Kevin O'Reilly

Merci, Monsieur le President. On October 30th, the Minister of Finance announced something called the Government Renewal Initiative, and she discussed it again today in the context of the budget. The Minister said, "We are going to use the current climate of recovery and renewal as an opportunity to reimagine how we obtain, manage, and control those financial resources."

The Minister painted a rather grim picture of our finances due to the significant capital spending, which has driven up our short-term debt. The Government Renewal Initiative is supposed to lead to what she calls "value-driven...

I want to thank the Minister for that, and I look forward to seeing that document tabled in the House soon. Just in case anyone's interested, I do believe in a program, a strong program evaluation, but I'm just not sure the Government Renewal Initiative is the right way to go about this. I'm also worried that short-term savings will eclipse long-term benefits, and that the differential impacts of changes on disadvantaged populations will not be adequately considered. What assurance can the Minister provide that the Government Renewal Initiative will adequately consider the long-term and...

Merci, Monsieur le President. My question is for the Minister of Finance on the Government Renewal Initiative. The Minister announced back in October, the Government Renewal Initiative, but it was a little bit lean on details. Can the Minister provide any more details now on the steps, stages or phases of the Government Renewal Initiative, how Regular MLAs will be involved, and how it is going to be communicated to our workforce and the general public? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

I want to thank the Minister for that. Of course, I have both lists in front of me, and there are a lot of things that are not on the list, which she is not going to disclose because she doesn't think we can, because we're country bumpkins or something on this side of the House, but merci, Monsieur le President. I want to thank the Minister for repeating all of that. Although this government was a creditor for the Ekati Mine during the proceeding, many businesses and even the union pension fund were in shortfall positions. Can the Premier tell us whether these NWT businesses and the union will...

Merci, Monsieur le President. My questions are for the Premier on the sale of the Ekati Mine and whether Cabinet protected the public interest. Can the Premier tell us whether GNWT has agreed to any concessions, debt write-offs, or weakened financial security as part of the sale of the Ekati Mine and assignment of environmental approvals or agreements? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Merci, Monsieur le President. I want to thank the Minister for that. I am not sure it was really an answer. I mentioned that most of the financial security held by this government from environmental management and reclamation obligations are in the form of surety bonds backed by insurance companies rather than safer, irrevocable letters of credit issued by Canadian chartered banks. Can the Premier tell us whether this government used the sale of the property and our right to consent or not to the assignment of the water licence, land-use permits, and environmental agreement to convert these...

I want to thank the Minister for that. Of course, I could never get a fully consolidated list of outstanding amounts owed to this government for taxes, royalties, fees, or any other liabilities or accounts receivable from the Ekati Mine. I need to ensure that these issues are part of our diligent review of this major asset transfer. Can the Minister or the Premier commit to finally providing consolidated lists, in confidence if necessary, with details on how each category was treated as part of the sale of the property?

Merci, Monsieur le President. The ongoing saga of creditor protection for the owners of the Ekati Mine seems to have drawn to a close last Friday without so much as a peep from our government. On that date, the mine appears to have been sold to a group of lenders who will own and operate the mine. That's good news. The new owners are called Arctic Canadian Diamond Company Limited, or ACDC.

I could never get a consolidated list of all of the outstanding amounts owed to this government at any point during the proceeding despite repeated requests. I was given partial lists, told that some of the...

Thanks, Mr. Chair. Yes, committee did turn its mind to this matter. Of course, we have recommended remote sittings only in limited circumstances. I think I mentioned the public health emergency and a state of emergency under the Emergency Measures Act or if the Speaker is satisfied that the health, safety, or well-being of a Member might be compromised, so already, remote sittings are only contemplated in a limited set of circumstances, recognizing that one of those might be if we do not have a building to meet in any further.

We did not go as far as to say that staff had to be here, in this...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move that this committee recommends that, after any remote sitting, the Standing Committee on Rules and Procedures be tasked with conducting a review and to provide any recommendations for improvements. Thank you, Mr. Chair.