Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes, that Bill 10, Northwest Territories Heritage Fund Act, be read for the second time.
Mr. Speaker, this bill establishes the Northwest Territories Heritage Fund. The Heritage Fund is a trust fund for the benefit and use of the people of the Northwest Territories, and the Financial Management Board serves as trustee. Excess funds will be received into the Heritage Fund but nothing can be transferred from it for 10 years in order to build up the principal, which is to be retained and invested. Transfers of income from the Heritage Fund to the Consolidated Revenue Fund will be authorized by a special act. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. The motion is on the floor. The motion is in order. To the principle of the bill. The honourable Member for Weledeh, Mr. Bromley.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to speak to the principle of this bill. This bill is very late in coming, Mr. Speaker, but it is highly desirable and provides an important opportunity to begin capturing some lasting benefits from the exploitation of our richest resources, an opportunity we have simply not had in the past.
The bill has, however, a key shortcoming, and that includes that it fails to directly connect building the Heritage Fund to the exploitation of our resources as they are exploited and shipped afar. This bill leaves this role to future legislators and that, in my opinion, is passing the buck.
Again, this bill is necessary and overdue. I look forward to public input on this potentially key law.
I have to note, Mr. Speaker, that our gold mines have come and gone. Perhaps we will have some more in the future. Our diamond mines are also now saying they have a very limited lifespan. These are our richest resources, the ones that stick out so much, they are so rich that they are found immediately and exploited immediately. We have missed this opportunity, Mr. Speaker.
The resources are finite. We can learn from the lessons of others such as those of Alaska and Alberta, which I regard as failures, and that of Norway, which I regard as an amazing success. There are lessons to be learned. I am happy to see that some of those things are captured in this bill, but not all.
Nevertheless, we need to proceed. I note that this bill provides a very modest window of 10 years to build the fund. That is a very modest window, Mr. Speaker. It is certainly not what I had in mind, and perhaps my colleagues, when we initially discussed this legislation. This is a very short time, Mr. Speaker, especially given the lack of identification of funds to be appropriated for it.
Mr. Speaker, I often hear about devolution. Devolution will be the answer to everything. It will provide us with a huge net fiscal benefit and we are going to dump it in the Heritage Fund. With good luck, Mr. Speaker, devolution may happen, according to the Premier, in six or eight years, which I think is probably reasonable and with luck. I can guarantee the net fiscal benefit for the first few years will be in high demand and will be quickly allocated. I suspect it will be very difficult to direct those funds into this Heritage Fund. The fund is a necessary and good idea.
I support this bill, but it does have shortcomings. We will need to move as a Legislature to address those shortcomings and start giving some thought to how we are going to actually put meaningful dollars into this fund, because the purpose of the fund, of course, is to provide some benefits to our future people. We have an obligation to, as we exploit these resources and we all know that resources are finite to gain some benefits not only for ourselves, but for our future.
Mr. Speaker, I will be supporting this bill, but I think we have a lot of work to do. I appreciate it being brought forward this time. Mahsi.
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. To the principle of the bill.
Question.
Question is being called. Bill 10 has had second reading and is referred to a standing committee.
---Carried
