Kieron Testart

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge Claudia Parker and her induction earlier today into the Education Hall of Fame. Claudia has always strived for the best for the students and staff of her schools. Those who know Claudia share that she is grounded by her compassion and dedication to her students, staff, and her community. I hope that Members of the House will join me in recognizing the dedicated service that Ms. Parker has given to our territory. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, the Standing Committee on Government Operations is pleased to present its report on the review of the 2017-2018 Public Accounts of the Government of the Northwest Territories, which took place in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, from April 10 to 11, 2019.

Members of the standing committee would like to take the opportunity to thank Assistant Auditor General Mr. Terry DeJong, Mr. David Irving, principal, and Ms. Michelle Smith, director, from the Office of the Auditor General (OAG), who travelled from Ottawa and Edmonton to assist the standing committee...

Mr. Law Clerk, looking at the full amendment and the effects it would have in the legislation, does this in any way restrict section 35 rights of Indigenous peoples, or impact the beneficiaries land claim agreements in the Northwest Territories? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. This motion is about giving the Minister a new power to enter into an agreement with Indigenous governments in the Northwest Territories, and potentially with resource boards and land use boards, that are relevant to the particular regulations.

To enter into a formal agreement on how those regulations are going to work if the Minister chooses to do so. It is not a requirement for the Minister to do so. It does not put any restrictions on the Minister's authority. It is a new option for the Minister that, should the Intergovernmental Council come forward with a new model...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Just turning to where we started with this amendment was to mirror language in the Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act, which has a duty of consultation on governments to consult with Indigenous governments before any regulations are made. We canvassed that with the Minister, with the sponsoring Minister, and it was quite clear that went too far, and there were concerns around precedent.

I don't think the MVRMA has set universal precedent for federal legislation, but I digress. I am happy to accept that rationale.

This does not have the same burden. From the onset, I...

May I ask a point of clarification of the law clerk?

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move that Bill 38 be amended by adding the following after subclause 98(2):

(3) The Minister shall give notice of any proposed new or amended regulations to be made under this section to Indigenous governments or organizations in the Northwest Territories and relevant renewable resource boards and land use planning boards or bodies, at least 30 days before those regulations are made, and shall

(a) provide an opportunity for those Indigenous governments or organizations, renewable resource boards, and land use planning boards or bodies to present their views to the...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. This is a peculiar motion in our proceedings as it makes a recommendation, not to government, but to a statutory body, the Human Rights Commission. Committee felt that this was an appropriate way to address a concern that we heard around ensuring that this process was meeting its targets.

Although we are fully confident that the Human Rights Commission is going to be reporting on this in its annual statutory reports, this just gives a very clear indication of what we heard and what we feel would be effective for the commission in evaluating the efficacy of the restorative...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. The Standing Committee on Government Operations concluded its review of Bill 30 during the previous sitting of the Legislative Assembly and provided a substantive report on the record there. We discussed a number of important areas of necessary changes to the Human Rights Commission to move it to more of a restorative model that is less adversarial and requires less precise procedural and legal knowledge to participate in its proceedings. These changes greatly modernize and update the structure, and committee supported them fully.

There were a few areas of the bill that...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I hereby table two documents, one entitled "Role of Caucus and Regular Members' Caucus in Nunavut"; and "Discussion Paper on Parliamentary Group Model." Thank you, Mr. Speaker.