Clause 11? Mr. Erasmus.

Thank you Mr. Chairman. Could we get an explanation of this clause?

Thank you. Mr. Minister would you please explain clause 11 for the Member. Thank you.

Thank you Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman this clause would allow the commission to make its report based on guidelines that the Legislative Assembly gave direction to the commission to undertake such as the number of seats for each Legislature as one of the main items Mr. Chairman, thank you.

Thank you. Clause 11? Mr. Erasmus.

Thank you Mr. Speaker.

On that clause 11, (a) and (b) it indicates the different types of considerations that have to be taken when the commission will be looking at the different areas, boundaries they are going to implement. Can we get an explanation of why these are being taken into consideration?

Thank you. On paragraph (a) and (b), Mr. Minister.

Mr. Aitken.

Thank you Mr. Chairman. Is Mr. Erasmus asking why geographic and demographic considerations, referred to in paragraph (a) are being taken into account or why all the considerations from (a) to (f) are being taken into account? Thank you.

Thank you. Clause 11? Do we agree? Mr. Erasmus.

Thank you Mr. Chairman. I indicated clauses (a) and (b) specifically.

Thank you. Mr. Minister.

Sorry. I will refer the question to Mr. Aitken, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you. Mr. Aitken.

Thank you Mr. Chairman.

These provisions are fairly standard in these types of acts. The other act we looked at, a P.E.I. act has a similar provision and also this is a provision that is found in the existing Electoral District Boundaries Commission Act.

What this is intended to do is to allow the commission to do is to look at changes in population among the various ridings of the western part of the Northwest Territories and possibly to make adjustment to boundaries based on that.

An example could be what happened when the riding of Pine Point was eliminated as a result of the movement of the population out of Pine Point. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you. Clause 11? Mr. Erasmus.

Thank you Mr. Chairman. Perhaps I am not being specific enough.

A lot people think that one man, one vote or one person, one vote means that each riding has to have the exact same amount of people in it and I am assuming that these two clauses which indicate that geographic, demographic considerations including the sparsity, density, or rate of growth of the population and the accessibility, size or shape of any part of the territory, so these are obviously saying that it is not really the size of the population then. In each constituency that has to be taken into consideration. So I would like an explanation as to why these other things have to be taken into consideration. Thank you.

Thank you. Mr. Aitken.

Thank you Mr. Chairman. I do not think the inclusion of paragraphs (a) and (b) are sending a message that ridings have to have the same populations, and some comfort can be taken from the fact that paragraphs (a) and (b) are substantively identical to paragraphs 9(a) and (b) of the existing Electoral District Boundaries Act. Under the authority of this act, the last electoral boundaries commission made its recommendations to the Legislative Assembly and did not recommend that all electoral districts would have to have the same population. So the presence of similar, if not identical, wording in the present bill would seem to indicate that similar considerations can be taken into effect for the future work of the commission. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.

Clause 11, Mr.

Erasmus.

Thank you. Mr. Chairman, maybe there is too much noise in here. What I said was that a lot of people out there in the Northwest Territories think that you have to have the same population base in each riding. But this indicates that you have to take all these other considerations. You have to consider these things as well as population.

To be specific, are there any case laws out there that the courts have decided that you do not have to have ridings that are exactly the same with population, that the populations of the ridings can be different?

Thank you. Mr. Aitken.

Thank you Mr. Chairman, I cannot recall the name, but there is a case that has been delivered by the Supreme Court of Canada that specifically makes reference to an exemption for northern ridings. The law clerk may have more information about the name of that case. I do not have it at my immediate disposal. Thank you Mr. Chairman.