Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are for the Government House Leader and it gets back to my Member’s statement where I was talking about animal rights legislation in the Northwest Territories and another incident just last week where three puppies were found in the dump in Behchoko with their throats cut. We start to ask the question again, the public asks us questions, it makes us look bad both on a national stage and on an international stage when incidents like this happen. In the Northwest Territories, the legislation just has no teeth to do much about it, as was evidenced with the 34 dogs that had to be put down in Behchoko because the Crown felt they couldn’t get a conviction against the person who did that.
So I’d like to ask the Government House Leader today, what is the current status of animal rights legislation in the Northwest Territories today and where is it going? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The honourable Government House Leader, Mr. Miltenberger.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The government is taking a two-track approach to this particular issue. The amendments to the Dog Act are being worked on, there’s a legislative proposal expected in November that will be ready by a review by committee and, hopefully, introduction in the winter session. That will give some immediate relief and more authority to the people dealing with issues of animal cruelty. At the same time, Justice is at work doing the necessary preliminary work on a whole new piece of legislation for animal cruelty, keeping in mind that our legislative cycle takes, on average, about two years. So because of that gap, the amendments to the Dog Act are being proceeded with. Thank you
That’s interesting, considering what happened yesterday with the Petroleum Tax Act that went through the House in one day. I’d like to ask the Minister, last spring the Justice Minister had talked about a working group that was being formulated by government to take a look at animal rights legislation here in the Northwest Territories. I’d like to know exactly what that working group has accomplished in the past six months, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.
A full briefing on both these particular pieces of legislation has been offered to committee and the folks stand ready to sit down with committee to be able to go through in detail both pieces of legislation, the amendments to the Dog Act as well as the new legislation and the work that the working committee has done. Thank you.
I appreciate the work that is being done on the Dog Act, but that doesn’t begin to address other domesticated animals in the Northwest Territories and cruelty or abuse that’s inflicted on those animals, Mr. Speaker. I know the Minister said the legislative process takes two years. Is there any way, any possible way that the government can see to it that animal rights legislation in the Northwest Territories gets a higher priority than us waiting two years and that won’t even be conducted until the next government comes through the doors in two years? Thank you.
As the Member noted, when the House puts its mind to issues of legislation, be it the Petroleum Products Act or in other legislation like the Family Violence Act, things can move relatively quickly. It would depend on the advice we get from the Legislative committee, if there’s a piece of legislation that can be adapted and modified to the Northwest Territories without rewriting right from scratch. But I think it’s an issue that if the will of the House is such, that could be looked at. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Final supplementary, Mr. Ramsay.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate the Minister’s response. The Yukon had a similar occurrence with some animal cruelty, which led them to bring in an act two and a half years ago; the Animal Cruelty Act in the Yukon. We don’t have to look that far and wide to find a piece of legislation, I think, that we could take a look at here in the Northwest Territories. Again, I want to ask the Minister, I know the Justice Minister said this in March, but can we please get another piece of legislation and get moving on this sooner than two years? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I will be talking about this issue with my Cabinet colleagues tomorrow morning and we’ll look at what’s possible and is there an ability to use existing legislation from other jurisdictions modified to the northern reality and not have to do this from scratch to see what’s possible. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. The honourable Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Krutko.
