Kieron Testart

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.

I do have some familiarity with the jury system, as the former jury administrator for this government. I am pleased to hear the Minister is considering opening this discussion up to the public. Is this just an idea he is having, or is he planning on launching some sort of public consultation on these, the issues that have been raised around fairness in our justice system?

Obviously undoing 150 years of colonization will not be easy. It will be complicated process. So is the Premier prepared to support these efforts at the territorial level and give our Indigenous nations the opportunity to participate in any process as it relates to consultation with the federal government on this framework?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I, too, rise to recognize two Pages today from my constituency in Kam Lake, Noah Zoe and Stella Smyslo. It is great to have you in the House helping us out this week, and I really appreciate it, and I appreciate all the work of the Pages, as well. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this is going to be an exciting day for the Minister of Infrastructure, as a number of us today have statements on procurement.

Mr. Speaker, I have raised numerous complaints around the procurement policies of this government. It is adversely impacting my constituents and the constituents of many other MLAs across the territory. It is time that we take a look at these policies and make them work for the people of the Northwest Territories, not for the Department of Infrastructure. It's time that we invest in the North and use procurement as a way to grow the...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I move that the Chairman leave the chair to report progress.

When you combine prompt-payment issues with progress-payment issues with all of these payment issues, it seems there is a payment problem. Should I, as a private Member, bring forward a bill that would support a prompt-payment regime, would the government be in a position to support that legislation so we can get some work done in this House?

Thank you Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I have questions for the Minister of Infrastructure. I want to get into this issue of payment and prompt payment in particular. I have previously raised this issue in the House. There is movement in our country on making this process fairer, more transparent, and more timely for subcontractors and businesses who benefit from government procurement, especially in the construction industry.

Three of the sections set out in Ontario's new Construction Lien Act set out that the owner's payment obligation is transferred down to the contractor. The contractor's...

This government has just done a lengthy public engagement process on manufacturing, and in some of those sessions, concerns were raised. I find it hard to believe that there are no concerns that are coming out of these meetings. Maybe the Premier is not talking to the right people, or maybe the Premier needs to listen to this side of the House. So will the Premier commit to look at the recommendations of the Standing Committee on Economic Development and Environment that recommended procurement reform or an evaluation of procurement policies? Will he look at that recommendation, accept it, and...