Yes, this was a long-term Liberal commitment, but I am not certain that they have kept every one of their promises. In any case, there has not been a specific federal-provincial-territorial meeting with respect to this matter, and officials have been meeting and discussing this. Those discussions will be ongoing.

We are particularly interested in what other jurisdictions are doing. They have more resources than we do. I have heard that several of the jurisdictions may be more advanced than we are in this. However, we are intending and hoping to get this legislation in place by July 1, 2018, when the federal cannabis act comes into force. Again, it's going to put considerable demands on staff both at Department of Justice, other Members of this House, and I am looking forward to working together with all of you to conclude the studies, the public engagement, and getting the bill, our ultimate bill, through this House. Thank you.

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Kam Lake.

Thank you to the Minister for that response, and I look forward to working with the honourable Minister on this issue as well. Can the Minister explain how he thinks that work is going to roll out?

This is a complex issue. It deals with regulation. It deals with taxation. It deals with health. It has significant budgetary concerns, both in generating revenue and in paying for public awareness programs. It might require amendments to territorial legislation regarding criminal matters. Is the Minister willing to accept a joint working group or a joint committee in order to properly shepherd this work? It is a lot of work. We are all willing to help out. Will he do that so we can all be part of this solution and work on this public engagement and legislation together? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Minister of Justice.

Mr. Speaker, I will be working with other members of Cabinet with respect to this matter, and I'm sure that, once this matter reaches the status of the bill, we will have a lively discussion in this House. Thank you.

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Mackenzie Delta.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I have a few questions for the Minister of Infrastructure. Mr. Speaker, it's that time of the year again in my riding on the Mackenzie and Peel River. Rivers are clearing with ice as we have break-up there. Mr. Speaker, my constituents are eager to travel either to communities or travel to Whitehorse on the ferry system. I'd like to ask the Minister: When will the Abraham Francis and Louis Cardinal ferries be ready for operation? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Minister of Infrastructure.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We don't anticipate any issues or delays. I think, going forward right now, there's some retrofit work happening on the ferries and they're proceeding as scheduled. Normal shipping season or ferry traffic usually starts the first or second week of June, and we don't anticipate anything different at this time.

Mr. Speaker, that sounds good. Actually, I just got a report this morning here, during session, that the Peel River is actually clear of ice and the Mackenzie just has a little bit of shore ice, so we're now looking forward most likely next week, Friday, I guaranteed the water will drop. Would the ferry be ready for operation if the conditions were good for low water?

We may have to bring the Member onboard for the Marine Transportation System. He has guaranteed river levels. We will work diligently to do all the prep work to the site and make sure the boats are up and running safely. We will work with all Members of this House to let them know when we can get them in on a timely matter, subject to the river conditions.

Mr. Speaker, I recommend to the department that they look for someone else that has traditional knowledge up in my riding that could assist them, but, you know, already the Peel River has dropped. There is no ice there. If the conditions are right for the Peel River, would the department look at launching the Peel River ferry first?

Mr. Speaker, if the conditions are right and we get the shore work completed that allow access to the ferries, I don't see an issue with launching that ferry sooner than the other ones. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Frame Lake.

Minister of Environment and Natural Resources.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we recognize that the legacy arising from the history of Giant Mine is complex and that it's very emotional. We understand that the Giant Mine regional offices have met with the Yellowknives Dene First Nations to hear concerns directly in order to develop a formal response. The Member is right. There was some that was recommended by the Giant Mine or by the report, and, as a Legislation Assembly, we should have our internal discussion to come up with a formal position. To the Member's question, that, in my understanding, has not been raised with the federal government yet, but we are having FPTs this summer, and I will use that opportunity to raise the issue with my federal counterpart.

I'd like to thank the Minister for his response, and I would welcome the opportunity to have this House work with Regular MLAs to develop a position on an apology and compensation and, I think, a motion on it. But I'd like to know whether our government has a position on the replacement of lapsed funds from the first two years of operation of the board. That money should have gone into the Giant Mine Oversight Board's research program, so can our Minister tell us what our position is on the replacement of funds and whether he has formally raised it with the federal Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs?

Mr. Speaker, first of all we are supportive of the surplus funds going to research programs. I'm not sure if there was a mechanism in the agreement that had allowed for that, and I will raise that again.

We do have some FPTs that are coming up this summer. We have the Finance Ministers' FPT, as well as the Ministers of the Environment. It is our understanding, though, that INAC is actively working on a solution to address the concerns that were raised, but, again, at the earliest opportunity, I will raise these issues with my federal counterparts.

Again, I thank the Minister for his strong words there, and I'm happy to work with him on that. We've just got to make sure that, as the federal government moves forward with the federal treasury board's submissions, the replacement money is part of that.

During the meeting last week there was a lot of concern and frustration over the lack of a coordinated response to off-site arsenic contamination throughout Yellowknife and the surrounding environment. Recent media reports seem to show that our health staff do not seem to get information from Environment and Natural Resources. Can the Minister explain what our government is doing with regard to off-site arsenic contamination in the Yellowknife area and how we can have a better coordinated response from our government as a whole?

Mr. Speaker, we had a meeting recently with Health Canada and the INAC regional office, Environmental and Climate Change Canada, Department of Fisheries, and ENR and we do recognize that there may have been some, the communication was not as good as it should have been, and I think we've taken steps to address that. We're working more closely with Health and Social Services to address this and to make sure that all their information is up-to-date and correct, and we will provide them up-to-date information.

So I can assure the Member and members of the public that this government is working very closely within the departments to ensure that we are up-to-date and getting the information out there.

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Frame Lake.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Again, I'd like to thank the Minister for recognizing that there was an issue and that there are some steps being taken to better coordinate a response.

During the public meeting last week, though, people were glad to see that there is going to be a human health monitoring program for the Giant Mine remediation project, but people also want to make sure that there's going to be a look at health impacts, so I want to ask the Minister: As the lead department on the Giant Mine remediation, can the Minister tell us about what our government involvement is in the human health monitoring program and whether there will be a human health impact study? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, ENR is part of a project team that has been leading the development of the human health monitoring program, and I believe Dr. Rory Chan is working on this. An advisory committee was established, and GNWT's Health and Social Services office of the public health representative sits as a member of the advisory committee providing expert advice and direction.

The Giant Mine Remediation Project team, we're going to be putting together a socio-economic strategy. Its implementation is being designed to address socio-economic impact from the Giant Mine Project, and the upcoming study will be done by the project team who will examine indirect health impacts, as well. So I think the work has already started, and we will continue to update Members of this Assembly on the work that we're doing. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.