Mr. Chairman, it sounds like the Premier has thrown down the gauntlet. I have some sympathy for the Minister because I know this policy has been kicking around the department for years. I remember dealing with the issue
long ago when I had his job. I managed to avoid bringing it forward because of the political and financial implications.
The summary of what is being a difficult debate in the dying days of this session is that this is a surprise to the public. It may not be a surprise to the SAOs and the people who understand this and have been talking about it for some time, but it is going to be a real surprise to the members of the public. It certainly has been a surprise to MLAs. I think that is clear from the reaction from the beginning. It was unfortunate that information was given to municipalities and hamlets before it was given to Members of this House. I think the Minister has expressed his regrets about that, but that is what happened. It was being discussed on the street in our constituencies before we were even officially informed. That is regrettable.
The implications are still unclear. We have still to receive the advice from the Association of Municipalities, which has considered the issue in recent days and will also be meeting soon with its annual general meeting. I think the timing is unfortunate because of the beginning of the fiscal year for municipalities. I do still believe that it is a hidden tax. I am not sure that doubling the water rates in the hotel in Pangnirtung is not going to affect tourism. I would respectfully want to get more information from operators of those hotels about the impact this might have. I think the hotel business is a tough business to be in these days. I just don't know what effect this might have on some of the struggling operations.
Mr. Chairman, I appreciate that it is only ten per cent, but it is also clear that this is the first ten per cent. I think that was clear from the comments of the officials before us today. I think that we had better be very satisfied with this policy before it is in place or it could well be simply amended. Even more substantial increases could result once the policy has been approved. These things can be insidious.
I would have preferred to have seen much more notice so that everyone could prepare. Perhaps the preparation will include new equipment which will conserve water, but I don't think anybody, especially in the Arctic, has been given very much notice by an announcement in March for implementation in June or July.
Considering all of these things, Mr. Chairman, I think that it makes sense to have the matter studied by the Standing Committee on Finance. It is not clear whether the government is going to accept advice from that committee, but I think it needs further study. I don't think this Assembly has had an opportunity to fully scrutinize this rather complicated matter. I think the motion does the best we can with the difficult situation and that is to have it properly reviewed and await results of consultations from municipalities before we go any further. Thank you.