R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I pretty much agree with everything the Member has said and earlier in his statement, as well. I will just answer the question. Are we going to conduct a review or a feasibility study for universal basic income? No. However, that is because I do think that the Income Assistance Program has a strong foundation and that we can build on it. In many ways, it's just a tweaking of a few rules here and there, and we have something that is very similar to what the Member is talking about. We have already made some of those changes, and he mentioned those, as well. He is doing...

Thank you. I have a question about this recommendation. It recommends that the Mace be put in its place, which is here in the Assembly on its perch. In the event of a remote sitting, would this tie our hands in any way? If the reason we are having a remote sitting is because we cannot get into the building, would it cause any issues for Legislative Assembly staff? How is that contemplated? Thank you.

Last year, about 4,000 people accessed income assistance. If we were to pay each one of those people the max amount that you can get on income assistance each year, it would be about $80 million. That's an extra $50 million on top of the $30 million that we spend now. If we did the real universal basic income where everyone in the territory regardless of income gets that amount, we're looking at $800 million. The very low end of this is $80 million. To the Member's point, if we spend money here, costs elsewhere go down. I get that. Same thing with education, but that doesn't mean that we have...

I am not going to write to the federal Minister to ask that question. I am going to look into what we are doing, how we can do it better. When I have the conversations with the appropriate federal ministers and when I am on these FTP calls, I will have those types of conversations and promote the types of changes that we are looking at. The Member mentioned there are a number of different programs that we offer across the GNWT, across departments, and that the federal government offers, as well. Within the GNWT, part of the income assistance review is going to be looking at everything that is...

Madam Speaker, each year on November 11th, Canadians pause to remember the sacrifices of the men and women who gave their lives for our country so that we may enjoy the freedoms that we have today. I encourage residents to reflect on the bravery of Canadians, both past and present, who have put their lives on the line to protect the peace and safety that make up the fabric of our society. The heroes who have stepped up in the name of freedom and democracy have done so in conflicts that span every generation.

During some of our darkest days, Madam Speaker, Canadians left their families behind to...

It's not a matter of accepting the proposal. The proposal has been looked at, and as I stated, it was over half-a-million dollars for six spaces. It sounds like there was a second phase, which I'm guessing would have been more. There were additional improvements to the space. I understand that, but the fact is that we have limited resources. We have a lot of needs all over the territory, and there are competing priorities. I wish I could fund all the spaces and especially French-first-language spaces. I know that there is a limited number of those in the territory, but the numbers didn't add...

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I have made public comments on this, so it's on the record. I have had frank conversations with the chair of the CSFTNO, and so we are both aware of each other's positions. I can have a frank conversation with the Member. However, as you know, Madam Speaker, Rule 24(g) prohibits the discussion of matters that are before the courts, and I don't want to offend the rules of this Assembly. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, that Bill 19, An Act to Amend the Student Financial Assistance Act, be read for the third time, and, Madam Speaker, I request a recorded vote. Thank you.

Madam Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, that Bill 17, An Act to Amend the Corrections Act, be read for the third time, and, Madam Speaker, I request a recorded vote. Thank you.

When the federal government is involved, I cannot really commit to expediting. It's just the nature of the beast. However, I told the department that it's probably been a month since this first came up and that I want to start moving on it immediately, so I am doing my best. Thank you, Madam Speaker.