Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'd like to recognize one of the Pages, Ms. Tori Haogak, who is my cousin from Inuvik living here in Yellowknife. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Recognition of visitors to the gallery. Member for Range Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I know I'm supposed to stick to my constituency, but I need to recognize two people in the House, Kim McNearney, who worked with me professionally and is a personal friend, and also Leslie Goit, who was instrumental in my campaign team. So I apologize if I'm breaking the rules, but welcome to the Assembly.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in my Member's statement I talked about all of the good things the government has done as it relates to legalization. Now, I'm afraid I have to ask questions around what we're still lacking in our framework.
Currently the prices that we've all seen today on the online stores, and the long line-ups at cannabis and liquor stores, the price is around two to four times what the estimated street market is. This does not appear to be making a dent in the black market. Other Members have raised these concerns, so I would like to ask the Minister of Finance how he is monitoring the sale of black market cannabis and how they are ensuring our legal system is actually making a difference to curb the illicit trade of cannabis in the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Minister of Finance.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in the 12 hours that cannabis has been legal, there was some concern about the price. The difficult question to answer is: how will it affect the illegal market? Maybe we'll send out a questionnaire and ask if it has affected the illegal market's bottom line, with the legalization of cannabis.
We will monitor it. We're 12 hours into the legalization. We will monitor it, and even the early indications with folks lining up at the stores and the online sales that we've had, that obviously has put a dent into the illegal market, but we will continue to monitor it. As I committed to committee, I will be giving them regular updates on the legalization and the effects it has. To answer the question as to how do we know we're making a dent, we don't. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I didn't ask have we made a dent in one hour. I asked how we are monitoring to ensure this process works. There was a commitment to bring forward a costed plan. There is still no costed plan. The Minister thinks this is a laughing matter; I think Northerners think this is a serious matter. So where is the plan, when is he going to bring it forward, and when is this side of the House going to be able to see it and evaluate it to make sure it protects our communities?
Masi. There are three or four different questions, but I'll allow the Minister of Finance to answer.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Minister does not think it's a laughing matter, but having said that, it was said before that this was something that was sprung upon us by the federal government, and we worked hard to ensure that we were ready for it. The pricing market, we've given committee an update on the costing and how that was going to work, and we have the producer cost, we have the excise duty, we have the markup and the freight commissions administration costs. My understanding is the total retail price, and it depends on the strand, I believe, is around $10.
The Minister is giving us elements of a plan, components of a plan, components of the regime, but not a fully costed, articulated plan that was voted on in this House as a recommendation of the committee's report and committed to in writing by the Minister. The Minister knew in 2015 this was coming. We didn't do any substantial work until 2017. There was plenty of time to get things together. When is that plan going to come forward? I don't want to hear elements of the plan; I want to see a costed plan.
The Member is correct. I did make a commitment to provide an implementation plan. My understanding is that we should have that in committee's hands Monday at the latest.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Kam Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will that plan include the private sector regulations or the private store, private sale regulations that this government committed to during the debates on the legislation? Thank you.
We provided the regulations for private vendors to committee. I believe it's also on our website, so if there are those out there who are considering becoming a private vendor, there are opportunities there. It's on the website with all the conditions that they have to meet, and I will follow up, but I would assume that would be part of the plan, as well. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Frame Lake.
Merci, Monsieur le President. My question is for the Minister of Finance, who was in charge for preparing for the legalization and regulation of cannabis. It's clear from the public briefing on cannabis implementation we had on October 10th in response to the committee report on Bill 6 that there is no overall government-wide plan for implementation. We heard that the Minister says this plan is going to be available on Monday; when I look at the response from Cabinet to the committee report, it says: "The Cannabis Legalization and Regulation Interdepartmental Working Group is developing a cannabis implementation plan. We will provide copies of that plan to committee prior to making it available to the public, before October 17th." That's today. Why didn't this working group, or why didn't Cabinet, deliver the plan in advance of today? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Minister of Finance.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it was not Cabinet, it was the Minister of Finance, and I wanted to ensure we had a plan that was going to be right. I do apologize to committee. I did make the commitment that we would have that before implementation day; obviously, I missed that. So it's on me, but I will provide the plan to committee. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I want to thank the Minister for being forthright there. I look forward to the report on the overall plan. So, according to the response to the standing committee report, there is going to be a breakdown of sales by online and by individual stores and by product type in annual reports from the Liquor and Cannabis Commission, but the expenditures for cannabis-related programs, including things like public education, public health research, community support, and so on, it's not clear where those are going to be reported. So can the Minister tell the public and this House whether any of the revenues from cannabis sales will actually be targeted for public education, and how the costs of cannabis implementation will be reported?
Much like the revenue from liquor sales, that goes into a general revenue fund, which we in turn use to deliver a lot of the programs that we offer across the Northwest Territories, and 65 per cent of our budget goes toward social programs, but as far as specifically earmarked, the answer is no. It will be put into general revenue, and we will in turn use that money to deliver many of the programs that we offer today.
I want to thank the Minister for that. I didn't really get a response about how we're going to report the cost of cannabis implementation. One of the key changes that Regular MLAs put into the Cannabis Legalization Regulation Implementation Act was the requirement for a review of the implementation, administration, and effectiveness of the legislation. So what measures, monitoring, reporting, or other means is the Minister putting in place now to ensure that the review of the legislation is meaningful and evidence-based?
Mr. Speaker, I apologized to the Member on his question on the report. I will continue to give committee an update as we move forward, making it part of the overall report. I mean, as we unroll this, we can see how we can provide all the information to committee that's required.
As far as the monitoring, I believe I made a commitment to committee that I would keep them up to date as we go into the legalization of cannabis. We can have regular updates, if it's committee's wish. We do plan on preparing a report. It will be in the life of this Assembly, obviously. Whether it's after a year after legalization, or six months after legalization, I would welcome feedback from committee. If they think six months is fine or a year would be better, then I will take their advice.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Frame Lake.
Merci, Monsieur le President. I want to sincerely thank the Minister for that commitment to work with Regular MLAs in designing that report, and I think that's a good commitment.
We now have draft regulations that could enable private retail of cannabis, but in my view they are clearly flawed. The Minister has total and complete discretion over any applications. There is no timeline for approval, or even a requirement for decisions to be made. No appeal process and authority for the Minister to determine the financial feasibility of a proposed operation. It's not even clear whether committee or public input is being sought at this point.
I know that we are all under deadlines, but is the Minister actually interested and willing to make changes to these flawed regulations?
First of all, I don't believe the regulations are flawed. Maybe they do need some work. Again, we are 12 hours into the legalization, and it is a moving target, so the regulations are not flawed.
As for the Minister having the absolute discretion, Ministers or those decision-makers rely on a business plan, a business case, being presented to become vendors, and we have the technical folks have a look at them. They come forward with a recommendation. I don't think Ministers would have the time to sit and review every application, but we rely on the technical folks. They come up with recommendations. As far as the public input goes, I believe part of that is garnering some support from their local governments to see if there is a desire to have a private vendor in the community.
Again, it is a moving target. We will continue to work with Members, because this is a serious issue for folks across the Northwest Territories, and I want to ensure as a Legislative Assembly, and I speak of all 19 of us, I want to make sure that we have this right before we leave office. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife Centre.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services. Recreational use of cannabis is not addictive in the sense that heroin is addictive, but it can create dependency behaviours that can be every bit as disruptive and unhealthy as alcohol, tobacco, or other substances. Is it the intention of our professional health services to adjust the way we scan the general population health, offer diagnostic services, promote and offer addiction treatment services, or make other adjustments concurrent upon the legalization of recreational cannabis use? Mahsi.
Masi. Minister of Health and Social Services.
Thanks, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we have been reaching out, as you heard in my statement earlier today, to professionals and people who have the knowledge that we need to incorporate into our system here in the Northwest Territories. We are open and willing to learn when it comes to medical marijuana and the impacts it has on residents, but I think one of the important things is now we actually have the opportunity to have that frank dialogue and discussion with our residents in the Northwest Territories that not everybody had been prepared to have when it was illegal. Our staff are getting up to speed. They are getting to understand the implications of consuming cannabis on the body, on the mind, and we are prepared to evolve our system to meet those new realities.
With legalization, the message for youth is surely that pot has moved into the realm of being a little more okay than it was yesterday. A watching file on the proliferation of cannabis use among youth will be critical. How does the Minister plan to ensure these new professionals have their pot antennae up and are listening?
Once again, I will go back to the opportunity for frank dialogue. Up until now, the conversation has been, "Marijuana is illegal. You shouldn't be using it." Now, the conversation is, "Cannabis is legal, but we know it has profound impact on the development of young people's minds and brains, as well as pregnant mothers, youth, and all of those different at-risk categories." We can now have informed discussions with those residents to help them understand those implications and those ramifications of utilizing the product.
The health practitioners. As a system, we have been reaching out to experts who can help us get informed, help us speak the right language when it comes to encouraging people not to use, especially at-risk populations. I think we have the opportunity now to have those important discussions that we haven't necessarily had because traditionally the conversations have been around, "It's illegal. You shouldn't consume."
Thanks to the Minister for that answer. I realize that there isn't a lot of information because this substance was not legal, but now that it is, how does the Minister intend to track and report on the possibility of increased demand for dependency treatment services in the event of an increase in demand for pot itself?
Now that we have moved to a single system, and you are getting really tired of hearing that, I'm sure, we have the ability to actually do things in a different way. Whereas all authorities would have been tracking information in their own unique ways, we have an opportunity to ensure that we are collecting data in a simple and consistent way across the authorities. We are doing that work now. We know that cannabis is now legal. It is an opportunity for us to start incorporating that in. We haven't got the specifics in place, obviously, but it is certainly a conversation that has occurred and we are looking for a way to make that happen.
In the meantime, we will be reaching out to clients who are expressing concerns. We have electronic medical records that we can use to help collect data, so that we can have better information for evidence-based decision-making in the future.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife Centre.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It's reassuring to hear that the Minister and his officials are prepared to collect information in this area. As my colleague from Mackenzie Delta said, preparedness doesn't end today. So can the Minister tell us how his health promotion and marketing efforts will be tailored to promote public health over the coming months and years? Thank you.
Contrary to what some Members have indicated, this is something we have been working on for quite some time. We have been working on this since 2016, trying to develop messaging and making sure that we are ready to get the information out there on the impacts of cannabis on the developing brain as well as other health risks.
Our community healthy living fairs are an important tool that we utilize to get into every community to get that information out to our residents. Those community living fairs are going to continue, as will this information continue to be included in those fairs.
We also know that there are lots of professionals out there, like professionals we have already brought up, who could help share information in a meaningful way with residents. We want to keep doing those types of things. On top of that, the Members have heard me say it before that we have reached out to the federal government seeking some funding to help us tailor some community-specific messaging. I am optimistic that we are going to be able to make a positive announcement on that funding in the next month or two. We have been working closely with the federal government and making progress in that area. Once we make that progress, once that is finalized, we will be able to move forward and do more concrete, community-focused communications around the use of cannabis throughout the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.
Marsi cho, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this is kind of a difficult question. I do not know even know who to pose the question to, so I am going to pose the question to the Minister of Health and Social Services. It's about elder abuse. Mr. Speaker, there is a real fear that there will be increased elder abuse, financial elder abuse, as a result of the legalization of cannabis. I would like to ask the Minister whether the Department of Health and Social Services has had discussions on that issue that may be looming. Thank you.
Masi. Minister of Health and Social Services.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I thank the Member for raising the issue. It's not one that has actually been raised to us before. Having said that, the NWT Seniors' Society is an amazing organization. They have done a significant amount of work in these territories to put out literature and programs to educate people on elder abuse as well as help individuals combat elder abuse and provide resources to them so that they know where to go to and where they can get supports when those types of things are occurring.
They have not reached out to me indicating that they are concerned about the potential growth in this area as a result of cannabis. Having said that, I take the Member's point. I will work with the department to draft up some communication with them to see if there is an opportunity for dialogue. We do not know if this is going to be a problem, but we should be ready.
I have noticed in my work in my business as MLA how helpful the social workers are to the communities in all aspects, right from children to youth. I would like to ask the Minister if there will be any special training given to the social workers in this area, where it pertains to maybe as a result of the legalization of marijuana where it pertains to elder abuse.
Once again, I acknowledge that it is a valid conversation. I haven't had the conversation. I hear the Member. I am going to talk to the department, and I would like to reach out to the seniors' society. They are an important partner. I also point out that we are an important partner in combatting elder abuse. I have not done any analysis on this. I would like to know a little bit more about what's happening out there with respect to this particular topic before I make a commitment.
As many people in here know, I bring the issue of unemployment and the employment numbers of the small communities up many times in the House. That's even increased when we start talking about between the ages of 15 and 24. Then the employment rates are really low, when you get to that age category. That is the age category that I am concerned about that may be approaching the elders. You know, most times, Mr. Speaker, elders do not even mind doing it. They would give their last $20 to the youth in their own families, but I would just like to ask the Minister if there is some thought about any very specific treatment that could be targeted at that group, the youth, some sort of youth treatment very specific to cannabis to prevent future elder abuse in the small communities.
Once again, I take the Member's point. This is not a problem that we know exists or will exists. It's potentially there, and I am prepared to reach out to the NWT Seniors' Society to get their thoughts on whether they are concerned about this and whether or not they have had any discussion on plans. As far as education and training for our youth, we have been reaching out to youth. We have been working with Education, Culture and Employment to make sure that the message is out there on the harmful impacts of cannabis on the developing brain for youth up to 24 years old. That's going to continue. We need to continue to get that information out because every day there are new kids, and every day there are new 23-year-olds, and every day there are new 22-year-olds, and so we are working to get that information out there on a continual basis, making it part of our messaging going forward.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife North.
