Kieron Testart

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to request unanimous consent to move to item 6 on the order paper, recognition of visitors in the gallery. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate the Premier providing clarity on this. It seems like this current federal government is taking a very proactive approach in reconciling with Indigenous governments in Canada and Indigenous nations in Canada. Would the Premier agree with that assessment? Because it sounds like all the funding for self-government in the Northwest Territories is coming from Ottawa regardless of all the top-ups of funding that we need to ensure equity of service. Would he agree that the federal government is fulfilling its mandate towards reconciliation? Thank you.

Perhaps I will clarify my sources. They come from the Indigenous governments themselves who responded to the Premier's claims in the red alert; so it is not largely words from Ottawa. It is words from the people of the Northwest Territories. The Dene Nation, for example, passed a resolution calling on direct funding for programs and services to Indigenous governments in the Northwest Territories. Does the Premier support that resolution?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In the final months of 2017, the Premier took to the national stage to declare serious allegations towards all of southern Canada concerning the economic future of the NWT. The Premier has said that "the dreams of Northerners are dying." Mr. Speaker, the dreams of Northerners are not dying. They are renewed by the next generation who want a prosperous future for their communities with a sustainable economy that provides benefits to all of our residents. This is why I take issue with the Premier's rhetoric, and most recently his position that the NWT cannot have a strong...

I didn't get a clear answer from the Premier, there. I'm looking to see, you know, if the future of the Northwest Territories is going to be a complex one with many different levels of government and many different responsibilities. How is this government ensuring that we have an equity of service provision across the territory with the negotiation of these self-government agreements? It's important that Northerners can expect the same high-quality service from every level of government regardless of whether it's federal, territorial, or Indigenous. So what are we doing to ensure that our...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, one of the pillars of reconciliation is the drawdown of powers from governments in Canada to Indigenous self-governments, and that is, of course, a component of the work of reconciliation here in the Northwest Territories. Yet it seems that there is some resistance from this government to a true nation-to-nation relationship as it relates to GNWT funding authority and programs and services.

I would like to ask the Premier: what specific programs, services, and authorities is this government planning on negotiating in self-government drawdowns? Thank you, Mr...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move this Assembly recommends that the Office of the Comptroller General and the Department of Finance work with all Government of the Northwest Territories public agencies to assist them to complete their audited financial statements to meet statutory reporting deadlines and to seek necessary extensions where those deadlines cannot be met. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. On October 17, 2017, the Standing Committee on Government Operations presented its Report on the Review of the 2015-2016 Public Accounts, which included eight recommendations. Members of the committee may have additional comments. That concludes my opening comments, Mr. Chair. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I, too, will rise to commend the long service Mr. Schauerte has given to this institution and to us, in particular, on the Regular Members' side. I may have studied politics before I got here, but I certainly did not know how the sausage was made, and Doug is an excellent sausage-maker.

Other Members may know, since I have been here over the last two years, I have thoroughly enjoyed learning our procedures and practices here, and one thing I am going to miss most about Doug leaving is arguing with him over how best to do those policies and practices and always throwing...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It is not the federal government's responsibility to fund our communities. It is this government's responsibility. The city's budgets are done on a calendar year. Can the Minister commit to getting this work done before the end of the calendar year so the city can have certainty about what their fiscal room is going to look like?