Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, I realize the government is hoping that cannabis will be a huge seller so that they can use all the revenue to fix the road to Tuktoyaktuk and build future roads, as well, but, really, the better use would be to use it for the purposes for which my colleague has just described.
I want to demonstrate some support for this idea from the youth who were here for the youth Parliament earlier this month. They passed a resolution that says this:
"Whereas the Northwest Territories has aboveaverage rates of drug and alcohol use and abuse by youth among Canadian princes and territories; and whereas heavy use of drug and alcohol has been demonstrated to contribute to irreversible harm in terms of mental and physical health outcomes;
And whereas youth are especially vulnerable to longterm effects of drug and alcohol use and abuse on brain function and development; and whereas the Government of the Northwest Territories earns millions of dollars annually from the sale of alcohol within the territory and is expected to earn additional revenue from the pending legalization of recreational cannabis;
Now therefore I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Inuvik Boot Lake," --- as unlikely as that seems,
---Laughter
"the Youth Parliament 2018 strongly recommends that the Department of Health and Social Services and the Department of Education, Culture and Employment work collaboratively to ensure that youth wellness and mental health professionals be made available to all youth throughout the territory;
And further, that a portion of revenues from the sale of alcohol and cannabis be dedicated to developing and promoting educational materials on the risks of drug and alcohol use and abuse by youth, and that these materials become a component of the health curriculum delivered in all Northwest Territories schools."
Passed on May 17th, right here in this Chamber. What I want to demonstrate by that is that I think there is awareness of the need to supplement education and wellness funding in the addictions field, and that there is an anticipation that this should include cannabis as well as other issues, primarily alcoholrelated, that are dealt with now.
I think that we should listen to the youth and to the people who we heard on our travels who thought that this specialpurpose fund was a good idea. For that reason, I will be supporting this motion. Thank you.
Thank you. Mr. O'Reilly.
Thanks, Mr. Chair. Yes, I will be supporting this motion. Part of the problem here is that we do not even have a plan for implementation of cannabis legalization. We have asked for that. I know we dealt with that in the first motion, but we do not even know what the costs are going to be. You know, the Regular MLAs who travelled to the communities, we were put in the position of having to explain that all the revenues were just going to go into the consolidated revenue fund. There is no guarantee that any of this money, revenues from cannabis sales, is actually going to get spent on health promotion. We do not know, in fact none of us really knows, what it's going to get spent on because it goes into the general pot, and that's different than the approach that is being taken by some governments.
The federal government has said that the revenues that they get they will put into health promotion. That is a good commitment. We do not have that from our government. I have also heard that some of the provincial jurisdictions are looking at sharing as much as 40 per cent of revenues with local governments, because their costs will be increased in many ways. I am also aware that, in New Brunswick, the provincial government has negotiated with their suppliers to set aside 2 per cent of the gross sales value into a special fund that will be used for health promotion. I understand, you know, we don't know what the sales levels are going to be here, but I would urge our Cabinet colleagues to look at the approach that New Brunswick has adopted.
You know, governments are notoriously opposed to targeted revenues. They just hate targeted revenues, because it ties their hands, but we heard this in all the communities that we went to. You know: what is the money going to be used for, and is any of it going to be directed specifically to healthcare, education, and so on? We don't know because there's no plan.
So my preference would have been to have something in the legislation itself deal with this, to ensure that there was a requirement that at least part of the revenues would be spent on health promotion, research, and public awareness, but we couldn't get that in the bill because that's not the way it was crafted, and it's outside the scope of what's already been put together. It's a financial matter, so we couldn't make that kind of change. So this is a poor second cousin to that, but at the end of the day, I do support this motion. Hopefully our Cabinet colleagues are going to respond to this in a meaningful way and ensure that some of the revenues are actually spent to supplement the existing monies that are spent for these purposes. Thanks, Mr. Chair
Thank you, Mr. O'Reilly. Mr. Blake.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, this did come up in communities, and the big question was: who is going to pay for public education, public awareness? Also there was, I think, one or two people who actually brought up the health side of things, which we didn't really look at. They asked some good questions, like longterm impacts on our people's health and who is going to be paying that.
So our residents felt that a portion of the money that is being raised through whether it is taxes can be set aside for paying for some of this, and I'm sure it will be going to a lot of our programs, anyway. Even some students brought up that through the education system a little bit more targeted towards the use of cannabis or marijuana, a little bit more education on that front that needs to be put into our curriculum. A little bit of what they picked up was whatever they found online. Because they were given notice that we were going to meet with them, some students actually read up on it on their own. I believe it's in Tuktoyaktuk, the students mentioned that it's really not brought up through, say, Health, for example, or through the courses that they take. Just more education. So a little tweaking on the education front, what's been provided in the schools, more public awareness. So I have no trouble supporting this one. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Blake. I will allow the mover to close debate. We have Mr. McNeely.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. As I heard, and as I said, education is going to be a vital component in moving forward after legislation is passed. It's not just passing and then it's over and done with; there is going to be a great deal of aftercare taken through education, and I'm glad to see that wording of revenues aimed at public education, public awareness, and on the health side of educating the public to the side effects of consuming cannabis. So I support this on the principle of what I heard and what I said on education. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
The Member for Kam Lake, the Member for Tu NedheWiilideh, the Member for Nahendeh, the Member for Frame Lake, the Member for Yellowknife Centre, the Member for Deh Cho, the Member Nunakput, the Member for Mackenzie Delta, the Member for Sahtu, the Member for Yellowknife North.
All those opposed, please rise. All those abstaining, please rise.
The Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, the Member for Range Lake, the Member for Great Slave, the Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes, the Member for Hay River South, the Member for Thebacha.
The results of the recorded vote are: 10 in favour, zero opposed, six abstentions. The motion is carried.
--Carried
Mr. Thompson.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, I move that the Assembly recommend that the Government of the Northwest Territories provide a comprehensive response to this report within 120 days. Thank you, Mr. Chair, and I will request a recorded vote. Thank you.
The Member for Nahendeh, the Member for Frame Lake, the Member for Yellowknife Centre, the Member for Deh Cho, Member for Nunakput, the Member for Mackenzie Delta, the Member for Sahtu, the Member for Yellowknife North, the Member for Kam Lake, the Member for Tu NedheWiilideh
All those opposed, please rise. All those abstaining, please rise.
The Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, the Member for Range Lake, the Member for Great Slave, the Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes, the Member for Hay River South, the Member for Thebacha.
The results of the recorded vote are: 10 in favour, zero opposed, six abstentions. The motion is carried.
---Carried
What is the wish of committee? Mr. Beaulieu. I apologize for that. Does committee agreed that we have concluded consideration of Committee Report 718(3)?
Agreed.
Thank you, committee. This concludes our consideration of Committee Report 718(3), Report on Review of Bill 6, Cannabis Legalization and Regulation Implementation Act. What is the wish of committee now? Mr. Beaulieu.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chairman, I move that the chair rise and report progress. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. There's a motion to report progress. The motion is in order and nondebatable. All those in favour. All those opposed. Motion is carried.
---Carried
I will now rise and report progress. Thank you, committee.
Mr. Speaker, your committee has been considering Committee Report 7-18(3), Standing Committee on Government Operations and Standing Committee on Social Development Report on the Review of Bill 6: Cannabis Legalization and Regulations Implementation Act, with eight motions being adopted and would like to report progress and that consideration of Committee Report 7-18(3) is concluded. Mr. Speaker, I move that the report of the Committee of the Whole be concurred with.
Masi. Do I have a seconder? Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh. The motion is in order. All those in favour? All those opposed? Motion carried.
---Carried
Mr. Speaker, the orders of the day for Thursday, May 31, 2018, at 1:30 p.m.:
Prayer
Ministers' Statements
Members' Statements
Returns to Oral Questions
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Acknowledgements
Oral Questions
Written Questions
Returns to Written Questions
Replies to the Commissioner's Opening Address
Petitions
Reports of Standing and Special Committees
Reports of Committees on the Review of Bills
Tabling of Documents
Notices of Motion
Notices of Motion for First Reading of Bills
Motions
-
Motion 17-18(3), Review of Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk Highway Project
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Motion 18-18(3), Appointment of Members to the NWT Honours Advisory Council
First Reading of Bills
-
Bill 20, Ombudsperson Act
-
Bill 21, An Act to Amend the Northwest Territories Business Development and Investment Corporation Act
Second Reading of Bills
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
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Bill 6, Cannabis Legalization and Regulations Implementation Act
-
Bill 19, An Act to Amend the Revolving Funds Act
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Minister's Statement 1-18(3), North Slave Correctional Complex Inmate Concerns
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Minister's Statement 19-18(3), Aurora College Foundational Review Process
Report of Committee of the Whole
Third Reading of Bills
Orders of the Day
Masi, Mr. Clerk. This House stands adjourned until Thursday, May 31, 2018, at 1:30 p.m.
---ADJOURNMENT
The House adjourned at 6:03 p.m.
