Kieron Testart

Thank you. Is this where the Office of Priorities and Planning is located as well? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. What explains the variance in tax commissions between 2017 and this estimates document? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. What is the operational relationship between the Public Utilities Board and the department? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you for that answer from the witnesses. Is it an opinion of the Minister that we have a capacity to host our own industrial research chair here in the Northwest Territories to be of the lead on climate change research for Canada’s North? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Just briefly, I think climate change is a crucial issue, not just for us here in the Northwest Territories but for Canada and the world. In fact, perhaps more so for Northerners, we’ve been combatting or struggling with low water levels; increased forest fires; we’ve seen new species entering the Northwest Territories; rising sea levels and coastal erosion; and, of course, our economy is dependent on ice roads which are increasingly seeing degrees of fluctuation, unprecedented degrees of fluctuation.

Thankfully, this department and the government as a whole have placed a...

I would say priorities of building that road, which I support, go hand in hand with the priorities of building a transmission line, and it's debatable which one would come first. It does appear that one is much farther off. Has the department ever considered providing financial incentives for companies or think tanks to provide alternative energy to the mines, specifically, creating a prize for those projects?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I have some questions for the Minister responsible for Public Works and Services. We have made a commitment to reduce a certain per centage of our greenhouse gas emissions in line with international agreements and with our own commitments. We also have an obligation to support our mining industry and to develop new mines. So how is the Northwest Territories going to do both, essentially, when one new mine can increase our greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 25 per cent? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, over the weekend, I had the profound enjoyment of taking in this year's Dead North Film Festival, watching 31 short films that capture the imagination and creativity of Northerners. Dead North is the world's only circumpolar genre film festival and has produced 90 original short films over the past five years. These films are not short on originality, Mr. Speaker, cutting across horror, science fiction, and fantasy genres, and for the most part, shot in familiar locations here in Canada's North. These films touch on themes as diverse as the traumatic legacy...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I appreciate that commitment. It’s not just about sharing knowledge too. It’s about encouraging research opportunities and bringing more funding into the North. I know that the Royal Research Institute does a lot of that work and although that’s not this department, it is related to our research opportunities in the North. I just think that if we pursue those kind of opportunities such as installing research chairs, we can greatly increase the amount of funding and research opportunities that come into the North and potentially find another avenue of economic -- well, not...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I just want to touch briefly on the science agenda and climate change efforts of the department. In my opening comments, I spoke about the excellent work that ENR has done, developing expertise and gathering knowledge on climate change. I wonder if the Minister can explain the relationship of any we have with the Natural Sciences and Engineer Council of Canada in regards to expanding our knowledge on climate change and being of assistance to developing this body of knowledge across Canada. Thank you.