Question.
The Member for Thebacha. The Member for Kam Lake. The Member for Nunakput. The Member for Yellowknife North. The Member for Great Slave. The Member for Nahendeh. The Member for Yellowknife South. The Member for Sahtu. The Member for Range Lake. The Member for Inuvik Boot Lake. The Member for Yellowknife Centre. The Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes. The Member for Deh Cho.
All those opposed, please rise.
The Member for Tu NedheWiilideh. The Member for Monfwi. The Member for Hay River South.
All those abstaining, please rise.
The Member for Hay River North.
The results of the recorded vote: 13 in favour, three opposed, one abstention. The motion is carried. Bill 73 has had third reading.
Carried
Third reading of bills. Member for Thebacha.
Mr. Speaker, I move, second by the honourable Member for Hay River North, that Bill 76, An Act to Amend the Electoral Boundaries Commission Act, be read for the third time. And, Mr. Speaker, I request a recorded vote. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member for Thebacha. The motion is in order. To the motion.
Question.
The Member for Thebacha. The Member for Kam Lake. The Member for Nunakput. The Member for Yellowknife North. The Member for Tu NedheWiilideh. The Member for Monfwi. The Member for Great Slave. The Member for Nahendeh. The Member for Yellowknife South. The Member for Sahtu. The Member for Range Lake. The Member for Inuvik Boot Lake. The Member for Yellowknife Centre. The Member for Hay River North. The Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes. The Member for Deh Cho. The Member for Hay River South.
All those opposed, please rise. All those abstaining, please rise.
The results of the recorded vote: 17 in favour, zero opposed, zero abstentions. The motion is carried. Bill 76 has had third reading.
Carried
Third reading of bills. Minister responsible for Finance.
Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, that Bill 89, Appropriation Act (Operations Expenditures), 20232024, be read for the third time. And, Mr. Speaker, I would like to request a recorded vote.
Thank you, Minister. The motion is in order. To the motion.
Question.
Question has been called. The Minister has requested a recorded Member for Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Sorry, I know we call want to go home but I would like to just make some comments about the final budget as we are passing it and the commitments that the Minister made in this House previously.
Initially, I said my support on this budget was contingent on two things. That was some more money for our community governments and some more money for our nonprofits. Unfortunately, I had to vote in favour of the carbon tax to get the money for the community governments as I just did but I'm happy to see that additional approximately $1.8 million combined with $600,000 in this budget. It really puts us we did close the community funding gap by $5 million, including inflation, which was what I thought we always were supposed to do but we had to do a little bit of a political negotiating to get there, Mr. Speaker. Additionally the Minister, in her statement yesterday, committed $2 million for a homelessness fund. I believe that is very good money she committed, that will largely go to applications by Indigenous governments and not for profits. I am very happy to see that. I also want to highlight the $1 million for the sustainable livelihoods fund. We hear repeatedly in this House that our hunters and traps need support for food sustainability and for cultural reasons.
This is our final budget. This is our final budget negotiation. And I just want to thank the Minister and thank all of my colleagues for the pressure we've put on to get those concessions.
I'm a little disappointed in the pace of government renewal. I believe I share that with the Minister of Finance. I do believe there is a way to do government budgets differently. I do believe they really have to take a look at this way we kind of do these incremental budgets year over year. And the first Assembly, the first thing they got to do, Mr. Speaker, is they've got to make some tough decisions about what they're going to cut and where so that they have money to fund their own priorities. This idea that we're operating with about $5 million a year to negotiate with really doesn't mean more control. What's in control is the incremental $2 billion that was decided Assembly after Assembly and year over year, Mr. Speaker.
And lastly, I just want to reiterate something odd about our budgeting process is we don't really tend to attach large policy announcements to it. I do think that is something we should do. That is the standard in almost every other jurisdiction. You announce the money and then you announce a few policy changes, a few kind of ticket items to signal where you're going. I have repeatedly asked for five paid sick days. That is what we need to give our workers. We know that all of our public service workers have great benefits and those in the private sector do not. And they deserve five paid sick days. We heard that during COVID repeatedly. I do believe that should have been with the budget. And those types of announcements should be standard with every single GNWT budget.
But, ultimately, I am in favour for this budget, and for all of our programs and services to get replenished and for the good work they do. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member for Yellowknife North. The motion is in order. To the motion.
Question.
The Member for Yellowknife South. The Member for Sahtu. The Member for Range Lake. The Member for Inuvik Boot Lake. The Member for Yellowknife Centre. The Member for Hay River North. The Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes. The Member for Deh Cho. The Member for Hay River South. The Member for Thebacha. The Member for Kam Lake. The Member for Nunakput. The Member for Yellowknife North. The Member for Monfwi. The Member for Great Slave. The Member for Nahendeh.
All those opposed, please rise.
The Member for Tu NedheWiilideh.
All those abstaining, please rise. The results of the recorded vote: 16 in favour, one opposed, zero abstentions. The motion is carried. Bill 89 has had third reading.
Carried
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Orders of the day for Thursday, March 30th, 2023, 1:30 p.m.
Prayer
Ministers’ Statements
Members’ Statements
Returns to Oral Questions
Oral Question 1343-19(2), Impacts of COVID-19 on Education
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Acknowledgements
Oral Questions
Written Questions
Returns to Written Questions
Replies to the Commissioner’s Address
Petitions
Reports of Committees on the Review of Bills
Reports of Standing and Special Committees
Tabling of Documents
Notices of Motion
Motions
Motion 78, Waste Reduction and Resource Recovery Act
Motion 79, An Act to Amend the Judicature Act
Notices of Motion for First Reading of Bills
First Reading of Bills
Second Reading of Bills
Bill 80, Dental Hygienists Profession Statute Amendment Act
Bill 81, An Act to Amend the Education Act, No. 2
Bill 82, Legal Profession Act
Bill 83, Liquor Act
Bill 84, An Act to Amend the Northwest Territories Business Development and Investment Corporation Act
Bill 85, United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Implementation Act
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Bill 23, An Act to Amend the Public Utilities Act
Bill 29, Resource Royalty Information Disclosure Statute Amendment Act
Committee Report 49-19(2), Standing Committee on Government Operations Report on the 2021-22 Review of the Official Languages Act
Committee Report 51-19(2), Standing Committee on Government Operations Report on Indigenous Representation in the Northwest Territories Public Service
Minster’s Statement 264-19(2), Response to the NWT Chief Coroner’s Report on Suicide
Tabled Document 681-19(2), Government of the Northwest Territories Response to Committee Report 26-19(2): Report on the Child and Family Services Act – Lifting Children, Youth and Families: An All of Territory Approach to Keeping Families Together
Report of Committee of the Whole
Third Reading of Bills
Bill 68, An Act to Amend the Child Day Care Act
Orders of the Day
Thank you, Mr. Clerk. This House stands adjourned until Thursday, March 30th, 2023 at 1:30 p.m.
---ADJOURNMENT
The House adjourned at 8:40 p.m.
