Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. To the motion. Ms. Bisaro.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want to make a few brief comments with regard to the motion. I am in support of the motion. I think it’s important that we go back a bit in history and to the beginning of the 17th Assembly when we set priorities for this Assembly. At that time, we set those priorities based on the way the world was at that time. There was a big focus on the Inuvik-Tuk highway and we still have that focus. Times change and I think we have to roll with the times, so to speak, and I think we have to recognize that we currently have a huge amount of activity in the Sahtu region and I think we have to recognize that we have to do something about that. As times change, I think we must also change. We cannot bury our heads in the sand and ignore what is happening in the Sahtu. I’m not suggesting that the government is, but we need to do more than what we’re currently doing. We have to be forward looking and I’m not so sure that we are as forward looking as we should be, and this motion speaks to looking forward.

I would like to give kudos to Mr. Yakeleya and Mr. Menicoche for bringing this motion forward. They are both looking after their constituents, and regions and constituencies. It’s going to be a benefit not only to the Sahtu region, not only to Nahendeh, but I think it’s going to be a benefit to all of the NWT. I think we have to recognize that and, as a government, we have to do something about that.

I am in support of this motion and I would urge the rest of my colleagues to do the same.

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. To the motion. Mr. Bromley.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate the work being done by my colleagues here. This motion asks for the government to initiate discussions with the Government of Canada on the Mackenzie Valley Highway into the Sahtu. It asks us to begin working a lot more seriously on capacity building so that we can nail down benefits from development activities. That’s a start. Obviously, this is only a start and I hope that as we get into assessing what the impacts are and what the responses need to be, and we need to get on this, we need to think about some of the hard, cold realities that are coming out. Those have to do with the ephemeral nature of oil and shale gas reserves. They’ve been found to have a much shorter life than predicted. They rarely work out. The oil shale plays, for example, two out of 20 oil plays worked out in the U.S. So there’s some serious looks needed so that we can develop appropriately. I’m trusting that the government, as we move forward on this, will be astute in staying on top of what is actually happening. I will be supporting this motion but it is only a beginning.

Thank you, Mr. Bromley. To the motion.

Question has been called, but I will allow Mr. Ramsay to speak to the motion.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate the concern over what is happening in the Mackenzie Valley. Certainly the developments occurring in the Sahtu region are significant and substantial. The Economic Opportunities Strategy Advisory Panel has held several meetings where the developments occurring in the Sahtu have been raised. I’ve been assured that the panel will be bringing forward a number of recommendations for consideration by this government, which may include a discussion regarding the establishment of a special economic zone.

As industry moves forward to a positive decision to produce oil in the Sahtu, the GNWT will continue to be diligent and position ourselves to respond to ensure the greatest benefits possible come to the residents of the Sahtu and the NWT. The government has directed significant resources to enhance our programs and efforts in the Sahtu region, and if the current exploration program becomes a significant long-term development, we will be ready to step in and support the region as required.

We will continue to work with the federal government to ensure they are aware and ready to assist us in whatever means necessary for this development to move forward. The level of government response in the long term will, of

course, be in alignment with decisions by industry on possible production scenarios in the Sahtu. Recent discussion with industry have indicated that if drilling occurs in a timely manner, no production decisions could be made before at least three years from today and no production in the Sahtu with concurrent sustainable activity would be possible before 2020.

We do not want to get ahead of ourselves. While the exploration program that is happening in the Sahtu is significant to the region, it is the tip of the iceberg that may be coming at us. When the time is right, as signaled by industry investment and decisions to produce, then we’ll be looking at even more significant response by this government that will allow us to gain the most benefit from this opportunity.

If I could, just a few comments on the Mackenzie Valley Highway Project from Wrigley to Tuktoyaktuk. This has been identified as a priority of the 17th Legislative Assembly and remains a

priority of this government. An all-weather highway up the Mackenzie Valley to Tuktoyaktuk support Canada’s sovereignty goals and territorial aspirations for resource development and other economic opportunities. The Mackenzie Valley Highway is expected to help reduce the cost of living, improve health care and education opportunities, support families in communities in the region, and provide significant long-term employment and contracting opportunities to residents of the NWT. The construction of the Inuvik to Tuk portion of the road is an important first step to realizing the vision of the Mackenzie Valley Highway from Wrigley to Tuktoyaktuk. We are, at the same time, working to move forward on the southern portion of the highway.

The Department of Transportation recently submitted an application to the Mackenzie Valley Environmental Impact Review Board related to the Wrigley to Dempster portion of the highway. This is the official start of the environmental review process and marks an important milestone for an all-weather road through the valley. The federal government, through CanNor, has committed $600,000 of the $8 million estimated cost of the environmental assessment for the southern portion of the proposed highway. The completion of the EA is the first step towards the completion of the highway and we will continue to look for opportunities to fund this work, including seeking out additional federal funding.

Over the past 10 years, working with our federal partners, the GNWT has invested $120 million in incremental improvements that will contribute to the eventual construction of the highway. We will continue to work with the federal government and industry partners to advance the project and support the interests of NWT residents.

The Mackenzie Valley Highway Project is important for economic development in the Northwest Territories. It is being planned so as to maximize business opportunities, training and employment. This requires a strategic, incremental approach, which we are pursuing.

The Department of Transportation is currently developing an update to the 2005 proposal Connecting Canada Coast to Coast to Coast. This document will update the progress we have made in moving the Mackenzie Valley Highway Project forward and identify proposed next steps to continue to advance the project. At the same time, and in anticipation of a new federal infrastructure program, the Department of Transportation is also developing a new strategic investment proposal titled Corridors for Canada: Building for Prosperity, which sets out our priorities for federal transportation infrastructure funding. Opportunities for continued investments into the Mackenzie Valley will be considered. We are also investigating opportunities for collaborations and partnerships using successful, proven models to emphasize local training and employment as well as ongoing benefits for communities.

This government has taken many steps to continue on the path toward achieving the goal of a Mackenzie Valley Highway. The government will be abstaining from voting on this motion.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. I will allow closing remarks on the motion to Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, Members. Just in closing, some of the oral history in the 1920s when the people, the Blondin family had the oil and they were burning it and it was flaring up. They knew it was something special but they didn’t know the value of this product called oil.

Today we’ve come a long way. We have the ability and adaptation to learn and move. It takes years to become a journeyman through training and apprenticeship, and that’s why we asked to start the training program, to start looking at things that take years. You want to be a worker on the pipeline or that production, they’re going to make sure you’re certified and possibly that you’re with a union company. We’re going to have to get ready for that. The days of picks and shovels are over for the Sahtu people. We want to ask this government, because of the enormous amount of record-breaking dollars set in the Sahtu ever, the government should really look at this as a special economic zone and say, yes, they have something here. There are hundreds of millions of dollars spent in the Sahtu region. We should take a look at it. That shale play is being compared to the Bakken field. There are billions of barrels of oil. The Bakken is estimated at 20 billion barrels. The Sahtu Canol

shale play resources, they’re saying, are even better than that. That needs to be proven. Those are just words we’re hearing from the area.

We have the duty as Members here to do the right thing. The right thing right now is to put pressure on our government so that they can put pressure on the federal government to say things are happening. As one of the Members said, that’s our duty. Because if this goes, we’re going to leave a significant mark on our land. On the land and water, the oil and animals, the production. If we’re really ready – and I’m glad the Minister said the possibility of a visit down to some of the areas where fracking is going on – we’re going to leave a mark on Canada in the Northwest Territories. We’re leaving a mark now. Companies in Hay River and Yellowknife are looking at the Sahtu. I know there’s companies south of this lake, like I said, Hay River, are doing business up in our area. That’s good. We take our money, we shop here in Yellowknife and we shop in Hay River. There are even companies up in Tuk and Inuvik coming into the Sahtu. There’s lots of work. That’s good for everybody. We want to see our people working. We also need to know that there is treasure in our culture and to look at those areas that are important to us. That’s what sustained us. It was before us, it’s going to be after us.

I just want to close with the oilfields from 1920-1921, what happened when Imperial Oil came in, later the federal government negotiated a treaty, to today. I’m just saying we’ve come a long way, baby, because today our people are taking charge of the land and the wealth and prosperity. We are not being fooled. Maybe we are, but we know now what development means and what it can bring to us. We have come a long way from the days when those treaties were signed to what we have today here in our land.

I want to ask if we could have a recorded vote. Thank you very much to the Members for allowing me to speak. Thank you for this motion this afternoon.

All those opposed, please stand. All those abstaining, please stand.

Thank you, Mr. Clerk. In favour, 10; opposed, zero; abstaining, seven. The motion is carried.

---Carried

Item 18, first reading of bills. Item 19, second reading of bills. Item 20, consideration in Committee of the Whole of bills and other matters: Tabled Document 9-17(4), NWT Main Estimates, 2013-2014, Health and Social Services and Public Works and Services, with Mrs. Groenewegen in the chair.

I call Committee of the Whole to order. What is the wish of the committee? Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you very much, Madam Chair. The committee wishes to consider Tabled Document 9-17(4), NWT Main Estimates, 2013-2014, and the continuation of Health and Social Services, and as well as Public Works and Services. Thank you.

Thank you. Is the committee agreed?

Thank you. At the prerogative of the chair, we’ll take a break.

---SHORT RECESS

I’d like to call Committee of the Whole back to order. Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I move that we report progress.

---Carried

I will now rise and report progress.