Caroline Wawzonek

Well, Mr. Speaker -- Mr. Speaker, there's no exemption for anything other than home heating fuel right now after the fall round or spring -- fall round with the federal government. So I guess their response is that they've chosen not to do that. The ask also went from British Columbia. So we might even say, again, if it's a political matter, we have relatively small presence in terms of our representation in Ottawa. British Columbia has a very large presence in terms of their representation in Ottawa. They, too, did not get an exemption for LNG, which a number of their residents also rely on...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Well, that clarifies for me the comment, I think, made earlier about being extensive meetings. Because I've had one meeting. But I know when we were meeting with the Minister of health, because there's an alcohol-managed alcohol program here in the Northwest Territories and some interest in whether or not a local brewery could participate to support that, that's a very different question, Mr. Speaker, from asking whether or not the production cap needs to change, the markup needs to change, regulations around holding or transporting need to change. That does sit solely...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, so, again, the general markup rate does apply to everything that's coming across this border, including, you know, the bigger companies or whatnot. I would first note, Mr. Speaker -- there's a lot of folks that listen to us here -- there are rules with respect to interjurisdictional trade, and that does apply to the cross-border sales of alcohol across all of Canada. So certainly anything we do when we make changes in this space do need to be compliant with the trade rules, trade regulations. But to the extent that we are able to create a system that is...

Mr. Speaker, I wish to advise the House that I intend to deliver the Budget Address on Friday, May 24, 2024. Thank you, Mr. Speaker

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following six documents: Government of the Northwest Territories Public Sector Positions since 2019-2020; Follow-up Letter for Oral Question 9-20(1): Home Heating Rebates; Follow-up Letter for Oral Question 19-20(1): Carbon tax Revenues Spent on Climate Change Adaptation; Follow-up Letter for Oral Question 41-20(1): Lutselk'e Road Access; Follow-up Letter for Oral Question 46-20(1): GNWT Carbon Taxation; and, Follow-up Letter for Oral Question 133-20(1): GNWT Policy on Indigenous Hiring. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following two documents: Northwest Territories Carbon Tax Report 20222023; and, Followup Letter for Oral Question 4520(1): Expansion of Snare Hydro System to Tlicho Communities. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And, Mr. Speaker, it's certainly again it's certainly, I think, our hope, my hope, you know shared hope on this end, that that's not going to be the case. As I indicated, we had been initially hoping that the strategic the regional strategic environmental assessment would get moving a little faster than it has. Had that been the case, the timing of that work would well would have contributed well to the timing that we were expecting in advance of the 2028 end of funding for us. So, again, it's been a couple of years. We've had a lot of progress over on the RSEA front...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, first and foremost we are working very closely with Indigenous governments on any routing decisions that might someday be made in the future, including the Tlicho government who did trigger the request for the regional strategic environmental assessment. At this point, we're at a stage going out this summer to do some field work analysis, some early field work analysis but, again, Mr. Speaker, I do want to emphasize no final decisions on routing are going to be made without Indigenous consultation, and the GNWT does continue to participate in the regional...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Government of the Northwest Territories does participate. We are a participant in the process. I happen to have been in obviously in the past government, and so saw as that work was getting underway and was present at bilateral discussions with the Tlicho government when the two projects were discussed and where the desire to move forward with both was discussed. So as a partner, we can certainly engage with the others involved and see if there's a way to ensure as partners, as one participant, but just to ensure that everyone knows that there's these...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we do, as of December, have a type A land use permit that was issued to us, and with that's just going as far as going up to Lockhart Lake. Now with that, it is hoped that we could spend this summer beginning some field work assessments, and again ultimately had been hoping that more would be happening with the regional strategic environmental assessment. I can say, Mr. Speaker, we have funding right now, federal funding, that goes until 2028. So that puts a bit of a time crunch on us to advance what has been often spoke of as one of the critical...