Louis Sebert

Yes, thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There are several directors of family violence shelters in the Northwest Territories today in the Assembly, and I would like to recognize April Davies from Fort Smith, Sutherland House.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I have, to my right, Jeremy Walsh, policy officer, and to my left, Christina Brownlee, legislative counsel.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I am pleased to be here today to discuss Bill 13, An Act to Amend the Securities Act. I would like to thank the Standing Committee on Social Development for their review of this bill.

The purpose of securities legislation is to facilitate the raising of capital in the private sector, while providing appropriate protections and remedies for investors. As cross-border trading has evolved over time, the regulation of securities in Canada has become a coordinated activity among all provinces and territories. When the Northwest Territories enacted securities legislation in 2008...

I certainly would not want the Member opposite to get into any trouble over this. I will go back to the department and see what information we can share and will share that information with the Member opposite.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I can advise that, on September 5, 2018, a large number of letters were sent out dealing with this very important issue of the untenured occupancy of public land. As I say, it's absolutely necessary that we resolve this issue to determine which cabins and camps are rights-based and which are not. It went out to many organizations, and I know that at least several of them are at or in or near the Member opposite's riding. So we have engaged by sending out letters with a large number of IGOs.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to table the following four documents: pursuant to section 32(2) of the Financial Administration Act, I wish to table "Northwest Territories Surface Rights Board 2017-2018 Annual Report" and "Legal Aid Commission of the Northwest Territories Annual Report 2017-2018;" pursuant to section 10(2) of the Victims of Crime Act, I wish to table "29th Annual Report, 2017-2018 - Victims Assistance Committee of the Northwest Territories;" and pursuant to section 74.2(2) of the Residential Tenancies Act, I wish to table "Annual Report on the Activities of the Rental Officer...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Staff worked very hard on bringing this bill forward. I understand that we were the first territory to introduce legislation, and in fact, we were ahead of some of the provinces. Of course, we looked at what other provinces were doing, and I suppose our legislation somewhat reflects what others were doing, but also our unique circumstances in the Northwest Territories.

Mr. Testart mentioned the improvements that committee has suggested and those which we agreed to on the bill. Of course, that's part of the system we have, and I thank them for that. The bill wasn't perfect...

As mentioned earlier, we do recognize this as a problem. We have taken a number of steps, including increasing the number of hearings via three-way teleconference and scheduling face-to-face hearings outside Yellowknife more promptly. We are attempting to streamline the office and become more efficient and give people a shorter time in which their matters can be resolved. We do recognize this is an important issue.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Only to say that we fully realize that there are different opinions out there and there may be a difference in opinion overall between the larger and small communities. Doubtless, there will be some surprises and perhaps some unintended consequences of our legislation. Thank you.