Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are for the Premier following up on questions that I had during the spring session and are with regard to the changes in federal laws, environmental laws in particular. I had previously asked the Premier questions on the major changes underway in that area – withdrawal of habitat protection in the Fisheries Act, collapse of our regional land and water boards into one, creation of artificial mandatory deadlines for completion of assessments, and so on. The Premier said he had belatedly written the feds inquiring about the Fisheries Act changes, but I’ve never heard back about the response he received. The new federal omnibus bill proposes even further changes.

I’d like to ask the Premier whether we were informed in advance or consulted on these latest changes which extend the radical alteration of the federal government’s management of our northern environment.