Mr. Minister.
Debates of Nov. 2nd, 2000
This is page numbers 673 - 696 of the Hansard for the 14th Assembly, 3rd Session. The original version can be accessed on the Legislative Assembly's website or by contacting the Legislative Assembly Library. The word of the day was chairman.
Topics
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Joe Handley Weledeh
Mr. Chairman, this was a situation in which a businessman was bringing cigarettes into the Northwest Territories illegally without paying taxes. The amount is what was concluded when it was discovered what he was doing.
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Floyd Roland Inuvik Boot Lake
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Can the Minister inform us as to how this was able to happen? In fact, we caught this after the fact. What resulted of this? It sounds like a law was broken. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Joe Handley Weledeh
Mr. Chairman, essentially the individuals were smuggling cigarettes into the Northwest Territories. Yes, laws were broken. If you wish to have more detail, I can ask Mr. Gagnon to explain exactly what happened from that point on. Thank you.
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Gagnon
This individual here, this limited company had obtained a retail dealers permit under the Tobacco Tax Act. Over a period of time, he had been importing his own tobacco without remitting the appropriate taxes. The department received notice of this and we sent our investigator up to Inuvik to obtain evidence. At the time, there was insufficient evidence -- and still there is insufficient evidence -- to lay criminal charges under the Tobacco Tax Act. That being said, we were able to assess a civil debt due under the Tobacco Tax Act with the appropriate penalties and interest calculated.
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Floyd Roland Inuvik Boot Lake
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. This issue, Mr. Chairman, I raised in committee as well, more in regard to the fact that we seem to treat everybody the same, in the sense that if somebody used money of this government -- it could be student financial assistance, a small business loan -- and tried to make a go of it and tried to create a business, employment and so on, but failed and ended up owing this government money and has now had to go through this process. Collection has been attempted. In some cases, some money was recovered, but some of it was not. It was stated that we figure it is not collectible now.
Is there a different system that would fall into place or a mechanism that would kick in when someone has wilfully gone outside the laws and tried to benefit from that? Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Gagnon
In addition to raising the assessment here, we did go to the courts and obtain a judgement on our debt due and owing. With that, we did obtain writs. We have registered the writs at the sheriff's office and at lands as well. We are now on the books for any lands transactions which Gasgo Olton Limited may attempt to do with the lands they hold in Inuvik.
In addition, whenever we obtain new retail dealers permits, we take a look at people who have been assessed taxes in the past who have not remitted it in accordance with our Act. We review those files. They tend not to receive new retail dealers permits.
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Floyd Roland Inuvik Boot Lake
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. So is that to confirm that there is another level that can be used by the department if someone has wilfully gone outside the law, as has happened in this case? Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Joe Handley Weledeh
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I guess the other alternative that could be used would be to have criminal charges pursued. We do not lay the charges. There would be questions about the method of collecting evidence. There is some chance of that failing on a technicality, for example. As well, by pursuing civil charges, it was felt at the time that would result in the possibility of the funds being recovered, because as we mentioned, written off does not mean they are forgiven. If the individual either attempts to dispose of assets or get back into business and so on, collection could be renewed. The other alternative is criminal charges. Thank you.
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Floyd Roland Inuvik Boot Lake
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. So that is to say that within the system we have right now, within our system, we have no other level if somebody goes outside the rules we have established? That is what I am getting at. I understand that you have done some other things, but is there an organized step as to the severity of the rules that were broken here? Thank you.
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Joe Handley Weledeh
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, the only recourse we have in these situations is our own efforts, going through collection agencies or going through the courts. That is all there is. There are no other avenues. The other alternative is the criminal charges. That is not within our system. Thank you.
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Floyd Roland Inuvik Boot Lake
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. With all of these ones here being written off, as you stated, there is still an avenue here if the monies become available to go after it? So all of these that are listed here, this government can still go back and get the money if something has occurred, as was stated earlier in this one situation, there was the registering of something on titles, Mr. Chairman?
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
Item 19: Consideration In Committee Of The Whole Of Bills And Other Matters
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The Chair David Krutko
We are dealing with schedule of debts written off, total $2,660,190.45. Agreed?