Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Previously in this Assembly, I tabled a letter from the chief of Colville Lake, once again asking the GNWT to leave the negotiating table so that Canada and that nation can reach a bilateral self-government agreement. My question is to the honourable Premier. Have our negotiators been provided updated mandates at the negotiating table?
Thank you, Member for Yellowknife North. Honourable Premier.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mandate direction on negotiating tables change quite often. They are based on what we think will happen. Anything that has a change, if it is going to impact finances or land or anything, it has to come through Cabinet. It's not a decision that negotiators can make at the table. I know that a lot of people think that it should be, but the reality is that, if it costs money, it has to come through Cabinet table. They are constantly being updated on a regular basis. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
We have consistently heard from a number of Indigenous governments that the unilateral imposition of our government's core principles and objectives in regard to self-government negotiations has become a barrier. My question is for the honourable Premier. Have we updated our core principles and objectives in regard to self-government?
No, it has been quite a while, actually, since we updated our core principles and objectives. They actually arose from an obligation from the Tlicho agreement, is where they came from. They are actually very simple. They are very simple principles, and our issue is that there has to be some kind of standard of care or principles that go across. It's not as easy as just changing them to meet the whim. We also have to take Canada's legislation, as well. For example, the Canada Health Act has principles that need to be taken into account. The new Canada legislation that is coming out with Child and Family Services has principles and standards that have to be taken into consideration. Although we want to work closely with our Indigenous governments, and we are looking at a new way of doing business, we can't forget that there are three parties at this table, often, with the negotiations: the Northwest Territories, the Indigenous government, and Canada.
I am well-aware that there are three parties at the table, and to not update our core principles and objectives because there are federal government issues seems to miss the point, and that is the federal government's whole purpose being at the table. My question is for the honourable Premier. Are we willing to reopen our core principles and objectives and negotiate them with Indigenous governments, considering our commitment to implement UNDRIP?
During the Member's opening speech, I heard him say -- and I might misquote him, so correct me if I do -- that there are two kinds of workers; one that works for the government, government workers who get a lot of CCs. Now that I'm Premier, I get a lot of CCs, in all honesty. I wish I didn't get as many. Then there's ones who work for the goals of the government.
I came in here four years ago to actually make change, and it shows that I make changes. These wrinkles that I have on my face did not come honestly; they came from hard work at this table. I have already met with Indigenous governments. I am changing the way that I do practice. I called them all when I first started. I am meeting with them. We are switching up even the way we seat. It used to be them against us, and now we're sitting as a group. I have changed up our bilaterals. I have scared them all. I've said, "After our bilaterals are done, let's, the chief and I, sit together and talk about the negotiations, what's going on, what's happening." It's scary for them as well. They don't know where this Premier is coming from.
The point is, is that this Premier is looking for change. We have been going on some of these negotiations 30-some years, and government-to-government does not mean, to me, federal government, territorial government, and, at the bottom, Indigenous government. Government-to-government, to me, means, federal government, NWT, and Indigenous government all working together at the same level.
Yes, I am totally open to changing whatever we need to do to work better with Indigenous governments and to work towards self-government and land claims agreements. That is my ultimate goal, and I will forgive the House for any extra wrinkles that I get because of trying to achieve my goal. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, honourable Premier. Oral questions. Member for Frame Lake.
