Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in the midst of the dumbest trade war in perhaps global history, northern businesses are very concerned, and I know the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment is chair of the internal -- sorry, the committee on internal trade. We heard a statement about it earlier. How is the Minister going to ensure that measures like the BIP program, that are very successful in protecting northern businesses and supporting northern businesses, continue as trade barriers come down across the country? Thank you.
Thank you, Member from Range Lake. Minister for ITI.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, and thank you to the Member for the question. So our BIP program is currently one of our exceptions under the Canadian Free Trade Agreement, and there's no plan to take away that exception that we currently have. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you to the Minister for that. That is reassuring. Mr. Speaker, what changes are being contemplated? I know we have I think around 18 -- anyways, in the teens of exceptions in the Canada Free Trade Agreement. So what are we looking at eliminating here in the Northwest Territories?
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. We currently have 12. The first 11 are on things like our business incentive program, they're on things like our resources, like fisheries and oil, and then there's one of them that is a future one so it's not for resources today. The things that we are looking at doing resolve more around labour mobility and barriers that we have in that realm. And then the other piece, Mr. Speaker, is around regulatory harmonization. So a great example of that is the work that's currently being done at the reconciliation table around the trucking pilot, and all jurisdictions right across Canada have doubled down on that commitment to that table because that's one of our biggest gains to be had right now as a country, is ensuring that goods are moving around the country in an affordable way and that we don't have unnecessary administrative burden or unnecessary additions of cost to how we're moving foods and goods -- sorry, goods and services around the country. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister of ITI. Final supplementary. Member from Range Lake.
Thank you. And on the matter of trucking, we have trucking businesses in the Northwest Territories. They have access to these kinds of fast passes to get through provincial borders without paying dues they can reconcile at the end of the month. It expedites the whole process. Unfortunately, we can't certify that process here in the Northwest Territories, so businesses are looking -- have to base their operations outside of the Northwest Territories. Alberta seems to be the case in most areas. Is this something the Minister can correct and allow northern-based trucking companies and moving companies to get their certifications for cross-border programs like this here in the Northwest Territories so we aren't losing businesses to southern jurisdictions? Thank you.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. So absolutely, mutual recognition is something that we're fully committed to for the NWT's part of our participation within the committee on internal trade. And this also works into my colleague of infrastructure and the work that her department is doing. And so certainly we are absolutely committed to doing this work and are in the process of working towards it on that reconciliation and cooperation table. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister of ITI. Oral questions. Member from Range Lake.
