Thank you, Mr. Speaker. With another tax season behind us, I’m reminded that the northern residents deduction has not changed since 2008 when it went up a paltry 10 percent. A lot of things have changed through the years, particularly the cost of living in the country, and this is one thing that seems to go up and never seems to come down. To think about it, taxes often defy gravity in the same way.

Yes, I know our Finance Minister is not responsible for the federal taxes we pay, nor can he increase northern residents deduction on his own, but he could use his persuasive power to sway his federal colleagues. I will offer a few good reasons why he should do just that.

Increasing the northern residents deduction would keep more dollars in the NWT economy, benefiting northern residents’ businesses. The northern residents deduction was implemented to stimulate growth in the Northwest Territories by helping compensate for the high cost of living. It is not delicious irony that the deduction has not kept up with inflation, not even close. If we want to increase our population, raising the northern residents deduction should be part of our plan.

We know the cost of living is a big problem, so let’s put a little bit more cash in Northerners’ pockets. Businesses will be on side. Boosting the northern residents deduction helps northern employers, including big employers, such as the mines and our own government, to attract the skilled people we so desperately need. We do compete in other jurisdictions for people, and even some of our own students go work down south. So let’s turn that around.

These are just a few reasons, and I can go on and on, but I bring this because the Finance Minister has not mentioned northern residents deduction when he talks about our government strategy for growing our population. Our government seems pretty shy about taking the case to the federal government, but this is an election year, a time for opportunity, for persuading our federal politicians to do the right thing and I hope the Minister is listening. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.