Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following documents entitled "Northwest Territories Environmental Studies Research Fund - Annual Report and Budget 2017-2018" and, pursuant to Section 98 of the Petroleum Resource Act, "NWT Oil and Gas Annual Report 2017." Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Tabling of documents. Member for Frame Lake.
Merci, Monsieur le president. I would like to table the following document entitled "Thaidene Nene: Critical Path to Establishment - Presentation to the Standing Committee of Economic Development and Environment," dated October 17, 2018. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Tabling of documents.
Pursuant to Section 5 of the Indemnities, Allowances and Expense Regulations of the Legislative Assembly and the Executive Council Act, I wish to table the "Summary of Members’ Absences for the period May 24, 2018, to October 10, 2018." Also, I wish to table the "Report of the Auditor General of Canada to the Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly - 2018: Independent Auditor’s Report - Child and Family Services - Department of Health and Social Services and Health and Social Services Authorities." Masi.
Merci, Monsieur le President. I give notice that, on Thursday, October 25, 2018, I will move that Bill 24, An Act to Amend the Elections and Plebiscites Act, be read for the first time. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
I call Committee of the Whole to order. What is the wish of committee? Mr. Testart.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. The committee would like to consider Bill 7, Chartered Professional Accountants Act; and Minister’s Statement 103-18(3), Marine Transportation Services. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Thank you, Mr. Testart. Does committee agree?
Agreed.
Thank you, committee. We will consider the documents after a brief recess.
---SHORT RECESS
I will call Committee of the Whole back to order. Committee, we have agreed to consider Bill 7, Chartered Professional Accountants Act. I will turn to the Minister of Finance to introduce the bill. Minister McLeod.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'm here to present Bill 7, Chartered Professional Accountants Act.
For over a decade, the three national accounting bodies, the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants, the Certified General Accountants Association of Canada, and the Certified Management Accountants of Canada, had discussed the possibility of merging their respective organizations into one comprehensive national accounting body.
In January 2013, a national unification framework was agreed to by the thr ee Canadian accounting bodies to create a new national body, Chartered Professional Accountants Canada or 'CPA.' Following this lead, in May 2013, the three professional accounting bodies of the Northwest Territories and Nunavut developed their own merger proposal to unify as a single professional accounting organization.
Towards these efforts, the Government of the Northwest Territories administration has worked closely with Nunavut and the NWT-Nunavut CPA Transitional Steering Committee to develop Bill 7. All three parties collaborated to propose legislation that contains similar content of legislation passed in other jurisdictions while recognizing the needs of a small jurisdiction like the NWT and Nunavut.
This joint legislation with Nunavut proposes to establish a new Chartered Professional Accountants Act in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut, and provides the legislative framework for CPA NWT/Nunavut to be a self-regulating body.
The three legacy Acts: Institute of Chartered Accountant's Act, the Certified General Accountants Act, and the Society of Management Accountants Act would consequently be repealed upon the new CPA Act coming into force. Should the legislation be passed, the NWT and Nunavut would join all other Canadian provinces and the Yukon who have already passed similar legislation.
That concludes my opening remarks, Mr. Chair. I am prepared for any questions Members may have. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Minister. I will next turn to the chair of the Standing Committee on Government Operations, which is the committee that reviewed this bill. Mr. Testart.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. The Standing Committee on Government Operations is pleased to speak to our review of Bill 7: Chartered Professional Accountants Act.
Bill 7, sponsored by the Department of Finance, merges the three professional accounting bodies currently operating in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut, following the lead of the three related national accounting bodies that merged in 2013. Bill 7 will repeal three existing NWT statutes and replace them with a single, new Chartered Professional Accountants Act. This bill is being coordinated with legislation in Nunavut to allow members of the newly-merged body, the Chartered Professional Accountants of Northwest Territories/Nunavut, known as CPA NWT/NU, to operate as one in both territories.
A public clause-by-clause review was held on October 10, 2018. This meeting had been deferred previously when our law clerk brought to the attention of the committee a concern shared by the law clerk in Nunavut, that clause 2 of Bill 7 raises a significant legal matter. As drafted, the bill proposed to establish the CPA NWT/NU as a single statutory corporation rooted in both jurisdictions, without stating in which jurisdiction the corporation is created, or pursuant to whose laws. I am pleased to report that our law clerk, legislative drafters in the Department of Justice, and the law clerk in Nunavut have collaborated on amendments to resolve the concerns which were brought forward as motions, and concurred with by the Minister of Finance. I am further pleased to report that the honourable Minister advised the committee that the organizations amalgamated under the CPA NWT/NU have been consulted on these proposed changes and are supportive of the recommended approach. I wish to thank everyone involved for this collaborative effort to ensure that we enact the best and most sound legislation possible.
Individual Members may have additional comments or questions as we proceed with consideration of this bill. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Testart. Minister, do you have witnesses you want to bring to the Chamber?
I do, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Minister. Sergeant-at-Arms, please escort the witnesses into the Chamber, and Minister, you may take your seat at the witness table with your witnesses.
Minister, please introduce your witnesses for the record.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, to my right, I have Mr. Terence Courtoreille, Director of Management Board Services; and to my left, I have Mr. Mike Reddy, legislative counsel, Department of Justice. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Minister. I will open the floor to general comments on Bill 7. One moment, committee. Just give me about two minutes here.
Thank you, committee. Sorry about that. Does committee agree there are no general comments to the bill?
Agreed.
Thank you, committee. We will proceed to a clause-by-clause review of Bill 7. It is quite a large bill, so we will consider the clauses in groups. We will defer the bill number and title until after consideration of the clauses. I will call out the clauses, and committee, if you agree, please respond accordingly.
Please turn to page 12 of the bill. I will begin to call clauses. Clauses 1 to 5.
Agreed.
Thank you, committee. Clause 6? Mr. Testart.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move that Bill 7 be amended in the French version of that portion of subclause 6(11) preceding paragraph a) by striking out "ou de la loi equivalente au Nunavut." Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Testart. There's a motion on the floor. The motion is being distributed. The motion is in order. To the motion.
Question.
Question has been called. All those in favour. All those opposed. The motion is carried.
---Carried
Thank you, committee.
---Clauses 1 through 101 inclusive approved
Thank you, committee. We will now return to the bill number and title. Bill 7: Chartered Professional Accountants Act. Does committee agree?
Agreed.
Thank you, committee. To the bill as a whole?
Agreed.
Thank you, committee. Does committee agree that Bill 7 as amended is ready for third reading?
Agreed.
Thank you, committee. Bill 7: Chartered Professional Accountants Act is now ready for third reading as amended. Thank you to the Minister and his witnesses. Sergeant-at Arms, you may escort the witnesses from the Chamber. This concludes our consideration of Bill 7.
Committee, we have agreed to next consider Minister's Statement 103-18(3): Marine Transportation Services. I understand that the Minister has agreed to sit at the witness stand and answer any questions. Minister Schumann, do you have witnesses you wish to bring into the Chamber?
Yes, I do, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Minister. Sergeant-at-Arms, you may escort the witnesses into the Chamber. Minister, please have a seat at the witness table.
Each Member may speak 10 minutes to an item. I will allow committee to speak, ask questions of the Minister if they wish, and they can have a bit of a back and forth in that 10 minutes. At the end, I will give Minister Schumann the opportunity to respond if he wishes.
Do we have comments or questions regarding this Minister's Statement on Marine Transportation Services? Sorry, first, I will let the Minister introduce his witnesses.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. On my left, I have Vince McCormick, the Director of Financial Administration. On my right is deputy of Infrastructure, Paul Guy. On our far right is Brian Nagel, Director of Infrastructure and Business Solutions. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Minister. First on the list, we have Mr. Nakimayak.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thanks to the Minister for bringing his witnesses. Mr. Chair, this affects, actually, three of my communities and one of them being Sachs Harbour, with a sealift of gasoline that wasn't delivered to the community. The Minister stated last week during the session that there would be no airlift of gasoline to Sachs Harbour. I'm just wondering if that's going to be added to or put in somewhere along the lines of the airlift to the other three remaining communities? Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Nakimayak. Minister.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. As I stated in the House, we have checked what is in stock in Sachs Harbour, and there is enough there to meet the demand until next sailing season. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
