Kieron Testart

I thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I appreciate your allowances. This is confusing, or it was confusing, and hopefully we are a bit closer to understanding all of the issues. For me, the important thing is that the formulas are changing, and that is fine. I would like to ask questions about the early childhood worker scholarship. That is on page 42. The activity is listed as grants to support fulltime, facetoface, postsecondary education in early childhood development at the diploma level or higher. Is the policy intention of this to retain those workers here in the Northwest Territories...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Finally, with the acknowledgment from the federal government that the deadline for the retail models of cannabis distribution have been pushed back, is the Minister open to working with stakeholders and with this side of the House to iron out some of these details to create more opportunities for private sector distribution, for mail order distribution, for co-op distribution, for production of cannabis in the Northwest Territories? Because we have more time to work on this legislation. Is the Minister more open to those discussions and potentially changing the way...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I, too, am going to ask the Minister if he can clarify this budget commitment to increase junior kindergarten funding or the inclusive education side of the junior kindergarten funding, because I am still unclear. The Minister spoke to a lapse in funding that has allowed the department to fully fund inclusive education and that the mains could not be printed in time for us to see that in the document here, so I would like to ask: where can I find the funding that has lapsed?

As one of the Minister's witnesses said, there is lapsed funding, and that is where we are getting...

We have a way forward document that lays out how the government plans to distribute cannabis products in the Northwest Territories, and mail order is an option for those communities that will not have access to cannabis stores. How are we going to tax mail order products? There have been concerns raised about lost revenue. How are we going to tax mail order cannabis?

Thank you, Mr. Chair. That's my point; right? It's support to northern performers, and we need something to do that and be specific in providing that level of support.

I want to be clear for the record today that I am not advocating we reduce funding to festival organizations. They are a very important part of our Northern culture and our communities, and I would never recommend removing any kind of funding from them. What I am talking about is that there is a real need that northern performers, some of them nationally recognized and awardwinning northern performers, have brought forward to...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Canada's legislation is moving forward in almost every other jurisdiction, and even though we are moving slower than some, we finally have a "way forward." Public engagement was an important step in understanding the concerns of residents before developing legislation for the Northwest Territories. I don't take issue with that, but it would seem that it was less about engaging our constituents on their opinions and more about legitimizing the government-administered framework for cannabis regulation and retail operation instead of a true, grassroots-based consultation.

C...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I am assuming that some of the support to northern performers monies are being used by  sorry, let me ask: is this money given on conditions, or is it just transferred to the organizations? Is there an application process that says how they need to use the money? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I will be voting on this item shortly, so I don't need the information later. I would appreciate if the Minister had that information when we ask these questions in this Committee of the Whole review. However, I just want to get clarification.

I think the Drummers is an example of a group that should be getting a support to go on tours, but this is particularly broad. It also supports festival organizations and events, community governments, and band councils. What do those contributions look like? Are we providing contributions to Long John Jamboree, to Muskrat Jamboree...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this is the third budget of the 18th Legislative Assembly, and the third time that Members have gone through the painstaking process of reviewing the draft budget and providing detailed input to the Minister of Finance and his Cabinet colleagues. I have to say, I am beginning to wonder why we bother.

Before I comment on the 2018-2019 Budget, let me say a few words for those who might be listening, about the role of the Regular Members in the business planning process. I think it is important to explain this process to members of the public. Although this...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Just because it is a federal issue does not mean we do not have a responsibility to raise these issues that are being raised by our constituents and by people who are leading rallies and protests outside this building to get our attention, so will the Minister commit to bringing this to the federal Minister of Justice or to the FPT table to see if there can be a national conversation or see if the NWT can join the national conversation, and if he can find a way to do this without delay? Thank you.