Kieron Testart

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I appreciate that the entire Cabinet did attend the Roundup conference. That shows that we are willing to go to extraordinary measures to show leadership and support on this industry. I think, furthering that leadership, we should be increasing this fund to at least be comparable to our neighbours in the Yukon. Does the Minister disagree with that? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Midterm, when we review this mandate, is rapidly approaching, so I expect that, if we have an idea of what this plan is going to cost and whether or not we can accomplish it, we should know sooner than later. Further to this commitment, there is also a commitment to expand tourism options by building new parks, such as the Doi T'oh Territorial Park in the Sahtu region. What is the status of that development of new parks and in particular, the Doi T'oh Territorial Park? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, the Mineral Incentive Program has remained, I would say, stagnant; I am sure the Minister would say stable funding at $400,000, whereas our neighbouring jurisdiction, the Yukon, for fiscal year 2017-18 has invested $1.6 million into this fund. How is the Minister ensuring that this incentive program is competitive with other jurisdictions in Canada and is attracting exploration here in the Northwest Territories compared to other jurisdictions? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, section 1.27 of our mandate commitments, for which the Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment is responsible, has commitments to do a number of things. One, I'd like to ask how this budget address is erecting emergency shelters along remote highways. I know that that has been an issue in the past. How is the department investing in those emergency shelters and fulfilling the mandate commitment? Thank you.

Do we have any concrete details to share? People are looking at how we can explore these areas to develop the natural resource economy. We need to forget this land now. Is there anything more substantial the Minister can share today or commit to sharing in the future?

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. So these resources are designed to participate in events like Roundup, but are we providing resources to assist in training potential prospectors, setting up licences, things of that nature so we can get potentially a junior miner started that is Indigenousowned? Do we have any intention to do something like that to create a strong partnership that way, or is this solely per diem money to get people out to meetings? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I spoke about the importance of settling outstanding rights agreements, and one of our mandate commitments is to focus on the issue of making land accessible, that is, to complete land use plans for all areas, including regions without Land and Resource Agreements in collaboration with Aboriginal governments. So I have questions today for the Minister of Lands. Can the Minister tell us what the status of this is and if we're close to completing land claims in the Dehcho and the Akaitcho Settlement Agreements specifically? Thank you.

Minister, can you repeat the exact amount? I couldn't hear you. Thank you.

I think there's a difference between making progress and a new offer. My understanding of a new offer within 90 days is there will be a new offer on the table for full consideration. Was that made? Was there a full deal given for consideration in this process, or was it only the appointments of the ministerial special representative from both governments that changed this process? That's certainly a new of way going forward, but I think it pales in comparison in a fully realized deal.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Under the activity description on page 205, it indicates that this activity includes marketing and promotion of NWT mineral and petroleum resources to attract investment in exploration, development, and production for the benefit of all NWT residents. I am wondering if the Minister can identify the total marketing budget or total dollar amount of resources attached to marketing our resources to attract investment in exploration? Thank you, Mr. Chairman.