Robert Hawkins

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to report to the Assembly that the Standing Committee on Economic Development and Infrastructure has reviewed the following bills: Bill 45, An Act to Amend the Workers’ Compensation Act; Bill 49, An Act to Amend the Deh Cho Bridge Act; Bill 60, An Act to Amend the Motor Vehicles Act, No. 2; Bill 61, An Act to Amend the Public Airports Act; and Bill 65, An Act to Amend the Safety Act.

Mr. Speaker, the standing committee wishes to report that Bills 49, 60 and 61 are ready for consideration in Committee of the Whole and Bills 45 and 65 are amended and reprinted and...

As we all know, time and time again, that budgets aren’t drafted overnight. It takes many months and planning, Mr. Speaker, and many months and planning without Members that just show up on our desks before they need to be approved.

That said, the reality is the public service, the management, the bureaucracy, you name it, they’ve spent many months of planning. I am asking about what exercises are being drafted now for consideration going forward. Yes, these budget exercises may be the final ultimate decision of the 18th Assembly and when it rolls in, minus a couple of Members, it might be a...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have questions for the Minister of Finance about jobs. As I mentioned in my Member’s statement today, my concerns are about public service jobs and fair and transparent notice.

I’ve been told by our program managers that they’ve not been filling positions and they’ve pulled some off the table during competition processes because deficits are growing and they’re recognizing this both in the regular public service as well as in our authorities, which are ultimately a responsibility of the House.

Finally, the Members at large have seen the fiscal outlook, and frankly...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As this Assembly rolls closer and closer to its final days, I can honestly say, “Thank goodness.” The problem I see now is not watching the journey of the four years that have come and gone but it’s what is in store for the next four years.

Take for instance when I returned to the House in 2007, only then we learned about the Roland government’s butchering and contriving of cutting 135 jobs and $135 million out of the budget of the day, not to mention the bridge surprise which, of course, all came out of nowhere.

So where did it come from? Well, the simple marching...

Well, first of all, Mr. Speaker, I thank those who have spoken in favour of the motion, and those who spoke against the motion, I probably won’t thank you at this time. But in the spirit of consensus government, I do recognize and appreciate and respect your perspectives.

I did hear a few things and they did cause me great concern. Mr. Speaker, this is a very important question, the plebiscite question on hydraulic fracturing. The reality here before us, though, is if we can’t use the Plebiscite Act for stuff this important, why bother having it?

I heard the cries of people suggesting things...

WHEREAS the Elections and Plebiscites Act provides that the Commissioner may, on the recommendation of the Legislative Assembly, direct that a plebiscite be held on any question that is of importance to the people of the Northwest Territories;

AND WHEREAS discussion and debate of hydraulic fracturing in the Northwest Territories has entered public discourse;

AND WHEREAS the government has recognized the significance of public engagement in this area and announced that engagement on proposed hydraulic fracturing regulations will continue until at least August 2015;

AND WHEREAS, to date, this...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Your Standing Committee on Economic Development and Infrastructure continues its review of the proposed hydraulic fracturing filing regulations. I am pleased to table its Research Summary: Draft Hydraulic Fracturing Filing Regulations. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’m going to use my questions today to follow up on my Member’s statement, which was when I talked about the idea and certainly the issue of the establishment of an environment award.

As I said just briefly in my Member’s statement, we have great awards such as the Premier’s Awards, Education Hall of Fame Awards, Sport North, volunteer, and the list certainly goes on in many deserving areas that need to be recognized.

Not to take away but to add to this opportunity, I’m going to ask the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, would he believe that there would be...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yesterday we had the honour of hearing from our Premier through the Premier’s Awards. Last week we had seen and heard very well about the great work through the Education Awards. Recently, many of us attended the Sport North Awards to recognize sport, and often we hear about the great volunteer awards, literacy awards, fire service awards, and the list continues on.

A noticeable absent group to recognize is environment awards. Why are there no environment stewardship awards? Let us use this opportunity with what better way to recognize their leadership and commitment...

Mr. Speaker, today’s motion is a plebiscite. It’s a motion calling for clear guidance from the public to the Legislature. This motion is something that none of us can lose on if we vote in favour of it. Imagine, Mr. Speaker, this is our opportunity to get the opinion of the public.

Fracking is defined as the topic of today. You see this question all over the place, not just here, not in the Northwest Territories, not in Canada, but all over the world. This is an important question for our time. So, it’s not just about what we think we know about fracking, it’s also about what we want to know...