Michael Miltenberger

Mr. Speaker, I rise in the House today to update the people of the Northwest Territories and our Protected Areas Strategy partners on the implementation of the NWT Protected Areas Strategy.

The Protected Areas Strategy was established in 1999 as an overall framework to guide the work of identifying and establishing protected areas in the Northwest Territories. It was developed in partnership by regional Aboriginal organizations, the federal and territorial governments, environmental non-governmental organizations and industry.

A substantial amount of work has been done under the Strategy. Saoyú...

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes, that Bill 10, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Operations Expenditures), No. 1, 2013-2014, be read for the first time.

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Monfwi, that Bill 8, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Operations Expenditures), No. 4, 2011-2012, be read for the first time.

I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Great Slave, that Bill 6, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 1, 2013-2014, be read for the first time. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Kam Lake, that Bill 9, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Operations Expenditures), No. 3, 2012-2013, be read for the third time.

Mr. Speaker, if I may add a few quick comments to this debate. Seventeen Assemblies have come here through the history of the Northwest Territories, a long journey to self-government going back nearly 70 years. It’s 46 years since the planes came north from Ottawa with the Commissioner to get us even closer to that idea of a responsible government.

My colleague Mrs. Groenewegen and I have been part of five of those Assemblies. Every one of those Assemblies that I’ve been in, we’ve been pushing for devolution. We’re on the verge of the removal of the last of the political shackles from Ottawa...

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Yellowknife South, that Bill 7, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 4, 2011-2012, be read for the third time.

We remain committed to the process. As we reached the critical point with our negotiations with the devolution process and we’re looking at concluding the deal and doing the transition and implementation so that we can take over those responsibilities, we wanted to make sure that the federal government didn’t, at those late stages, do anything precipitous until we could get ourselves sorted out with devolution and our thinking clear on the steps ahead. We indicated that we were fully committed to getting the groups that weren’t at step five to step five to pull the information together, look...

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Tu Nedhe, that Bill 5, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 3, 2012-2013, be read for the third time.

We will look to have a key role at the table. The federal role won’t be as visible. We need to have our thinking clear, which is why we’re working hard on the Land Use and Sustainability Framework as well as all the other subsidiary and interrelated strategies that we’re working on. We’re going to be at the table and we’re going to be much more proactive because we’re going to have the authority, plus, with our thinking much clearer coming from the Land Use and Sustainability Framework, we’ll be able to hopefully move these processes with more alacrity. Thank you.