Robert C. McLeod

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to table the following document entitled "Northwest Territories Waste Resource Management Strategy and Implementation Plan." Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Yes, thank you, Mr. Chair. We designed a program that would mitigate the impact to the people of the Northwest Territories, the cost of doing business in the Northwest Territories. Like I said before, the easiest thing we could have done is nothing and let the government decide what's good for us, like they have been doing for a long time. Those days are over. I've said before, to delay this to the 19th, we need to come up with a decision. Do we just stop what we do and say, well, federal government, you take over because nobody wants a carbon made-in-the-North approach to carbon tax, and...

I take the Member's point, because we are from a region where there is still a lot of traditional activity that goes on. They depend on the funds received from a lot of these auctions to finance their upcoming season. One of the ways that we do help them, though, is with the Grubstake Program, which is one of the better programs that are offered to those that continue to live a traditional lifestyle. We don't anticipate any changes to the normal timelines, and I think the plan is on track and will be available in and around September 15th.

Yes, thank you, Mr. Chair, and I will be very quick. The easiest thing for this government to do would have been to say, okay, well, we will do nothing. We had a lot of people working on this, trying to mitigate some of the impact, but the easiest thing to do would have been to just sit back, do nothing, and let the federal government put their backstop in. Then this government would have been accused of not doing anything and letting the federal government just come in and impose their backstop on us without trying to work for the people of the Northwest Territories and help mitigate some of...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Government of the Northwest Territories made a mandate commitment to develop a strategy for improving the way that waste is managed in the Northwest Territories.

Waste management is a shared responsibility, and improving waste management in the Northwest Territories requires a collaborative approach that considers the diverse interests of all groups producing and managing waste.

After extensive engagement, I am pleased to share that the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, together with the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs, has completed and...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I am done.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. As I said earlier, any type of motor fuel is going to be subject to the carbon tax. I have to point out that with the heating fuel and propane, 100 percent rebate comes to about $9.5 million dollars. That is a substantial amount right there. We worked with Canada. We came up with an approach that we thought would be beneficial. Nobody likes a tax. That is the way a lot of people see this.

What people out there need to understand is that there is going to be a carbon tax regardless. If our approach is not used, there will be a federal backstop, which I believe will be not...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to table the following three documents entitled "Northwest Territories Species At Risk Committee Annual Report 2018-2019"; "Conference of Management Authorities - Species At Risk Annual Report 2018-2019"; and "Public Service Annual Report 2018/2019." Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The GNWT has done some high-level estimates regarding the cost of extending the fibre line to Tuktoyaktuk. This project is being considered as part of the Investing in Canada Plan. The GNWT, we are committed to working on a more detail plan related to this project which will ultimately determine the final cost and timing.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Mackenzie Valley fibre optic line is a backbone transport link to GNWT asset. Linking this backbone to the community is what's called the "last mile." This service is provided by the local service provider as GNWT is not in the business of providing local Internet service. Building this backbone significantly improved the telecommunications infrastructure in the Mackenzie Valley, replacing the aging and costly microwave system. It isn't accurate to say that there haven't been improvement or promises made. The only promises I make are to my grandchildren. We have...