Kieron Testart

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I want to thank all of the honourable Members of this Assembly for their hard work and dedication to finding that common ground that has produced a stronger mandate than we initially started with. One of the hallmarks of our governing system is that we put aside our political differences and come together as a Caucus and work collaboratively and constructively. That does not mean we disagree, but it means the diversity of our opinions gives us a stronger basis to draw upon and make better decisions for our people.

This is a more refined version of the original document in...

The Minister has revealed some information that I said this morning in my Member’s statement, and has failed to answer the question why the standing committee’s concerns and recommendations are not being addressed. I would like to ask the Minister how this program that is currently housed in sport and recreation is supporting volunteerism in the Northwest Territories.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I hope I get as good answers as our last round of questions. The funding for the NGO Stabilization Fund has not increased in the last seven years. It is also oversubscribed by about three-quarters of $1 million. During the same time period, the NWT inflation rate has increased by an average of about 2 per cent per year. Will the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs commit to working with their Cabinet colleagues to put additional funding to support NGOs into this fund, and support NGOs in delivering services and their core functions? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I would like to ask for a recorded vote. Thank you.

Recorded vote

Thank you, Mr. Chair. We had a vigorous round of discussion around this issue of a knowledge economy, and we, all the honourable Members, felt that this was an effective way to start addressing some of these issues.

The rule of thumb, I guess, in the world has been that manufacturing and industry follows low-cost labour, and we are seeing that trend reverse. The knowledge economies are becoming the driver of production in the world, and actually, highly-skilled workers are slowly returning manufacturing back to countries that are developing knowledge economies.

Canada is well-positioned to make...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Minister has laid out what this fund does quite well and I agree with her 100 per cent. The core funding NGOs receive from other sources are used for their core delivery of programs and services. This stuff is for other things to help stabilize their operations. They don’t have to dip into those resources, so if the Minister is not going to put more money into it; the Minister is not going to encourage it be moved out of MACA; the Minister is going to continue to ignore the recommendations to the standing committee; will she at the very least adjust the fund so it...

I thank the Minister for the gardening lesson but I would like to really get at this. This issue, this fund, has been called on to be supported for many years. Nothing is going on. Can the Minister comment on why this government is persistent in disregarding the concerns of the Standing Committee on government operations, and continues to fail to respond to our recommendations?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, non-governmental organizations, or NGOs, provide essential and invaluable services to the people of the Northwest Territories. These not-for-profit organizations are run by dedicated, community-minded people who care about giving back and improving the lives of their fellow citizens. The list of what they contribute to our society is endless, and the work they do is not easy. In addition to fulfilling their primary mandates, many NGOs invest an inordinate amount of time and effort securing annual funding. This splits their focus, inhibits their ability to...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I would like to request for a recorded vote. Thank you.

Recorded vote

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I support this amendment. It strikes a good balance between the need for expediency in emergency situations while still allowing collective decision-making at the Cabinet level when a request for exemption comes forward. The reason why it’s important to have that collective decision-making in my perspective is exemptions may come from any area and it may be a low-emissions industrial actor, something like that where these regulations might unduly impact their economic success.

Having the perspective of more than one department – sorry, I should say more than one Minister...