Merci, Monsieur le President. I've been an MLA in this Assembly for seven years. I've never had an opportunity to meet with a federal minister. I'm glad that the Premier's doing that tomorrow. Why doesn't the Premier invite the Minister to meet with any of the Regular MLAs? It's never happened. So will the Minister commit to see if she can get a meeting for us as Regular MLAs with one at least one federal minister before I finish. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you. Order. Oral questions. Honourable Premier.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In honesty it's hard to get a meeting with any Minister, especially the prime minister. Often, we get half an hour. We're very focused. We got to get we tell them what our agenda is, etcetera. It's not my understanding when I talked to my staff before about having Regular Members there, it's never been done in other jurisdictions. It's not something that's normal, that happens. However, I will like to say that Minister Vandal is coming here tomorrow, and I am assuming, if things go right, that he'll be a visitor in our gallery. So I can't guarantee that I'll get a personal meeting for the Regular Member, but the stairs there's one set of stairs, unless they go through the back so I'd recommend that run out and shake hands. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Merci, Monsieur le President. I remember going to Ottawa one time with Bill Erasmus as the national chief of the Dene Nation at the time. We actually went into the House of Commons. We actually stood by stairs, you know, as they're coming down, and we actually did meet with a federal minister in the lobby. But we shouldn't have to do that in this building. Yeah, we do things differently. That's because we're a consensus government, Mr. Speaker. So I want this Premier to actually commit to raise this issue with the Minister while he's here that he should actually start to meet with some of us as Regular MLAs because that's how we do business as consensus government. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Absolutely we are a consensus government, and everyone has role and responsibilities within this government. Like I say, I struggle to get meetings with federal ministers. My time is short. If anything, I'm trying to get meetings with the Indigenous governments with federal ministers. However, I would like to put it back, Mr. Speaker, and say that the chair of AOC should send a letter to the Minister and invite him to meet with the committee in the spirit of consensus government. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Merci, Monsieur le President. No, that's a great idea. And I'll be happy to discuss that with my colleagues on this side of the House. But, you know, yesterday in the context of the government response on Bill 60, you know, we asked the House asked the Premier to actually write a letter to the Prime Minister of Canada on the lack of energy options here in the Northwest Territories. And their side would refuse to do that, to actually send a letter to the prime minister on our behalf after a motion in the House. So I don't think I have a lot of confidence anyways, what I want to do is get the Minister the Premier to commit that she will actually raise this with the Minister tomorrow that on this visit, maybe the next time he's here, that he should actually take the time to meet with this side of the House. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think what I'll do is, again, I'm going to put it back, I'm going to say that the chair of AOC should write a letter to the any Minister that they want to invite in the spirit of consensus government. But I will make a commitment because I do want to give him a yes. And I will commit to bringing up the carbon tax concerns that we have to the Minister to the appropriate Minister. Although like I've said many times, my knowledge is that when we speak about the federal government, they are listening. So they're already hearing that. But I will raise the concerns of the carbon tax and the impacts to the people of the Northwest Territories because it's a federal tax. We have the choice to do it within the territories, but it's going to happen anyway. So I will bring it up because it's part of what I always say about the high cost of living, no jobs, no transportation, the reliance that we have. So thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Madam Premier. Final short supplementary.
I'm just going to ask the Premier to add one more thing to that list when she's meeting with the Minister tomorrow, that this trip, next trip, would the Minister please meet with some of the Regular MLAs. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I know that the Speaker this morning started with that get in order but I'm feeling generous today, so I'm kind of feeling a little bit generous today. I already committed that I'd bring up the carbon tax as an issue. I will tell the Minister that the Regular Members would love to meet him. But I'd like to get confirmation, perhaps in another time because we're at the end of oral questions, that the chair of AOC would also write to the Minister because I think it would help if there was both of us doing that. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Madam Premier. Colleagues, order.
Colleagues, our time for oral questions has expired. Written questions. Madam Premier.
Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to return to item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery.
Thank you, Madam Premier. The Premier is seeking unanimous consent to return to item 5. Are there any nays? There are no nays. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Madam Premier.
