Mr. Speaker, this government understands that the protection of the land, water and environment matters to Northerners. It matters to us too.
Sustainable responsible development has always been a priority for our government. As part of devolution, we committed to improving and strengthening the way we manage development in the Northwest Territories, to ensure that it reflects northern values and priorities while providing for the creation of jobs and economic opportunities through responsible sustainable development.
We already have a strong system based on federal and territorial law and obligations established in settled claims and self-government agreements. Decisions must be made within that legislative context and should be consistent with established frameworks and policies like the Land Use and Sustainability Framework, Sustainable Development Policy and NWT Water Stewardship Strategy. That system already provides good tools for managing development in the Northwest Territories with ongoing input from the public. We should continue to rely on that system and focus on making it better.
A plebiscite is not the best way to do that. Plebiscites are not binding. They are simply tools used to gauge public support. They are not the only tool to do that and they certainly are not the most cost effective. Previous estimates of the cost of a plebiscite were approximately $1.8 million, and we know a significant amount of work and time with Elections Northwest Territories would be required.
We are already engaged in a public conversation about hydraulic fracturing and have committed to taking the time we need to develop good, strong rules about it, rules that are informed by science, best practices and the views of Northerners.
We have plans to continue that conversation and to engage with Northerners across the territory in the coming months. There will be plenty of opportunities during the public engagement for the people of this territory to express their views on the issue of hydraulic fracturing.
Hydraulic fracturing is a complicated issue that cannot be easily reduced to just one question. It has implications for oil and gas development more broadly, and ultimately for the future health and growth of our economy.
We shouldn’t reduce something this important to one simple question. We should be having an extensive public discussion about it. The public engagement process we have already undertaken gives us a venue to have that kind of conversation. It gives us the opportunity to dig into the issue and fully understand it. We need to continue that conversation because it will give us a better and rich understanding of what matters to Northerners than a plebiscite would.
We don’t need a plebiscite to learn what Northerners think. We already have a process underway and have already committed to taking the time we need to have that conversation with the public. I hope that the public and Members of the Legislative Assembly will take advantage of that to weigh in on the issues in the coming months.
Cabinet will be voting against this motion, Mr. Speaker.