Caroline Wawzonek

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, so the regional strategic environmental assessment is led by the federal government. So far be it for me to speak on their behalf, but I am aware that there's been some delays in getting that underway. I'm also cognizant that certainly some of the regional governments are indicating, and the federal government has confirmed, that we would -- that this project and its environmental assessment can move forward even while or in tandem with a regional strategic environmental assessment. It's been our understanding and expectation, frankly, that the two can be...

Yes, please, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'll direct this to the assistant deputy minister, please, MacKay, please.

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Nunakput, that Bill 13, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 2, 2024-2025, be read for the second time.

This bill makes supplementary appropriations for infrastructure expenditures of the Government of the Northwest Territories for the 2024-2025 fiscal year. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I'll get it right this time, Mr. Speaker. I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Hay River South, that Bill 14, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Operations Expenditures), No. 1, 2024-2025, be read for the third time. Mr. Speaker, I request a recorded vote. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, first I want to acknowledge the frustration on the Frank Channel bridge and certainly have also been watching that project over the last short while and was certainly looking forward to seeing it at a different stage of completion. This was a project that is expressly in the Tlicho Infrastructure Cooperation Agreement, and that is an agreement that is certainly -- it is unique in terms of how we are conducting procurement. So that uniqueness sometimes has taken a little bit of time, but certainly the hope here is that once we get to a place where an agreement...

Yes, please, Mr. Chair.

Mr. Speaker, I give notice that on Tuesday, October 29th, 2024, I will present Bill 11, An Act to Amend the Motor Vehicles Act, to be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, first, with respect to the fulsomeness of the public service, a lot of the growth in the last little while has actually been in the Department of Health and Social Services. A lot of other growth has actually been as a result of Jordan's Principle funding which is allowing additional services in ECE. And that said, there is a very active conversation happening, led with the Department of Finance human resources, around ensuring that we don't have positions that are sitting unfilled, that are not being fully utilized, and with a view to having those...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. One consideration with -- well, I guess two considerations with off ramps initially. The first one that I was going to suggest is that we not put ourselves into a situation where the cost of coming off on the off ramp actually winds up being just kicking a cost down the line and being greater later. Again, not dissimilar to actual physical infrastructure that you can delay a renovation, you can delay a fix, but you may wind up with a bigger problem down the line. We do, you know, obviously -- and certainly I'm trying to put it back into this context, if it's clear that...