Debates of October 18, 2004 (day 22)

Agreed.

Clause 12.

Agreed.

Clause 13.

Agreed.

Clause 14.

Agreed.

Clause 15.

Agreed.

Clause 16.

Agreed.

Clause 17.

Agreed.

Bill as a whole?

Agreed.

Does the committee agree that Bill 7 is ready for third reading?

Agreed.

Bill 7 is now ready for third reading. Thank you, Mr. Minister. Thank you, Mr. Aitken.

The committee will now proceed to Bill 8. I would like to ask the Minister responsible if he would like to introduce the bill. Mr. Dent.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, the purpose of Bill 8, Miscellaneous Statutes Amendment Act, 2004, is to amend various statutes of the Northwest Territories for which minor changes are proposed or errors or inconsistencies have been identified.

In order for an amendment to be included in the bill, it had to meet the following criteria: a, it must not be controversial; b, it must not involve the spending of public funds; c, it must not prejudicially affect the rights of persons; and, d, it must not create a new offence or subject a new class of persons to an existing offence.

Mr. Chairman, departments responsible for the various statues being amended have reviewed and approved the changes.

Most changes proposed in Bill 8 are minor in nature and many consist of technical corrections to the English or French version of a statute.

Other changes have the effect of repealing certain enactments and certain statutory provisions that have expired, lapsed, or otherwise ceased to have effect.

The amendments are of such a nature that the preparation and legislative consideration of individual bills to correct each statute would be time consuming for the government and the Legislative Assembly.

I will be pleased to answer any questions the committee may have. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Minister Dent. I would like to ask the chairman of the standing committee which reviewed the bill to make opening comments. Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The Standing Committee on Accountability and Oversight met on June 25, 2004, to review Bill 8, Miscellaneous Statutes Amendment Act, 2004. The act makes minor amendments to a number of statutes. The committee asked for an explanation of clause 7, which will repeal the Economic Development Agreements Act. The Minister and his staff advised that there are currently no agreements under this act, and that any future agreements with the Government of Canada would probably not require legislation.

Members also asked for an explanation of clause 13, which will repeal the Norman Wells Natural Gas Distribution System Act. The Minister and his staff informed committee that the act is now unnecessary because of the new Cities, Towns and Villages Act, which came into force on April 1st of this year and which provides broader powers to municipal governments.

The bill includes several amendments that transfer to a Minister some of the Commissioner’s authorities, such as making certain appointments. The Minister confirmed that these amendments will not result in any practical changes in how decisions are made, but will simply streamline and make more transparent the process for putting them into effect.

Following the clause-by-clause review, a motion was carried to report Bill 8 to the Assembly as ready for Committee of the Whole.

This concludes the committee’s general comments on Bill 8. Individual committee members may have questions or comments as we proceed. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Mr. Dent, would you like to bring in witnesses?

Yes, Mr. Chairman, please.

Thank you. Does the committee agree?

Agreed.

Sergeant-at-Arms, please escort in the witness.

Thank you. Mr. Minister, please, for the record, introduce your witness.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Again, I have Mr. Mark Aitken from the Department of Justice with me.

Welcome again, Mr. Aitken. I will now move to general comments on Bill 8 from members. General comments on Bill 8. We will go to a clause-by-review of the Miscellaneous Statutes Amendment Act, 2004. Clause 1.

Agreed.

Clause 2.

Agreed.

Clause 3.

Agreed.

Clause 4.

Agreed.

Clause 5.

Agreed.

Clause 6.

Agreed.

Mr. Menicoche.

Mr. Chairman, I would like to ask the Minister to let us know when this Economic Development Agreement Act ceased to be required for the GNWT.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Mr. Minister.

Mr. Chairman, perhaps I could get Mr. Menicoche to restate the question and confirm that we are on clause 6.

Correct, we are on clause 6. Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I thought you said clause 7.

We will go back to clause 6.

Agreed.

Clause 7. Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. With regard to the Economic Development Agreement Act that was created in 1988, at what point did we not require this act to be in existence anymore?

Thank you. Mr. Minister.