Clause 13.

Clause 14.

Committee to the bill as a whole. Does committee agree that Bill 6, Miscellaneous Statute Law Amendment Act, 2016, is now ready for third reading?

Bill 6 is now ready for third reading. Does committee agree that this concludes our consideration of Bill 6, Miscellaneous Statute Law Amendment Act, 2016?

Thank you, Minister, and thank you to your witness. Sergeant-at-Arms, please escort the witness from the Chamber. Committee, we have also agreed to consider Bill 8, An Act to Amend the Children’s Law Act. I will ask the Minister responsible for the bill to introduce it. Minister Sebert.

Yes. I am pleased to be here today to present Bill 8, An Act to Amend the Children’s Law Act. Bill 8 amends the Children's Law Act to allow for the establishment of a child support recalculation service. This service will allow child support payment amounts to be automatically recalculated using parents' updated income information on an annual basis. This will reduce the need for parents to go to court when there are changes in their income. It will be a free, simple, and transparent process for both parents and can help to reduce the conflict associated with variations of child support amounts. The recalculation service will also help to ensure that children receive adequate financial support.

There are currently nine jurisdictions in Canada with some form of recalculation service. It is important to ensure that NWT residents are provided with the type of family law supports that promote access to justice and are available to most Canadians. Additional amendments unrelated to the establishment of the service are also included in the bill. These changes are editorial in nature and are focused largely on modernizing language in the act. I would like to thank the Standing Committee on Social Development for its review of Bill 8. I would be pleased to answer any questions that the committee may have regarding the bill.

Thank you, Minister. I will now turn to the Chair of the Standing Committee on Social Development. Mr. Thompson.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, the Standing Committee on Social Development concluded its review of Bill 8, An Act to Amend the Children’s Law Act, on October 25, 2016, with a public hearing held here in the Legislative Assembly building. Throughout the review of this bill, committee members were particularly interested in the future delivery of the in-house recalculation services by the Department of Justice. These long-awaited amendments will bring positive, meaningful change to the lives of many of our constituents and their families and to Northerners at large, and the committee is pleased to support them. Individual Members may have additional comments or questions as we proceed with consideration of this bill. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Thompson. Minister, would you like to bring witnesses into the Chamber?

Yes, I would, Mr. Chair.

Sergeant-at-Arms, please escort the witnesses into the Chamber. Minister, please introduce your witnesses.

Mr. Chair, to my left, Emily Ingarfield, manager, policy and planning, and to my right, Thomas Drouin, legislative council.

Thank you, Minister, and welcome to our witnesses. I will now open the floor to general comments on Bill 8. I see no general comments on Bill 8. Does committee agree that there are no further general comments?

Can we proceed to a clause-by-clause review of the bill?

As there are 35 clauses, does committee agree that we group the clauses in groups of five?

Committee, we will defer the bill number and title until after consideration of the clauses. Please turn to page 1. Clauses 1 through 5.