Kieron Testart

Mr. Speaker, today marks an important day in the history of Canada and how we as a nation address the social and physiological issue of addiction.

Ninety-five years of cannabis prohibition has failed to achieve the ends it sets out to achieve. It has not curbed illegal markets, nor has it righted social wrongs. Prohibition does not ensure that communities are safe; rather, it opens them up to gangsters and bootleggers who are accountable to no one, who cut their products with toxins, and all too often it is accompanied by violence. Bootlegging is a problem that affects us all in the NWT. The...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move that the chair rise and report progress. Thank you.

Earlier the Minister commented that the Liquor Commission has made $5,000 in the first hour of sales. It seems like a very viable operation. Again, why is the Minister putting a criterion that he needs to be the one to determine if the business is going to be successful before that business is allowed to exist?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to ask the Minister of Finance about the regulations for private sales that he has brought forward. I have taken a look at them, and the concerns I have heard from other people who are interested in a business: you need to sign a lease; you need a have a development permit; you need to have an extensive criminal background check; and this is all before you start the application process. These seem to be incredibly onerous and incredibly hard to get retail businesses off the ground. Does the Minister truly believe that this meets the goals of the standing...

Earlier today the Minister of Border Security and Organized Crime Reduction at the federal level gave a press conference and said that Canadians should be vigilant but otherwise should have no issues crossing the border. As relatively new information, and I don't think it is well-understood at this point, can the Premier reach out to his federal counterparts and get more information on the subject and clarify it so that Northern residents know it is safe to travel, where they can travel, and what they are allowed to do?

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.

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?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to recognize a Page from the Kam Lake riding, Juliet Stephen. Thank you for all your work here today supporting the Members. I would also like to recognize Mr. Keith MacNeill, a fine member of the Kam Lake constituency. Finally, my constituency assistant, Mr. Michael Burchill, who recently moved to the Northwest Territories, and it's great to have him help in my office. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am certainly not questioning the Minister's judgement or the advice he receives from the quality staff in the public service. My question is: why are the regulations worded in a way that is putting -- I mean, the Minister is telling us now, Mr. Speaker, that he is not sure if this business is going to continue to boom or if it is going to go down. It doesn't sound like the Minister is aware of the economic viability of cannabis in the Northwest Territories. How are business owners or entrepreneurs who look at these regulations given comfort that the Minister is not...

Quoting from the first part of the vendor designation section of the regulations, the Minister needs to be satisfied that "the operation of a cannabis store by the person would be economically viable."

The Minister is going to determine the market conditions before the market is allowed to determine those conditions. I don't know of any other business that is run this way or permitted this way. Can the Minister clarify what these regulations mean by economic viability of a potential applicant?