Page 248, strategic, human resources, active positions. Questions?

We will return to page 227, department total. Department of Human Resources, department total, $24.324 million.

Does committee agree that consideration of the Department of Human Resources is completed?

Thank you, Minister Beaulieu. Thank you, witnesses. Sergeant-at-Arms, please escort the witnesses out of the Chamber.

Committee, we will begin the Department of Aboriginal Affairs and Intergovernmental Relations. I’ll go to the Minister responsible for the department, the Honourable Bob McLeod, if he would like to provide any opening comments.

Yes, I do, Mr. Chair. I am pleased to present the 2015-2016 Main Estimates for the Department of Aboriginal Affairs and Intergovernmental Relations. Overall, the department’s estimates propose an increase of $110,000, or 1.2 percent, over the 2014-2015 Main Estimates. These Estimates continue to support the objectives of limiting expenditure growth in order to sustain the long-term sustainability of the fiscal framework.

Highlights of the proposed estimates include: • $201,000 in forced growth for collective

bargaining adjustments;

• $25,000 in forced growth to increase the level of

core funding provided to the Status of Women Council and the Native Women’s Association; and

• $122,000 in expenditure reductions.

The proposed estimates support the priorities of the 17th Assembly. Specific activities in support of these

priorities include: • continuing to strengthen the Government of the

Northwest Territories’ relationship with Aboriginal governments through the negotiation of bilateral intergovernmental cooperation agreements that reflect the unique interests and challenges of Aboriginal governments;

• ensuring that appropriate leadership and

support is available to all departments in fulfilling the Government of the Northwest Territories’ objective of strengthening and maintaining relationships with Aboriginal governments through the creation of a new Aboriginal consultation and relations division;

• ensuring the effective ongoing implementation

of devolution plans and agreements, including providing leadership to the Intergovernmental Council on Lands and Resource Management;

• continuing to work effectively with our federal

and Aboriginal partners to finalize and implement land, resources and self-government agreements in all regions of the Northwest Territories; and

• supporting the Government of the Northwest

Territories’ more prominent and active role on the national scene by assuming the chair of the Aboriginal Affairs Working Group, providing a leadership role in the planning for a National Roundtable on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, and co-chairing a national working group established to find solutions for reducing the disproportionate number of Aboriginal children in the child welfare systems across Canada.

That concludes my opening remarks. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Premier McLeod. Do you have witnesses to bring into the Chamber?

Yes, I do.

Agreed?

Sergeant-at-Arms, please escort the witnesses into the Chamber. Thank you.

Premier McLeod, could you please introduce your witnesses.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. To my left I have Martin Goldney, deputy minister. To my right I have Richard Robertson, director of finance and administration.

Thank you, Mr. Premier. Committee, we will begin on page 31, Aboriginal Affairs and Intergovernmental Relations. We will defer this page until we’ve completed detail and information items. Page 35, corporate management, operations expenditure summary, $4.018 million. Mr. Bromley.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I have a couple of questions, but first really a general comment in response to the Premier’s remarks. I notice the establishment of a new Aboriginal consultation and relations division. Overall, I think we’ve been doing pretty good in that area. Where I see us falling down is consulting with the rest of the residents of the Northwest Territories. Can we expect that there will be a division established to finally bring that up to standard as well?

Thank you, Mr. Bromley. Premier McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. We have set up that division in order to fulfill the consultation requirements with Aboriginal people and treaty rights, which is a specific and unique Aboriginal rights relationship with the Government of the Northwest Territories. Thank you.

That wasn’t what I was asking. I think that’s obvious and appropriate. I’m asking what is being done to set up an equivalent one where we also have a responsibility to consult with our people and our residents on issues that are important to them, which are the activities of this government. Thank you.

All departments on all initiatives we consult and consult and consult with the residents of the Northwest Territories. Thank you.

I don’t believe that that is so, and that was said, of course, for eons about consulting with Aboriginal people. Fortunately, there’s good law for Aboriginal people and we are now finally responding in a responsible way to capture the input of Aboriginal residents. Unfortunately, we don’t have that same law, although we have the same obligation for those who are not Aboriginal residents.

So, would the Premier take this on to establish a division or some equivalent mechanism to ensure that we do, in fact, fulfill our moral obligations in the absence of a law to consult with the residents of the Northwest Territories, which we are not doing now? Mahsi.

I’d like to remind the Member that this is the Department of Aboriginal

Affairs and we do, in my mind, consult on a regular basis with non-Aboriginal people and we fulfill all of the requirements of this government in that regard. Thank you.

I’ll equally remind the Premier that this is the business of public government, which is the business of all residents of the Northwest Territories.

My second question has to do with the direction, I believe the division leads the development and review of negotiating mandates that guide GNWT negotiating teams at all land, resources and self-government negotiations, according to the document. We have a couple of unsettled land claim areas where we don’t seem to be making progress, and that has been true for quite a while, at least very minimal progress. I know the Premier would like to see advancement in those areas, as we all would.

What is being done to try and deal with those sorts of things in new and innovative ways if we’re not able to make any progress with our current approach? Is there any room for creative thinking there, or is it just such a fundamental brick wall that we have to wait until there’s a little crumbling in that brick wall before we can make any progress? Thank you.

Thank you. We have tried to find new and innovative ways to break down some of those walls. We’ve tried bilateral negotiations, for example, with the Dehcho First Nations where we had a working group of senior officials to try to resolve some very long-outstanding land issues. We thought that we had made good progress because the senior officials were able to resolve almost all of the outstanding issues, but at the 11th hour they were all rejected

out of hand. But I think at least we’ve had some good dialogue and I think a much better understanding between both governments. We’ve also kept the Government of Canada in the loop and we were looking to try something similar with the Akaitcho Government. We’ve had some initial discussions, but they haven’t advanced as far as we were able to go with the Dehcho First Nations where our Senior Officials Working Group met on a regular basis for almost two years to allow us to have a better understanding from both governments. Thank you.