Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to start off by thanking the Premier for bringing this motion forward and Mrs. Groenewegen for seconding the motion, bringing her five terms and tons of corporate history and knowledge to the table. I’d also like to thank the devolution team and all of our Aboriginal government partners – the Inuvialuit, the Gwich’in, the Sahtu, the Tlicho and the Metis – for all the good work and important work that they’ve done in bringing this agreement to our table and to our forum here today. I also look forward to working with all of our Aboriginal partners as we move forward, including the Akaitcho and the Dehcho.

The days when territorial matters are decided by federal politicians and federal public servants should be long over. Northern residents now have what matters to them and Northerners should be making the decisions about what happens in our own territory.

Like many of my colleagues, I was born and raised in the Northwest Territories. As a lifelong Northerner and Minister of Human Resources, I know firsthand that we have the talented and educated people we need to manage our new responsibilities and deliver the programs and services that we are taking on. We don’t need somebody else making our decisions for us. Northerners can do this for ourselves, and I do mean ourselves. I’m not referring to some anonymous or faceless “us” outside of the Northwest Territories.

It is this Legislative Assembly that will be passing legislation, establishing the direction that will guide

decisions about land and resources after devolution. It is you and I and all the Members here. We and future Members of this Legislature are the face of devolution, and we are the ones that will be held to account for those decisions by the people who put us here.

Devolution will help us fulfill the vision that we set for ourselves at the start of this Assembly. By voting to sign this agreement, we are giving future Legislative Assemblies access to resource revenues that can be used for northern priorities instead of sending the money straight to Ottawa, or we could be investing in our people, our environment and our economy. The departments I’m responsible for are already at work planning for a smooth and orderly transition from federal to territorial responsibility, should the House support this motion.

The Department of Human Resources is engaged in organizational design and other work to welcome federal employees into our nationally recognized public service. These incredibly talented and dedicated federal employees who are passionate about the Northwest Territories, those of them that live here in the Northwest Territories, will now be able to go down the hall and talk to other Northerners who are as passionate about this territory and who are the decision-makers, as opposed to having to communicate with Ottawa, with individuals who have never been here and certainly don’t have the same type of intimate knowledge or passion for the territory that the federal employees who live here now do.

We value the knowledge and experience of these federal employees and look forward to having as many of them as possible joining us. We will make job offers to the impacted federal employees in the NWT who work in transferring programs. There will also be new positions created to replace work being done in Ottawa. This will create new job opportunities not only in Yellowknife but also in the communities, and decentralization is one of our major planning considerations. The GNWT will adopt about 27 acts of regulations on the transfer date, should this motion be supported and passed.

The Department of Justice will prepare the many pieces of the legislation we will need to ensure a smooth transition of legal authority, existing rights and program delivery. After the transfer date, the GNWT will be able to change the legislation, if needed, to make sure it reflects northern values and priorities.

I have hosted a number of meetings to talk about devolution. My constituents have been heard. Overwhelmingly, the people of the Northwest Territories express their support for moving decision-making about public lands and resources closer to home. But devolution will come with its own challenges and there may be some growing

pains, but we and our residents are ready, willing and able.

I look forward to voting yes on this motion. Thank you.