Kieron Testart

Mr. Chair, I move that this committee recommend that the Government of the Northwest Territories, led by the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs, complete its work to address the municipal funding gap on an urgent basis, taking into consideration the increased costs of the carbon tax to all local authorities, and that additional forced-growth funding to compensate for these costs be included in the 2020-2021 budget. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Mr. Chair, I move that this committee recommends that, for all bills proposing to establish, replace, or make significant changes to territory legislation, a plain language summary be prepared and made available to the appropriate standing committee at the time is introduced in the Legislative Assembly. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise today as an ally to add my voice to the grave and tragic issue of forced sterilization. This is not some past, dark chapter in Canadian history on which we have turned the page. It appears, based on several class-action lawsuits in front of the courts right now, that this barbaric practice is still in use. We hear now more and more voices rising up, sharing their stories, the traumas, and their terror of having been coerced into sterilization. I want to commend all of those who have spoken up to ensure that we hear their stories.

Mr. Speaker, contrary to popular...

Thank you. I think that's a much more balanced assessment than what the public has been told with most of the advertising and materials that have been put out there, so I appreciate that clarification.

My second question is: we've heard a lot about how the federal backstop is much worse for the North. Can the Minister produce a costed federal carbon tax plan for the NWT that is specific to the NWT, informed by data drawn for the NWT, and has been previously shared with the department so that they are able to do their own assessment of their plan versus the federal backstop plan? Can the...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. When I spoke previously, it was as the chair of the Standing Committee on Government Operations, and now I speak as the Member for Kam Lake. I have spoken with Kam Lakers about this very issue, and many of them are torn because they do care about the environment, they care about climate change, and they want options, but they are also faced with the reality that the North is already a very expensive place to live and work.

I have heard from businesses, as well, who say they cannot afford another cost and encouraged me to work to improve whatever this bill would ultimately...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Again, this is a way to ensure that the tax is being monitored for effectiveness and that any rebalancing of grants and rebates to offset any drawbacks from our local economies or territorial economy can be properly assessed by making necessary changes to the carbon pricing scheme. This motion is calling for or recommending that that be done in a formal and public process by the time the carbon tax reaches its full amount of $50 per tonne. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As per my Member's statement, the state of community funding in the Northwest Territories has a major problem, and we have known about this problem for a long time. I would like to know what the Minister responsible of Municipal and Community Affairs has done to properly address the deficits and shortfalls in the municipal funding formula. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move the chair rise and report progress. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I think the point that the Member is raising is fundamentally around the role of Members who are participating in committees such as this one to determine the merits of legislation in a detailed clause-by-clause review and proposed amendments, which is an inherent privilege of Members and an inherent role of the House in exercising its own independence, so the House is allowed to pursue its duties that are important for the passage of laws. To have outside interference either in the form of a consideration that has been raised by a third party that is, in fact...

Thank you kindly. Speaking to the motion, I think that there is, of course, a real need for independent regulators in any jurisdiction, but these annual reports are important for the public's right to know about what regulators have been doing. I know there has been some concern that a prescriptive list is somehow impinging on the independence of the regulator, but I don't think that's, in fact, true in this case. As the honourable Member for Frame Lake said, this is laying out the decision points that are already in existence in the act and ensuring that there is guidance in the issuance of...