Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'll start off by saying, first I'll acknowledge a former colleague and friend -- not former friend, but former colleague of the Legislative Assembly. Punctuation matters as they say.
So, Mr. Speaker, let me start again, just to make sure we're clear. Former colleague of this House and a friend, I'll say, who used to be the Member for Range Lake, as you've already acknowledged, Mr. Daryl Dolynny. He's also been an entrepreneur in the city, but he's currently the CEO and president of Avens. I appreciate him being here today. By his side, he also has some folks. He has board member Taig Connell, Ron Allen, and I believe from my notes here that were just sent to me, I believe we might have Steven Nicholas up there, Sara Fullerton and Carol Norwegian and Jessica Ewing and Dina Greening. Without the benefit of my spectacles, I'll assume they're all sitting there at this very moment and along with our millions of subscribers, mostly from Avens. Thank you.
Thank you, Member from Yellowknife Centre. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member from Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I too want to recognize the former MLA Daryl Dolynny and also his colleagues and the board members and also everybody in the gallery here today, I just want to say mahsi for being here.
Thank you, Member from Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member from Range Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I too want to recognize the former Member for Range Lake, Daryl Dolynny. He's a good friend and is a tireless advocate for seniors in our community. I also want to recognize his team and the Avens board who have come here to join us today. Thank you very much for being here.
Thank you, Member from Range Lake. Recognition of visitors in the gallery.
If we missed anyone in the gallery here today, welcome to your chambers. I hope you are enjoying the proceedings. It is always nice to see people in the gallery, and I appreciate the fact that you allow us the privilege of representing the people of the Northwest Territories for the four years.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Earlier today we called for a -- some of us called for a red alert into mining because the situation is dire. We have aging legacy mines that are closing, no new mines on the horizon. Can the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment speak to why the MRA was passed at the end of the 18th Assembly. It's been ten years before it's come into force, and we do not see a clear path forward. Can the Minister speak to the status of the Mineral Resources Act regulations? Thank you.
Thank you, Member from Range Lake. Minister of ITI.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the Member bringing up the Mineral Resources Act regulations in the House today. The technical working group has been working hard in unison and collaboratively with Indigenous governments, and that is the most important part of this work, is that it's done collaboratively, and I'm happy to say that the policy intentions document is going out for engagement this fall. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Policy intentions are great, but they don't result in new regulations or a Mining Act that's in force. So when will the -- let's just focus on the outdated 19th century tenure system. When will the tenure system be modernized, computerized, and online map staking available to bring the Northwest Territories in to 2025 like other jurisdictions that are doing far better than we are? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the policy intentions document is a very important part because it's really important to give people, residents, the opportunity to feed into the process before the regulations are fully drafted and really baked in. And that was something that was requested by multiple residents and concerns that were brought forward that residents have the opportunity to feed into this process.
So in response to the Member's questions, so the draft regulations will be ready for section 35 consultation in winter of 2027. So once we get the feedback from the policy intentions document, that work will be taken by Department of Justice, and that drafting will be taking place, public posting in spring of 2027, and then it will go through step G of the intergovernmental gouncil secretariat process in summer of 2027, and then from there, it'll be public posting of the draft regulations once that process is done. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister of ITI. Final supplementary. Member from Range Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So 2027 is the plan. Is the Minister able to work with partners because it's very important that we do; it's part of the devolution agreement; it's part of our co-management system. But is the Minister able to work with partners to expedite this process to indicate the dire state of our exploration? Exploration's dropped by 50 percent since 2018. That's a huge decline. Can the Minister bring those concerns to that table and expedite this process? Because we desperately need reform now. We don't say red alert idly. Will the Minister act and expedite this process so we can have this modernized system in place right away? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, short answer, yes. Absolutely, this is a key focus of mine, it's a key focus of my colleagues, is making sure that we can get this piece of legislation done. I can also say that through Council of Leaders and the working groups that we are -- or sorry, the time that we spend with Indigenous leadership in this territory. The economy is incredibly important to everyone that is at the table, and we're hearing that from Indigenous governments as well. We're not travelling alone as Cabinet in these conversations. We're travelling alongside Indigenous leadership, and we're travelling as a team. And I think that's really critically important. So the short answer is yes, it's very important to me that this work gets done and gets done as quickly as possible. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister of ITI. Oral questions. Member from Yellowknife Centre.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Again, joining the semi-mini theme day, Mr. Speaker, I want to talk about the economy and more particular, I want to speak about the mining issue.
Mr. Speaker, my Member's statement I pointed out that the benefit of an independent sort of mining committee to review, we could convene a three-person or four-person blue chip panel and bring back Bob, you know, our guy who knows his stuff, who called the red alert, Mr. Speaker. Would the Minister be willing to do that, create a panel of people who have specialized expertise, could say what are the issues they foresee in our economy that's slowing mining down, because we all know it is truly the foundation of our economic future. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from Yellowknife Centre. Minister of ITI.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the Members bringing this up and, you know, I remember when the red alert was issued back in 2017. I was cheering Bob on. I've long been a fan of former Premier McLeod. And I remember the crux of that being no decisions about the North without the North. And that's something that we still stand by on this side of the House. Meeting with industry is something that I do on a regular basis and, Mr. Speaker, acknowledging how important it is that we as Cabinet work together and there's never a one silver bullet or there's never one issue or one challenge we can work through. I don't do that on my own. I do that alongside the Minister of Environment and Climate Change and the Minister of Strategic Infrastructure because all of our departments play a critical role in working together with industry. So those meetings are already happening, and they're happening on a very regular basis. Thank you.
Colleagues, personal names not allowed in the House, please and thank you. I would appreciate both sides to respect that. Thank you.
Member from Yellowknife Centre.
Absolutely, Mr. Speaker. You're a steady hand on the till when it comes to the rules.
Mr. Speaker, former Premier McLeod, or I called him other things, Mr. Speaker, I really mean that endearingly. He had a vision. And you know what? The reason I say this is because the Minister is in power to make decisions. I appreciate she wants to consult but what's wrong with convening a three-person panel as an example? Because they could talk about the power of a North of 60 mineral tax credit. They could talk about the power of the mineral tender system. They could talk about different things about stakeholder engagement, including building relationships as the Premier had said yesterday how important that is.
Mr. Speaker, can the Minister use her authority, which she is full able to do this, to create something to get these things done because we're not seeing movement on this file. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Member is asking me to create something that already exists. These meetings are already happening. These collaborations are already happening. I'm already working with industry to learn from them and also to collaborate and carry our voices forward together. As Cabinet, we work very closely with Council of Leaders, and those conversations about industry are then carried forward to the federal government and to other key stakeholders together as a team. So these conversations are already happening. This work is already happening. So I'm saying great idea to the Member; we're doing it. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister of ITI. Final supplementary. Member from Yellowknife Centre.
Mr. Speaker, I'm referring to something outside government, and how I'll frame it this way very quickly is a person in the industry said they're not doing this, and they're a well-known person in the industry. They talk about the disconnect between the NWT geological society -- or survey, sorry, and industry on hand. They used to have regular meetings, Mr. Speaker. It's that kind of relationship outside of government.
So, Mr. Speaker, would the Minister be willing to sit down and talk about that and find a way to bring back an independent panel to be able to make recommendations because our economy is beyond on the ropes, Mr. Speaker. We need action now. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I heard the Member asked to sit down. I'm always happy to sit down with a Member. Frequently, if I'm in town, I'm generally in my office, and I'm always on my phone, so very happy to have time either on the phone or in person with the Member. I have regular meetings with what would be considered industry or independent panelists who otherwise referred to as Chamber of Mines. I have a meeting with them today. Very happy to inform the Member or sit down and have a conversation with the Member about what we talk about.
In addition to that, Mr. Speaker, there is a lot of other stuff that's going on in addition to what the Member is talking about, conversations that are happening, but then also we meet with the advanced projects of this territory on a very regular basis and find out where they're at, what some of their challenges are, how we can support one another because we have common goals at the end of the day.
We're also, myself along with the Premier and the Minister of Environment and Climate Change, working on a regulatory streamlining. This is very important work to all of us and something that we definitely want to see when we talk about reducing red tape across the board. And we're ensuring at the end of the day that we have a map of what is happening in the territory, how we can support one another and how we can work together. So very happy to sit down with the Member anytime. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister of ITI.
Colleagues, we've just taken ten minutes and had two questions, two sets of questions. So, please, be brief in our preamble and really succinct with your answers.
Oral questions. Member from Great Slave.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will be succinct. Yesterday it was reported that the federal Minister for IRCC said that some nominee programs are getting a boost to numbers. Can the Minister let the House know if that includes the NWT.
Thank you, Member from Frame Lake. Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I am happy to report that the Northwest Territories has negotiated the full reinstatement of its nominee program.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Good news indeed. Mr. Speaker, many newcomers experience great anxiety as goalposts shift and changes are made without prior notice to the program which creates excruciating uncertainty for applicants. Will the Minister commit to be providing more information on the amount of spaces, the timeline, and process for applicants to anticipate in the 2026 intake. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Member reflected in their statement about the fact that I was just in Toronto at our meeting with Ministers from across the country. This was something that I raised at the table, was the uncertainty that repetitive kind of announcements of new allotments has created and also the late announcements of what our 2026 will look like. So I have asked for more advanced notice so that we know what levels will look like and more forward-looking outlook so we're not finding out year after year in that same timeframe. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. Final supplementary. Member from Great Slave.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, will the Minister speak to whether ECE's recent engagement campaign this past September, whether or not that campaign has identified a need to support newcomers who have been in the NWT the longest; that is to say, the current program supports folks whose work permits are expiring but folks who have been here the longest extend. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Education, culture and employment's currently working on the What We Heard report in order to gather all that information and be able to publish it for everybody to be able to see what feedback we were receiving. I can say or share with the Member that just in emails that I've received from people across the territory who are living here and wanting to participate in the nominee program that responses really vary. People's circumstances are so unique, and, really, people are looking for that certainty and they want to call the North home. And so I expect that we'll see a diverse range of responses and that we'll need to make strategic decisions that benefit the territory at the end of the day but also balance the need of Canadian newcomers and employers. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. Oral questions. Member from Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just want to recognize Chief Drygeese traditional territory and home of the Yellowknives Dene First Nation.
Mr. Speaker, as we approach the end of the year, my question is to the Premier. If he could update this House on what progress has been made towards finalizing the Akaitcho land claim and self-government agreement in 2025. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh. Mr. Premier.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So back in 2023, a consultation draft of the Akaitcho treaty agreement-in-principle was concluded, and the Akaitcho chiefs, or First Nations, wanted to do an internal review of that agreement-in-principle before external consultation continues. And so that was in, as I said, 2023. It was in 2024 when they requested that there's no -- there will be no external consultation until they were comfortable, their membership were comfortable with the agreement-in-principle. And that is, from what I understand, still the status. The last meeting with the Akaitcho was in May on this topic, and since then they have been continuing their internal review.
So at this point, Canada, the GNWT, are waiting for that to conclude. So the ball is in their court. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Has the recent changes in federal leadership and its renewed focus on economic development had a positive impact on the progress of these negotiations? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And so as I said, because this has been taken internally by the Akaitcho, there hasn't been any progress and so any changes in the federal government's position haven't really had an impact. However, I know that the federal government is looking to cut costs across government and so there is -- you know, we need some clarity on what this extended internal review means for the funding to conduct such a review and how long the federal government will continue to provide funds. So in terms of the economic focus, I can't say there's been an impact, but we're waiting to find out what impact there could be with the upcoming federal budget. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Premier. Final supplementary. Member from Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Given the agreement's significance to both reconciliation certainty and economic certainty in the Northwest Territories, can the Premier confirm whether finalizing the Akaitcho agreement is a major priority of this government and what steps are being taken to demonstrate that commitment. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It is a major priority. I think it should be evident to everyone why that's a major priority. When we have settled land claims, we have certainty. You know, prospective investors would have certainty. The money would flow into the territory from the federal government to the First Nations to administer their lands and self-governments. So, yes, it's a priority to get this done. However, it is in the hands of the Akaitcho right now. That being said, we're continuing to try to do our best to strengthen our relationship with the Akaitcho, and so we have been working with them on the Arctic economic and security corridor. The Akaitcho -- actually, the chiefs came down to the Council of Leaders which was very encouraging to see them down there in Ottawa and making contribution to that table. So in terms of the treaty, the agreement-in-principle, things are where they are with the Akaitcho. They're still doing internal review. But our overall relationship, it is advancing. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Premier. Oral questions. Member from Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are for the Minister responsible for the Status of Women.
So in October 2023, the Minister responsible for Status of Women at the time released a strategic framework for addressing family violence in the NWT. It was called Reclaiming the Capable Person: We Are All Capable Persons When We Have Community. I do appreciate the title and the recommendations contained within it, many of which echo recommendations that have been made repeatedly over the past 20 years. The strategic framework indicates that it was released as a draft and it was going out for input and then an action plan was supposed to be released.
So can the Minister confirm whether she did, in fact, receive any input on this strategic framework from Indigenous and community governments and other key stakeholders? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
