Please be seated. Tough job trying to decide what side to look at when I come in here.
---Laughter
Ah, but you’ll see in the fairness in the Commissioner here shortly. It’s a pleasure for me to be here again, and before I begin the official stuff, I will just give you a little bit of an update on what your Commissioner has been doing.
Last weekend, for example, I was in Iqaluit to attend the Annual Conference of Lieutenant Governors and Commissioners with Her Excellency Governor General Michaelle Jean. Everyone in attendance, while there, enjoyed the opportunity to visit Nunavut on its 10th anniversary. For most of them, it was their first visit to the North and a very exciting one at that.
I took the opportunity while I was there to suggest that the NWT would like to host the 2012 Lieutenant Governor, Governor General and Commissioner’s Conference. If this is approved by Rideau Hall, it would be a wonderful opportunity to showcase Yellowknife, our beautiful Legislative Assembly to a large group of visiting Queen’s representatives from across Canada.
Now, earlier on this spring I completed a tour of the communities in the Sahtu region, which completed my visits to all 33 communities across the North.
---Applause
And I travelled on the ice roads and the winter roads as would the people who lived in those communities during the month of March, a beautiful time to be there. While some of the schools were on spring break, I did visit all the schools that were open with classes, where I met not only the principals but the teachers and most of the students.
On Sunday I will be in Calgary to attend the Gold Ceremony of the Duke of Edinburgh Award Program. This is a self-directed program of personal development for youth between the ages of 14 and 25 to be active, to participate in new activities and to pursue current interests in four different areas: community service, personal skills, develop physical recreation and taking part in an adventurous journey. It offers youth the opportunity to set goals and to achieve results in fun and challenging ways.
The Duke of Edinburgh Award Program was founded in 1956 by his Royal Highness Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh. The award came to Canada in 1963 and currently runs in 120 countries around the world and to date almost six million young people have challenged themselves by participating in this program and happily, proudly, some of them are northern youth.
His Royal Highness Prince Edward will be presenting the Gold Medals this weekend and I will be attending a meeting with him, the Yukon Commissioner Geraldine Van Bibber and other Northerners to discuss other ways of building and promoting this very beneficial program here in the North.
Now, as Commissioner of the Northwest Territories, I am pleased to assent to the following bills:
• Bill 2, Settlement of International Investment Disputes Act
• Bill 6, Species at Risk (NWT) Act
• Bill 12, Securities Transfer Act
• Bill 13, An Act to Amend the Commissioner’s Land Act
• Bill 14, An Act to Amend the Motor Vehicles Act
• Bill 15, Miscellaneous Statute Law Amendment Act, 2009
• Bill 17, Supplementary Appropriation Act, No. 4, 2008-2009
• Bill 18, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Operations Expenditures), No. 1, 2009-2010
• Bill 19, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 2, 2009-2010
Prior to proroguing this Third Session of the 16th Legislative Assembly, I wish to announce that the Fourth Session of the 16th Legislative Assembly will convene on Thursday, October 15, 2009, at 1:30 p.m.
Now, as Commissioner of the Northwest Territories, I hereby prorogue the Third Session of the 16th Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories. Merci, mahsi cho, thank you, merci beaucoup and quanami.
---Applause
---PROROGATION
The House prorogued at 4:54 p.m.
