Rylund Johnson

Thank you, Madam Chair. Yes, I'm going to ask a couple more questions, I guess. I'm wondering out of the total amount on tree planting we're spending and if the Minister has any idea or knows in front of her where we're planting trees. Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Yes, and I'll just point that, you know, this $15 million here going, $10 million of it was from COVID secretariat, so clearly the department did a bit of an assessment of what is needed to increase that capacity for the endemic going forward and needed an extra $5 million. But we also know the Department of Health and Social Services, even with its budget, runs a deficit consistently.

I'm just trying to understand if there is still a gap, we think, of increased COVID costs on the healthcare system going forward or whether we think you know, I know we're not going to...

Thank you, Madam Chair. I have a question about the reduction in contract services here in the management board secretariat. It's rather significant. And I'm just wondering how what contracts we expect to lose from this? I don't really understand what the management board secretariat does to be honest.

And if we don't actually expect to lose any contracts, just if someone could colour how we end up, you know, with about $700,000 of surplus in a specific accounting line for this group. Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I see there's $6,200,000 increased to the Housing Corporation which shows up in the Department of Finance as a transfer. My understanding of this money was that it was going to be a permanent increase to the Housing Corporation so that their grant from the government, or the GNWT, has been rather consistent for almost a decade or so.

So I'm just wondering if this is a permanent increase to what we give the Housing Corporation, and if so, is there anything that kind of reflects that in the main estimate or in the supplementary appropriations? Thank you, Madam Chair.

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. Well, it's my hope that since this was a priority of this Assembly that we would see something in this Assembly. And if we have to live with an action plan that, you know, we get on the last day and we actually don't do any of the work in it in the life of this Assembly, well, that's better than nothing. And I guess the other debate here is that BC and the federal government have introduced actual legislation which create a legal obligation for the government to do this work and for departments to do this work. Are we going to see legislation to implement the...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I guess I'm curious about any internal work that's kind of occurring. I recognize that there are larger questions that the declaration raises, you know, how we are going to operationalize free prior informed consent is obviously a very large question we have to work with the Council of Leaders. But to me, there's a number of smaller internal changes to GNWT internal policies, perhaps our consultation policies, perhaps how we structure the government to empower regions differently. I think there's probably a lot of work that we just need to do internally.

So my question...

Well, if the Premier's going to do it, I'll do it too. Mr. Speaker, I'd like to recognize a Yellowknife North constituent Lee Mandeville, a friend and colleague of Adrian Lizotte, and one heck of a fiddle player as well, Mr. Speaker.

Madam Chair, I move that this committee recommends that the Department of Education, Culture and Employment impose timebound requirements on public bodies to respond to the recommendations from the Languages Commissioner. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I move that this committee recommends the Department of Education, Culture and Employment clarify the role of the languages commissioner, specifically regarding how the languages commissioner may bring forward concerns and recommendations to the Minister responsible for Official Languages. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I guess the list of amendments are pretty innocuous and I'm not all that opposed to them. But I do want to speak to I think is an absolute priority that this Assembly amend the Liquor Act. I know the department did a What We Heard, did some engagement, and has gotten that feedback from the public which we hopefully will see soon. And it raises some very significant questions about how we're going to update our outdated liquor regime in this territory. Clearly this bill does not do that. But I grow concerned by introducing this amendment to the Liquor Act. It is...