Wendy Bisaro

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I had the opportunity last week to witness another step in the evolution of devolution. I am referring to the hearings held here in Yellowknife by the Parliament of Canada Standing Committee on Aboriginal and Northern Affairs on Bill C-15, a federal bill amending the NWT Act and the Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act, MVRMA. It was a long but most interesting day. In general, the presentations were thoughtful, well presented, and the passion and commitment of the organizations behind the words was evident.

It is well known that there is no unanimity here in the NWT...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I understand that there are risks. My concern is that these risks are out there. Once bitten, twice shy. I went through the bridge project, as did the Minister of Transportation, so I think he knows why I am a little circumspect.

I would like to ask the Minister, knowing that this is a big project, knowing it’s going on for a number of years, if he will be providing updates to Members and to the general public as the project progresses. Will he let us know not only how many kilometres have been completed, but an accounting of how much has been spent and whether the...

Thanks to the Minister for that response. The Minister mentions a small contingency, but I didn’t hear him reference basically what would happen if we get a number of change orders and we have used up that small contingency. What then occurs if we have more change orders or we have more cost overruns that are required? What exists in the contract that can guarantee to me, as a Member overseeing this project and looking after the finances of the government, what exists in that contract that will make me feel better about the fact that we are not going to have cost overruns? Thank you.

Even though the Government of Canada has refused to take this action to split Bill C-15 once already, I urge the government and its Standing Committee on Aboriginal and Northern Affairs to reconsider and to take action to divide Bill C-15. As I often say, it’s the right thing to do. Let’s do the right thing. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to thank the mover and the seconder of the motion for bringing it forward. This is a motion which I can fully support. I’ve spoken to the issue of alcohol in my own community and in all NWT communities many times. It’s an issue which, unfortunately, is going to take very many years before it will ever go away. I suspect it won’t ever go away fully.

It’s been spoken to I think by a couple of the Members already, but alcohol is involved in, obviously, the majority of incidents that the RCMP and/or the municipal enforcement officers deal with. It takes up a huge...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. To the Minister, one of the ones that have been rejected that I’ve referenced several times is an independent oversight. If we have to accept a non-independent oversight body, the Oversight Working Group has been working on an environmental agreement. It’s been worked on for many years. I’d like to ask the Minister when will the oversight group get back to the table and finalize this environmental agreement. Thank you.

To the Minister, yes, things take time, but I don’t think it should take five years for an environmental assessment. Goodness knows when it took that long for the pipeline, people were screaming that it was far too long.

The Minister quoted from a letter from 2012, I believe he was referencing the Oversight Working Group at that point, and I feel strongly we need an independent oversight group, which apparently has been rejected, or which I know has been rejected. So the Oversight Working Group, from my understanding, has not met since September of 2012, shortly after the letter I think the...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It’s unfortunate that the Minister feels we have to disagree on something which would go towards assuaging the concerns of residents, particularly here in Yellowknife.

I’d like to ask the Minister if he can tell me, one of the recommendations which was rejected referenced an oversight of the project, and there’s no recognition from the response from the team of environmental agreements that have been worked on. There is no recognition that oversight is a very large concern for residents.

Can the Minister tell me, again, to this particular one, why is oversight of the...

I understand he’s the responsible Minister; I accept that, but he’s also the Minister responsible for the environment in the NWT. He should be, in my mind, looking after the best interests of the residents of the NWT.

I’d like to know if the Minister can advise me, and advise the House and the general public, how he can be responsible for the cleanup at the mine on behalf of NWT residents, and at the same time, he is responsible for the regulation of the project, which in this case is rejecting the recommendations.

Mr. Speaker, it concerns me that the project team speaks as if the decision is done. The team itself responds to the public as if their decision is final. This quote appears on AANDC’s website Frequently Asked Questions: “The answers are in and it’s time to move forward with a solid long-term plan.” For me that solid long-term plan must include an independent oversight of the project. It would help build public confidence if people from this community have further input into this project, rather than just the project team itself.

In closing, I want to quote one of the questions from the AANDC...