Michael Nadli

Thank you, Mr. Chair. The Standing Committee on Government Operations has been considering Bill 12, Northern Employee Benefits Services Pension Plan Act. Members will recall that a substantive report on the committee’s review of Bill 12 was presented to the Legislative Assembly on March 5, 2015. By motion, the House received the report and it was moved into Committee of the Whole for further consideration.

Bill 12 sets out the legislative framework for Northern Employee Benefits Services, NEBS, Pension Plan to continue as a multi-employer, multi-jurisdictional public sector pension plan for...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. How will the NWT components of the Deh Cho Travel Connection be promoted and emphasized?

The Marketing Plan notes that each region is budgeted to receive $50,000 for advertising initiatives of their choice working with the NWT Tourism marketing director to align with the territorial strategy.

What other NWT tourism plans and strategies support region-directed growth in tourism?

To build tourism in the NWT, there is room for growth and improvement in and around the hamlet of Enterprise and throughout the NWT and Deh Cho. Tomorrow I’ll speak further about the hamlet, and later today I’ll have questions for the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment. Mahsi.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. The negotiations process is a path that is taken when the parties believe they can make an agreement. My hope is that the Government of the Northwest Territories and the Dehcho First Nations still believe they can work together.

Recently, the GNWT made an offer to the Dehcho First Nations in its efforts to move negotiations forward. However, as well intended the offer is, accusations of a “take it or leave it approach “and terse name calling has taken an unfortunate turn rather than examining the full merits of the offer and contemplating a counter offer.

It is my belief...

Can the Minister provide an update of the Dehcho Process negotiations? I know he’s spent a lot of time explaining where the process is at, but from his perspective, is there hope? Is there a point where we should be concerned? Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I too wanted to ask questions to the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Intergovernmental Relations. I’d like to ask the Minister, can he clarify whether the offer of 37,000 square kilometres is the take it or leave it offer or the final offer?

Thank you. My final question is in all these negotiations sometimes they come to a point where you can’t really resolve the differences.

Are there any provisions within the negotiations policy of this government or else the framework agreement, that’s been hammered out with all the parties, for any provision for a dispute mechanism? Mahsi.

I think the negotiations process at this point has reached a perilous point where perhaps parties might walk away. There could be a call where negotiations are basically going to come to a halt, and that’s not in the best interests of the people of the Deh Cho, of the NWT, or even Canada, for that matter, for the uncertainty of the land tenure and the ownership and the jurisdiction to not be clarified.

At what point would the Premier or the Minister call upon his leadership and call upon the Dehcho leadership to step in, instead of leaving the negotiation process and the fate of the whole...

I would like to thank the Minister for his reply. The Minister has stated that there have been some improvements and there are other parties that are involved.

To what extent have discussions been undertaken with companies such as NorthwestTel that have a community responsibility to ensure communities have sufficient and at least adequate cell coverage? Mahsi.