Merci, Monsieur le President. I've raised this government's faulty Project Assessment Policy many times as an MLA, and here I go again. Cabinet approved the Project Assessment Policy on April 13th, 2017. The Project Assessment Policy requires "any technical advice and evidence provided to boards by their respective staff is in line with legislation, Cabinet direction and ministerial policies established under this policy."
This policy grants Cabinet immense power and reads like a way of muzzling our scientists and preventing presentation of evidence that may not be consistent with Cabinet's way of thinking. My concerns were borne out by the review board in its March 29, 2018, report on the Tlicho AllSeason Road. The board found that the socalled wholeofgovernment approach "has limited the ability of evidence and expertise from GNWT departments about potential impacts, concerns, and mitigations on issues within their respective mandates and jurisdictions."
As a result of this harsh criticism of GNWT, the Department of Lands commissioned a "lessons learned" report on the Tlicho AllSeason Road Environmental Assessment. That report concluded that "a whole of government approach is not necessarily best suited to all projects where the GNWT is the proponent and should not be the default approach for future projects where the GNWT is a proponent."
It also said "a wholeofgovernment approach, particularly in the context of a public review process, cannot be successful without an explicit commitment to greater transparency and evidencebased decisionmaking."
The formal response from the Department of Lands committed to reviewing that Project Assessment Policy by the end of the 19th Assembly. I'm still waiting and there's not much time left. This work is increasingly important as GNWT is likely to become a proponent for larger infrastructure projects that will require very careful scrutiny.
I asked written questions on this topic in March 2022, over a year ago. I was told that there would be no public engagement or work with Indigenous governments in revising the policy. Mr. Speaker, that's a big disappointment. I will have questions for the Minister of Environment and Climate Change on whether this work is really going to get done in the 19th Assembly. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member for Frame Lake. Members' statements. Member for Kam Lake.
