David Ramsay

I believe we need to back what is working, and for the Northwest Territories, certainly Aurora is working, our Aboriginal tourism product is growing, and we believe that’s going to work as well. So we have to continue to back what is being successful. I believe we have tremendous opportunity here in the Northwest Territories to market the products that we have to audiences around the world. The next government hopefully will continue on the same path this government has had, and that is to invest in marketing our tourism, our products. These things have to be marketed and nobody’s going to do...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We have a very strong and capable team at Northwest Territories Tourism. We have dedicated staff at the regional level through ITI who provide support to tourism operators and the licensing aspect. We have seen numbers continue to increase, and the Member is correct; when we came into office almost four years ago, we increased the marketing budget for tourism, and I believe that those efforts back then are now starting to pay dividends with the increased number of visitors from Asia, from the United States and domestically from here in Canada.

I know the Member spoke...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have a return to oral question asked by Mr. Bromley on June 2, 2015, regarding scientific conclusions on climate change.

ITI is committed to environmentally responsible development of NWT natural resources to grow our economy for the benefit and prosperity of all NWT residents.

Every application to withdraw water in the NWT, including for hydraulic fracturing, is review on a case-by-case basis. Consideration will be given to the volume of available source water in the area as well as any cumulative impacts from other withdrawals in the region. Any water licence will set...

We’re not going to have a successful tourism industry here in the Northwest Territories unless we’ve got dedicated, trained front-line staff providing the services to the visiting public. It was highlighted in the Economic Opportunities Strategy the need for tourism training, and we’re undertaking that. We’ve dedicated some funding for tourism-related training, and again, we’re working with the Northwest Territories Tourism, our tour operators around the Northwest Territories to get this training in place and get as many folks trained in providing quality customer service to the travelling...

I can get the information for the Member on the $50,000 and how it was spent in each of our regions and where it went. I can provide that to him. We have to look back at the Economic Opportunities Strategy and our focus on diversifying the economy here in the Northwest Territories. Certainly, tourism is one area last year, I believe, it was somewhere near $120 million to our economy here in the Northwest Territories. It has the opportunity, and I’ve said before in the House, to have an impact in every one of our communities across the territory, so it’s important that we have the requisite...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It’s an honour to recognize today in the House, Commanding Officer of “G” Division, Chief Superintendent Ron Smith, and also the officer in charge of criminal operations, Mike LeSage. I know they don’t get thanked enough, so I want to thank them for all the great police work they’ve done across the Northwest Territories. Most recently, with large seizures of illegal drugs and alcohol in communities across the territory. Thank you very much.

Mr. Speaker, each year on the last Sunday of September, Canada salutes the men and women who put their lives on the line every day in their role as police and peace officers.

In Yellowknife on September 27th, RCMP, peace officers, family members and the public came together to recognize and honour the loss of loved ones, friends and colleagues who sacrificed their lives in the line of duty. Since the 1870s, 222 officers from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and its forerunner, the North West Mounted Police, have died across Canada. We owe each of them a profound and continuing debt of...

I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Tu Nedhe, that Bill 63, An Act to Amend the Victims of Crime Act, be read for the second time.

This bill amends the Victims of Crime Act with respect to surcharges imposed and paid into the Victims Assistance Fund. The bill allows the surcharge amounts to be set by regulation and allows an offender to complete a work option program under the Fine Option Act as an alternative to incarceration for failure to pay a surcharge. Consequential amendments are made to the Fine Option Act.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Yellowknife South, that Bill 59, Estate Administration Law Amendment Act, be read for the second time.

Mr. Speaker, this bill amends the Children’s Law Act, Guardianship and Trusteeship Act, Intestate Succession Act, and Public Trustee Act in order to adjust certain monetary amounts, facilitate the disposal of unclaimed property arising out of intestacy or, where no one applies for a grant other than the public trustee, streamline certain estate administration processes involving the public trustee, and make other amendments...

We can certainly have that discussion with the Department of Health and Social Services on coordinating times those services are provided in the community.