Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Issues with specific provisions of the bill

While there was limited discussion in the public hearing about the merits or drawbacks of particular provisions of the bill, specific issues were raised in the written submissions received by the committee. These include:

The need for greater transparency

A concern was raised that the bill does not contain any provisions requiring public disclosure about how the proceeds of the lottery will be disbursed to sport organizations.

Multisport games funding

Concerns were raised about the inclusion of multisport games funding under subsection 6(1) of the bill. In written submissions, witnesses sought clarification about how this funding would impact existing multisport games funding provided by MACA. They also expressed concern that the hosting of multisport games, which is an expensive undertaking, should not come from lottery funding to the detriment of sport and recreation partners that already rely on lottery funding.

Ministerial authority to accumulate a surplus or deficit in the Physical Activity, Sport and Recreation Fund

Subsection 6(2) of the bill waives the applicability of section 101 of the Financial Administration Act. This has the effect of enabling the Minister to accumulate a surplus or deficit in the Physical Activity, Sport and Recreation Fund. Concern was expressed that, if this is permitted, MACA will be able to overspend the fund on an ongoing basis, with the end result being that the fund will never be in a position such that it can be used for new initiatives.

Shielding lottery proceeds from taxation

One of the primary purposes for Bill 1 was to bring the administration of the Western Canada Lottery program under the auspices of the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs, to protect lottery proceeds from potential federal taxation.

There was acknowledgement by some witnesses of the wisdom of this course of action. No one expressed any reservations about this objective.

What We Did

More funding for the arts – outside the scope of the bill

From written submissions received in advance of the hearing, committee was aware that there would be strong representation from members of the arts community who wanted to see some of the proceeds of the Western Canada Lottery directed to performing and visual arts endeavours.

For the record, when contemplating changes to a bill that has been referred by the Legislative Assembly to a standing committee for consideration, the committee must operate in accordance with procedural rules regarding the admissibility of any proposed changes. These rules may include, among others, consideration of the principle and scope of the bill, the relevance and/or consistency of proposed amendments, and the prerogative of the Executive branch of government to bring forward legislation that would impose costs on the public treasury.

In preparation for the public hearing, the committee engaged the Legislative Assembly's law clerk to consider if an amendment to Bill 1 to permit the proceeds of the Western Canada Lottery to be directed to the arts would be in accordance with the relevant rules of parliamentary procedures. Based on the advice received, the committee chair determined that such an amendment would be outside the scope of the bill and, therefore, beyond the authority of the committee to propose.

The committee chair made this clear in his opening remarks, to ensure that members of the public did not leave the public hearing with an expectation that the standing committee would be in a position to propose an amendment to the bill to permit lottery funding to be directed to the arts.

It is clear from the passion with which presenters spoke that greater funding for the arts is important to people of the Northwest Territories. This was also evidenced by the February 21, 2018 presentation of a petition in the Legislative Assembly by the Member for Yellowknife North, Mr. Cory Vanthuyne, on behalf of 314 signatories, requesting that the Government of the Northwest Territories amend the Lottery Act to allow for lottery money to be disbursed to artistic endeavours.

The committee regrets that Bill 1 did not provide this opportunity in the way that members of the public hoped it would. However, the committee is pleased to note that, in response to a request made by this committee during the review of the 2018-2019 Business Plans, the Minister of Finance has made a commitment to increase funding for the NWT Arts Council by $200,000 in the 2018-2019 fiscal year.

Mr. Speaker, I now pass over next section to my honourable colleague, Mr. R.J. Simpson.