R.J. Simpson

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And, of course, we've enshrined that day into our legislation, and so it's only this House that could actually remove that as a day that we recognize here in the Northwest Territories. We're doing -- again, as I said, everything we do, we try to do it in partnership with Indigenous governments, but we do it with the spirit of reconciliation. We're doing things like moving forward with the residential school monument here in the capital that will, you know, always highlight that part of Canada's history. We know -- this is actually -- I like these questions from the...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Mackenzie Valley Highway's getting a lot of attention from Ottawa right now, and I'm continuing to promote that highway. And when I meet with the Prime Minister, he talks about the highway before I get a chance to. So this is definitely something that the federal government is well aware of and they see the value, not just to the people of the Northwest Territories but to national security. The Mackenzie Valley Highway, it is -- it's coming out of environmental assessment and there's already portions of it that are permitted for construction. So there's some bridges...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So eliminating all policies is a pretty broad request. There are probably some policies that are required to be there, and there's probably other policies that we could do without or that require modification. And I know that the Minister responsible for Environment and Climate Change is focused on this. And as a government, we want to address this longstanding issue, and we will address it before the end of this government. And with this procurement now looming, it's more urgent than ever. So yes, we're going to move forward with that. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So the money the Member is referencing was made public through a -- I guess a pre-procurement announcement that was intended to allow potential contractors to prepare to bid on the contracts. So it's still a lot of details left to be hashed out on this but the whole purpose of this pre-procurement announcement is to ensure that people can get prepared to do the work that needs to be done. And so people are already talking about ensuring that employees in the territory have the appropriate security clearances, that we have, you know, appropriate trades people ready to go...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I think that's incumbent on all of us to do, to support each other. Personally, I will continue to speak about the history of the territory. One of my primary roles when I travel around Canada is to educate people on the history of the territory. I was actually just in front of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, the parliamentary standing committee in Ottawa, and they asked me what's the biggest issue we face in the territory and I said it's trauma that came from residential school and colonialism. So I'll continue to be out there speaking to Canadians about...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I understand that the bill that the Member is referencing in the BC legislature was handedly defeated. I believe it was 86 votes against and 3 votes for. So even there I think there's a clear understanding that residential school denialism is not appropriate, and it's not factual obviously. And so here in the Northwest Territories, I say we are the leaders in Canada in reconciliation, working with Indigenous peoples. Specifically, when we speak to how we are going to educate the population, one of the things we do, of course, is we have northern studies courses in...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So I can speak to what I saw in that sort of pre-procurement notice, and that is that it is for things within those forward operating locations, so runways, hangars, etcetera. It does not speak to major projects. That does not -- that's not to say that the federal government's totality of their expenditures related to defense in the territory will be limited to those two communities. So I'm still very, very hopeful and optimistic that there's other sources of funding from the federal government. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And we are well aware of the opportunities that exist, and we are treating this as essentially another major project that could be advanced. And so there's great efforts being made to ensure there's coordination, coordination across government. We're working hard to coordinate with the federal government although they have their own processes, and the Department of National Defence, I believe, kind of does things their own way regardless. But I know that there's efforts to change that culture because from my discussions with the Prime Minister, with the Minister of...

Mr. Speaker, we gather today at a significant moment for our territory and for our country. It is a moment of change and uncertainty, but for the Northwest Territories it is also a moment of opportunity.

The world is rapidly changing before our eyes. We can no longer count on the traditional international rules, norms, and alliances that have helped Canada prosper over the past 80 years. We are witnessing unprecedented efforts at economic coercion and foreign interference in our political systems, a blurring of lines between allies and enemies, and internal threats to our national unity on...

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document: Additional Information for Return to Written Question 25-20(1): Senior Envoy. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.