Rylund Johnson

Thank you, Madam Chair. Well, I guess I still am struggling to read these and understand. Can I get an update?

There's $119,000 for a walkin freezer in Yellowknife. This was actually got a lot more attention than it should have, perhaps. It got a lot of attention, let's just say, when it was passed because it's used to store seized caribou.

Can I just clarify whether this $119,000 that I'm seeing here means it is lapsed and no longer going forward or that there was just a delay in the project? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Right now across every jurisdiction in Canada a process is occurring where jurisdictions have gotten advance copies of National Building Code 2020, and many are reviewing and deciding whether they want to implement it, whether they want to make any exemptions. As I stated in my statement, many have already taken parts of it, such as the sections on mass timber, and implemented them.

And my question for the Minister of MACA is whether we are doing any of this work, whether this is work that the GNWT does at all, or simply do we just go to the Fire Prevention Act...

Thank you, Madam Chair. In my neverending attempt to understand accounting language, this $552,000 has an offsetting amount which was lapsed in the previous fiscal. Does that therefore make this a carryover but just essentially a carryover that doesn't cost us any money because we lapsed it last fiscal; am I at all on the right page? Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chair. You know, I'm going to ask no further questions because I feel I'm unable to ask any questions without specifically looking at a confidential document. And I have said this many times in how we do our budgeting that often we pass budgets where we can't say what we want, where we have no idea that there's no public figure provided for the cost of projects. So I also note that the clock wasn't started when I actually spoke so I think I well used up my time. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Yes, thank you, Madam Chair. You know, I struggle how to even ask questions when this happens.

So the table that we are not supposed to refer to but was referred to previously, it shows the department, it shows what they previously got and it shows the free balance, and then you can tell what's lapsed. But by department, it doesn't tell you any projects. It just tells you the department. So you have no idea, and there's no ability to know the project that is actually being lapsed. I guess would it be possible to get a public list of what actual projects are not being completed by the GNWT...

Thank you, Madam Chair. I guess I'm just hoping the Minister can tell me what is lapsing.

I note as we go through department by department, lapsed money doesn't really show up so I can't ask what's lapsing there individually. You know, it kind of just disappears. If we could have a breakdown of what's lapsing, thank you.

Yes, thank you. Well, I guess I wonder, then, is any of that lapse, a department has just simply not applied for a carryover and then they didn't get it, or, you know, is there a capacity issue, it's actually reapplying for the money to be carried over, or are they just actually not don't have contracts in place or significant progress, I guess, on those? Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I see that there's $5,470,000 for the transformation to a polytechnic university. I'm very happy to see that this is 100 percent federal money. But I believe there was a couple million in the capital budget previously for some upgrades to the college as well. But I'm just hoping the Minister could give an explanation of what we are spending this $5 million on. Thank you.

For.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am well aware that alcohol is of a primary concern and issue to our substance abuse issues. But I think absent action now, we will find ourselves in a similar situation to the Yukon in the years to come. We have seen increasing drug use and many people on the front lines speak to that regularly.

But my question for the Minister of Health is BC in granting this or in receiving this application, the federal Minister of Health said this is really a template for how to respond to substance abuse issues. So I'm wondering if the Minister of Health will commit to looking at...