Shane Thompson

I will follow up with the Minister on that question so that I can get that information. My next question is: can the Minister advise this House how many of these big projects ended up being awarded to southern contractors?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. On Tuesday I asked questions of the Minister of Infrastructure and asked him to explain how the Business Incentive Policy worked and how certain levels have increased percentage points. The Minister gave me a whole bunch of information. I would like to follow up to the questions with the Minister here today. Can the Minister please clarify what amount the contract needs to be in order to maximize the incentive of $500,000? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I would like to personally thank the four MLAs who are leaving the public service at the end of this 18th Assembly.

The job as a political leader is a daunting one, which they all carried out with hard work, integrity, and were a good and faithful servant for their constituents and all the people in the Northwest Territories. Each person made an effort to make me feel welcomed and respected, providing good advice. Even if we disagreed, we walked away understanding each other's point of view. Three of the Members, I had the pleasure of knowing before coming into...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. This is a very interesting and challenging aspect as we are moving forward. I have heard a number of people talk about carbon tax, climate change, what are we doing to fix the climate change, and that's the issue. When I have listened to the argument on both sides, it puts you in the spot, but at the end of the day, we have to make a decision for Northerners. Not somebody from Ottawa, but somebody here. Is it the best solution? No, but you know what, the solution the federal government is offering isn't the best solution, either.

My concern is that, in my riding, there are...

Thank you, and I look forward to providing those questions to the Minister. I will put them in writing and look forward to the answers. I am probably going to get the same answer for the last question I am going to ask, but I am going to ask it anyway. With all these big contracts happening, he talked about the 46, can the Minister advise this House if there were any of the big contracts that were negotiated contracts? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

When the Minister talked on Tuesday, as well, he talked about there being 46 big projects and 1,501 projects. Can the Minister tell us what the total value of the 46 projects were together and what the total was for the 1,501 projects?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to recognize a number of the ladies from the Jane Glassco Northern Fellowship: Chloe Dragon Smith, whom I have the opportunity to know since she was a young lady in sports; as well as Tina Decouto, who used to live in Fort Simpson, and now she is in Iqaluit; and of course, one of my constituents, Kristen Tanche. Thank you, and welcome to the House, and to the other fellows here as well. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move that this committee recommends that the Department of Education, Culture and Employment target a comprehensive group of interested stakeholders in the development of regulations concerning the recognition of Indigenous institutions. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. The Standing Committee on Social Development is pleased to report on its review of Bill 48, Post-secondary Education Act. The committee read their substantive report into the House on August 12, 2019. To commence its review of Bill 48, the Standing Committee on Social Development sent letters inviting input from an extensive list of stakeholders, including all municipal and Indigenous governments in the Northwest Territories, and a number of non-governmental organizations.

The committee held eight public hearings on Bill 48 in Fort Smith, Hay River, Fort Providence...

That is good to hear, and I hope the Minister will actually reach out to us MLAs, too, and get that information out to us. Will the Minister's department be working with residents as part of this program to establish an affordable payment program, and how does it have an impact on people who have already entered into a payment program?