Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to follow up on the questions from my colleague Mrs. Groenewegen. Agriculture obviously presents many opportunities for good jobs that last for generations, are sustainable, provide local employment, they have lots of economic spinoffs in construction, transportation, the service industry and so on. The question of land remains as a big issue and apparently the only opportunity that’s readily available is municipal lands.
We met with the Territorial Farmers’ Association. They need to know what lands are available, what lands had been zoned agriculture and what are available. Will the Minister commit to simply inventorying the current lands that are zoned agricultural in municipalities and make it available to the Territorial Farmers’ Association, that information along with whether or not it’s available, already being used or available? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. The honourable Minister responsible for Industry, Tourism and Investment, Mr. Bob McLeod.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d be quite prepared to research that, although I suspect there won’t be much space identified on a map. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Work currently is underway in Yellowknife through private contract to investigate how an integrated look at food security can improve living conditions for all here in Yellowknife. This is work that the department should be doing or at least promoting and participating in, providing leadership and support in all regions of the Northwest Territories. What is the government doing or what can it be doing to provide support for this beyond simply establishing community gardens? Thank you.
We have our normal tool kit of business programs that are available to anybody who wants to pursue farming. We’ve gone and met with Arctic Farmer, for example, I’ve been to Hay River on numerous occasions, I’ve attended meetings of the Territorial Farmers’ Association, so we are definitely aware of the potential for agriculture and we are looking to find ways to provide additional support to those people who are interested in getting into the agricultural activities. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I appreciate those comments from the Minister. I’m glad to hear he’s out there and becoming aware of this issue. That’s certainly the place to start. In fact, the Territorial Farmers’ Association have indicated to us that better communication with the Minister and the department would help them build on the opportunities that may be out there.
The Minister has indicated that he could approach land claim governments that are negotiating land claims through the interim land agreements that are in place right now. And that’s what we’re all about here today, Mr. Speaker, is developing the political will to do this. There are a million things we could be doing. Will the Minister approach those governments and establish what lands they would be willing to zone agricultural under long-term lease conditions? Thank you.
As a government, we have a process for participating in the various land claims and self-government organizations, and we do have a process for identifying issues for our negotiators to raise. Certainly I’ll communicate the Member’s interests to the Minister responsible for Aboriginal Affairs. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Final supplementary, Mr. Bromley.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate that commitment. I’ll look forward to that enthusiastic endorsement and some action from this department.
On the last one, the off-road fuel rebates have not been provided to the Territorial Farmers and that’s a big one. Obviously they’re paying the non-motive fuel tax, or the motive fuel tax and this is crippling the organization. There’s clear opportunity for providing some rebates and addressing that question. Will the Minister commit to getting that straightforward resolution taken care of? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
This is an issue that has been raised by other sectors such as the fishermen, the trappers, and this is something that I’ll raise with my colleague, the Minister of Finance. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.
