Kevin O'Reilly

Merci, Madam la Presidente. I want to thank the Minister for recognizing the work of lowly NGOs and getting them to do the work of government again. So one of the reasons the Minister keeps giving for a minimum wage keeping minimum wage so low is the impact of a higher wage on small businesses, and the Minister just said that few businesses pay the minimum wage. So can the Minister tell us whether this government is considering a further package of wage topups for low income workers to lift these people out of poverty? Mahsi, Madam Speaker.

Thanks. Well, whether it's to the benefit of the region or not that's I think part of the question, is that the regional study needs to grapple with is, you know, whether you want a road or whether you want to have caribou. And especially at a time where the caribou numbers are so low with the Bathurst herd, and I just don't think that they can handle this kind of disturbance. But that's the kind of issues that the regional study needs to deal with and to figure out if this sort of thing would actually be a net benefit at the end of the day. But, again, I'm very happy to hear that the Minister...

Merci, Madame la Presidente. My questions are for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. First, I'd like to get some clarity on the basic principles of the new minimum wage approach announced in August. Can the Minister tell us how poverty and a living wage were considered in the development of this new approach to a minimum wage? Mahsi, Madam Speaker.

Thanks, Mr. Chair. Yeah, so there's 15 about $15 million that's not going to be spent on socalled Slave Geological Province AllWeather Road Highway Environmental Assessment. So how does that affect the timeline for that project? Thanks, Mr. Chair.

Merci, Madam la Presidente. In August, this government announced a new approach to adjustment of the territorial minimum wage, where it will be increased in relation to the consumer price index and the average hourly wage in the NWT. How is this going to ensure people get a decent standard of living?

The factors resulting in the setting of a minimum wage were reviewed for several years running by a minimum wage committee, which included business and public representatives with ECE representatives making a report to the Minister that was then kept secret. A few facts from their reviews stand out...

Thanks, Mr. Chair. So are all of these projects, you know, cropping up again in the 20232024 Capital Estimates? Thanks, Mr. Chair.

Merci, Madame la Presidente. My questions are for the Minister of Lands. The department seems to have placed top priority in our request from the mining industry to use surety bonds as an acceptable form of financial security. Ernst & Young has apparently been contracted to tell the government that surety bonds are good financial security. So can the Minister tell us how much this contract with Ernst & Young is going to cost and when a report is going to be finished? Mahsi, Madam Speaker.

Mahsi, Mr. Chair. I move that the chair rise and report progress.

Thanks, Mr. Chair, and thanks for that. I just find this a really curious practice that why wouldn't that just be spelled out in section 31 of the bill? So it's just left to the discretion of the Speaker and/or the Commissioner as to which parts are brought into force? Thanks, Mr. Chair.

Yeah, thanks, Mr. Chair. So I believe I heard the sponsor of the bill say that there are parts of this bill that are going to come into force right away. And what's the mechanism for doing that? Because it just says here that it's going to be fixed by order of the Commissioner. So what's the mechanism by which parts of this bill are going to come into force right now or maybe on a sense later this week when the Commissioner's in the Chamber. How is that done, because it's not really in the bill itself anywhere. Thanks, Mr. Chair.