Thank you, Mr. Krutko. Minister Roland.

I agree with the Member; we could be here not only all night, but we could be here all year debating one word or two words. That’s how some folks have made a living on negotiations, decades of discussions and no decisions to move forward. We have looked at that. In fact, by signing the agreement we are bound to the terms. For example, under claims obligations, the Tlicho Agreement, an example, 222.5.1, “the Government of the Northwest Territories shall involve the Tlicho Government in the development and implementation of any northern accord on oil and gas development in the Northwest Territories, which is negotiated in accordance with the enabling agreement dated September 5, 1988, between the Government of Canada and the Government of the Northwest Territories, or any other agreement under which jurisdiction over minerals other than specified substances may be transferred from the Government of Canada to the Government of the Northwest Territories.” Yes, that language is in there and, in fact, by coming to the table, they could absolutely be involved.

But one point of correction, Mr. Chairman, the Member stated that only the groups that signed were directly involved and that is not a fact. The Member knows, because we provided documentation that every group was involved in one form or another right from 2001 to 2009 and they received funds, they hired staff, they hired lawyers, they hired negotiations and the last round of agreements, it was the Gwich’in that made it clear when there was re-engagement at the table last April, last January, that they did not want to be involved anymore. I hope that at some point as we work our way around this and we go forward, that there might be some avenue that they would accept coming forward on, but there are some key principles to shall involve, yes. Does it mean you have to agree? No. We have examples of that all across the North, all across the country of Canada. To be involved, yes, the door is open. Thank you.

I might as well use up my three minutes, I guess. Again, I think the federal government has an obligation here to the treaty obligations and also the fiduciary obligations with regard to their obligation to protect the rights and interest of the indigenous people and First Nations people of Canada under Section 35 of the Canadian Constitution. They also have the right to

consult the existing organizations and also the band councils, the band organizations, ensuring their rights and interests are being protected. That is the issue that has to be resolved somewhere and probably it will end up in the courts. Is this government willing to go to court to have this issue settled? If it goes to court, does that mean that all discussions on the devolution process ends until the court case is settled through the Supreme Court or the Federal Court of Appeal, whichever route it goes? Has the government taken that into consideration that the legal costs associated with this government playing hardball knowing the legal ramifications of this agreement put in question under a federal court challenge? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. That sounds like a little bit of a hypothetical question, but I’ll go to the Premier for his thoughts on the question.

Mr. Chairman, the decision to sign the agreement-in-principle was brought forward to Cabinet, was brought forward to Members of this Assembly. The facts were put on the table. Knowing that there would be concerns raised about going forward on an agreement-in-principle, knowing there was the potential for litigation, we took all precautions to ensure we did our work right. By signing that agreement, I believe in the work that has been done. I believe we have covered our bases. I believe in the issue of bringing Northerners the authority to make decisions over development and to benefit from that development. I believe in it so much that I signed the agreement with the acceptance of the Members of this Legislative Assembly. I believe that by doing this and having the door open to leadership to join and by extending again an arm and a hand to help fund a process to understand the agreement-in-principle, we have once again shown that we want to be inclusive. I believe what we have done is in the best interest of Northerners and that we have covered our bases and that we have done our work diligently. Thank you.

Thank you, Premier Roland. We are on page 4-19, Aboriginal Affairs and Intergovernmental Relations. Mr. Krutko.

Mr. Chairman, just in case the media picks up on the Premier’s comments that he had full support of the Members here in the House, that is not true. I think he knows that. Unless you put it to a vote on the floor and see who is for and against, then you might get that assumption. I, for one, did not support this devolution agreement and I would like to put it on public record. I believe that this government basically did not include the Aboriginal groups involved, but more importantly, he may put us in a fiscal problem in the future by signing an agreement with a cap on it which has major financial implications in future years in light of

the developments that have taken place. I just want to make sure for the public record that whoever is listening out there, that the motion that was supported by this House, we never even had a chance to vote on it in this House. The other issue is that it was the Cabinet that approved the signing. Maybe just to clarify your comment, who gave you approval to sign? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. Minister Roland.

Mr. Chairman, I think the Member, if he looks at Hansard tomorrow, will see I did not use the word full support. I talked about support of this Assembly. Now, yes, as is laid out clearly in policy, any Minister to sign an agreement with any government whether it is a provincial, federal, needs approval of Cabinet. We followed that process, but not without talking to Members of the Legislative Assembly. That wasn’t in this forum, but no one in this Assembly can say they were not informed of the process. Thank you.

Again, just for clarification, I believe he said he got the support of the House. So maybe he can clarify what he meant by “the House.” Is that the upper House or the lower House?

Well, the Member has been a Member for almost 16 years. He knows there is only one House in this Legislative Assembly. So for me to correct him with his experience here in the Legislative Assembly... As I pointed out in my last response, Cabinet gave me the authority to sign but not without having informed Members of the Legislative Assembly and all Members were aware of that. Yes, it is not unanimous, but in the interest of moving forward, we weighed all the considerations and the information before us and the decision was made on that basis. Thank you.

Thank you, Premier Roland. We are on page 4-19, Aboriginal Affairs and Intergovernmental Relations, activity summary, implementation, operations expenditure summary, $664,000.

Mr. Krutko, you raised your hand. Were you wanting to speak to page 4-19?

I would like to know what the number is under contract services.

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. We are still on page 4-19 and it is contract services, $10,000. He wants to know the details. Mr. Premier.

That is miscellaneous equipment; for example, copiers. Thank you.

Thank you, Premier Roland. Are there any further questions, Mr.

Krutko? We are on page 4-19, Aboriginal Affairs and Intergovernmental Relations, activity summary, implementation, operations expenditure summary, $664,000.

We are moving on to page 4-20, Aboriginal Affairs and Intergovernmental Relations, information item, implementation, active positions.

We are moving along to 4-23. Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. Minister Roland.