Daniel McNeely

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It gives me great pleasure today to extend Happy 94th Birthday wishes to Albert Taniton from Deline. Very blessed to have our dad, which is grandpa, uncle, and lots of friends. Mahsi, and that is coming from the Taniton family.

Additionally, Mr. Speaker, on February the 15th, it was my pleasure to, on behalf of this government, award and pass on two medals to Albert Taniton and Leon Modeste there who received the King Charles III Coronation Medals in Deline. Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, March is National Nutrition Month. With this year's theme being Nourish to Flourish, the links between food, good health, emotional resilience, and social connections cannot be underestimated.

Mr. Speaker, Food Bank Canada, in collaboration with Nutrition North, is planning a promotional tour of the Sahtu region in April. This initiative will bring together representatives to meet and engage with leaders, community members, on the critical topic of food security and explore how the Sahtu region can position itself to address its unbearable high cost of...

Thank you, Madam Chair. I'm in support of this unit and the objectives or the goals set by this unit and, ultimately, it's to make our health care more efficient, more modern in the process. So I look forward to the -- my continued support and the updates provided by the Minister. Mahsi.

Madam Chair (audio).

Nothing further, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I'm encouraged and we, the GNWT, depend on our federal counterparts, as you know, for many sources of funds for various initiatives. Is there other opportunities that the department is pursuing within the business plan for this fiscal year to access further federal funding?

Take climate adaptation for example, we are the victims of climate change, no doubt, and it's been said by the Minister a number of times that our global environment is warming 4 percent faster. So to address that, there should be ongoing discussions with climate change adaptation. I'm just wondering...

Thank you, Madam Chair. I think this is the appropriate activity to ask this question on the bilateral nature fund agreement with the federal government.

Given the expiry of this current agreement, if so will it be sufficient to cover the GNWT's commitments; how does the ECC anticipate funding future protected areas? I guess there's kind of like two combined questions there, Madam Chair. Number one, is there going to be more efforts being made to renew the bilateral nature fund agreement? Then if so, are we going to have sufficient funds there to pursue protected areas? Mahsi.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I'm just looking at the business plan here and similar to what I had mentioned to the Department of Infrastructure as we conclude the budget season in preparation for the summer student employment season, would the Minister provide a summer student plan and appendix to the business plan here in the coming weeks, coming months, so that our students could have something to look forward to within this department? Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chair. My question within this activity is compensation and benefits from the fiscal year 2023-2024, and it's increased to 11.374. My question to that, compensation and benefits is projected to slightly increase on the RAA overall budget. Are these increases attributed to the new UNW collective agreement, or is there something else such as the consolidation of inspectors and officers into the RAA? Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I just want to thank this department for taking an aggressive role in accessing maximum opportunities of federal access for funds here, and it's very encouraging to see and hear. Particularly in coming from my area, you know, I can really sincerely relate to the aggression taken by this department. You know, I can come around and say well, I got no water, no road, and it's costly to fly, so I'm glad to see this department pursuing 40 agreements. That's complimentary. Mahsi.