committees of the Legislative Assembly. Oftentimes, the committee is put into a position of defending a government bill, and its role is rightfully to review that bill. Having access to some of the questions that the public wants to ask is crucial to ensure that we can clearly define the roles of the executive branch and the legislative branch and so those respective branches of government can operate effectively.

A plain language summary attached to the public consultations on bills such as this one would greatly...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. The Standing Committee on Government Operations concluded its review of Bill 42, An Act to Amend the Petroleum Products Tax Act; and Bill 43, An Act to Amend the Income Tax Act on August 7, 2019 with a public clause-by-clause review held at the Legislative Assembly building.

The committee read their substantive report into the House yesterday. To commence its review of Bill 42 and Bill 43, the Standing Committee on Government Operations sent letters inviting input from an extensive list of stakeholders, including all municipal and Indigenous governments in the Northwest...

Thank you. In response to the questions from the honourable Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh, the Minister made comments to the effect that we would repeal the carbon tax if the federal government scrapped the approach.

I would like to ask the Minister why he is so certain. That sounds like a decision made for the next government, and we have had a whole sitting here where Ministers are telling us that some decisions are left to the next government. Why is the Minister so confident that the next government will scrap the carbon tax once it is in place? I don't know how he is able to make those kind...

Thank you kindly. Speaking to the motion, I think that there is, of course, a real need for independent regulators in any jurisdiction, but these annual reports are important for the public's right to know about what regulators have been doing. I know there has been some concern that a prescriptive list is somehow impinging on the independence of the regulator, but I don't think that's, in fact, true in this case. As the honourable Member for Frame Lake said, this is laying out the decision points that are already in existence in the act and ensuring that there is guidance in the issuance of...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Committee would like to consider Bill 37, An Act to Amend the Oil and Gas Operations Act; Committee Report 24-18(3), Standing Committee on Social Development Report on the Review of Bill 48, Post-Secondary Education Act; and Bill 48, Post-Secondary Education Act. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

The federal government comes through with the gas tax funding; it comes through with additional money. This is not a federal issue. This is our issue. We created this formula, and we are not funding it. That is the issue here. This gap is entirely the responsibility of this government, no other government. I am sure the municipal governments respect what the Minister is bringing forward in support to get those federal dollars, but it's not enough. We need to plug it here, so has the Minister met with the newly elected mayor in council since the last election, and the NWTAC, and heard from them...

Well, this is not just something that Members are getting pressure from now. It's something that Members have advocated for for four years, since we got elected, and to hear that it's going to be the next government's problem is a naked example of passing the buck to our successors. What can be done in this sitting to address these issues?

---Laughter