R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Since this was announced about a year ago, I've had numerous meetings with Minister Blair, the Minister of National Defence and with other federal Ministers, and we have -- along with the other northern Premiers, we have been lobbying the federal government to enlarge and advance more quickly their investments in the northern operational support hubs. I believe it was $218 million is the number that was in the original plan, and that was mostly to be spent in the final years of that plan. And so we've been advocating to get that money spent sooner than later. In the...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I won't be able to attend that conference, and so we're still looking at options to ensure that there is some sort of presence there from the Northwest Territories. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I give notice that on Wednesday, March 12th, 2025, I will present Bill 24, An Act to Amend the Family Law Act, to be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So if we're speaking specifically about defense infrastructure, that's something we have to leave up to the military. I don't have the wherewithal to tell the military where they should build a base to best deter the Russians or anything like that. That being said, we -- I've been having conversations, as I mentioned earlier. I spoke with Minister Blair earlier this week and I said that, you know, it's important that we are involved when they are putting their mind towards military spending. If there's going to be an expansion of, say, in Inuvik of the military presence...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So when we started this term, Canadian sovereignty and Arctic security weren't on the tops of our list of priorities given that, you know, those are federal mandates; however, they've come to the forefront of discussions all across Canada and especially here in the Northwest Territories. And so a lot of the work that we have been doing actually feeds directly into the notions of sovereignty and security. By advocating for the Mackenzie Valley Highway and putting that infrastructure in place, that is increasing our sovereignty, assuring our security. And that was...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'm not tearing up contracts. We're ensuring that as we move forward and contracts end and where we can get out of contracts at no cost to the people of the territory and at no -- and in a way that doesn't impact the safety of residents or staff, that we're doing that. So all of that said, the direction that has been given to departments has not changed. I don't want to flip flop back and forth depending on what the news of the day is, and so the direction remains the same. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As Premier, I would also like to acknowledge that Ian’s family is here with us in the House today. I want to welcome them to the House to share in this celebration of his life and accomplishments. And on behalf of the Government of the Northwest Territories, I want to extend my sincerest condolences. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I give notice that on Wednesday, March 12th, 2025, I will present Bill 23, An Act to Amend the Children's Law Act, to be read for the first time. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would say that when we engage the federal government, we want to package our asks in a way that is going to be palatable for them, in a way that they are going to want to consume. And Arctic security, Arctic sovereignty, is very sellable right now to the federal government, and so the Member can rest assured that it has been and will continue to be a major component of how we engage the federal government. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. No, I don't have an update for the House on that. And, you know, I want to ensure that people understand that, you know, despite the actions of, you know, an individual in the United States, whether -- despite the fact that person might be the President, that, as a country, we remain steadfast in our unity and our approach to dealing with this situation. And, you know, people might be shaken by the removal of the tariffs today and the removal of some tariffs yesterday and the addition of other tariffs. But we're not shaken, Mr. Speaker. This is what we're in for the...