This is page numbers 3883 – 3910 of the Hansard for the 18th Assembly, 3rd Session. The original version can be accessed on the Legislative Assembly's website or by contacting the Legislative Assembly Library. The word of the day was report.

Topics

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Masi. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Kam Lake.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

Kieron Testart

Kieron Testart Kam Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise today to recognize my constituency assistant, Mr. Garett Cochrane. This is the last day of session, and he has been invaluable over the last several weeks in helping me prepare for the day's work and helping me keep in touch with my constituents. I want to take the opportunity to recognize his service. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Masi. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

Tom Beaulieu

Tom Beaulieu Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh

Marci cho Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize the interpreters from Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh, Mr. Tom Unka from Fort Resolution, and Rose Sundberg from Detah.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Masi. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. If we missed anyone in the gallery, thanks for being here with us. It's always great to have an audience as part of our proceedings. Item 6, acknowledgements. Item 7, oral questions. Member for Nahendeh.

Shane Thompson

Shane Thompson Nahendeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there has been some confusion about Commissioner's lands and territorial lands in my riding and across the territory when you talk to people, and my questions will be to Minister of Lands. My first question is: what is the difference between Commissioner's lands and territorial land? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Masi. Minister of Lands.

Louis Sebert

Louis Sebert Thebacha

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. Commissioner's land is primarily land that is located in and around communities. It is managed through policy and regulation under the Commissioner's Land Act. Territorial land is most often the land that is in the more remote regions of the Northwest Territories. In some cases, there are some territorial lands located within communities. However, that is the exception. These lands are regulated by the Northwest Territories Lands Act and regulations.

Shane Thompson

Shane Thompson Nahendeh

I thank the Minister for that clarification. My next question: how does the government come up with an assessment for Commissioner's land and territorial land?

Louis Sebert

Louis Sebert Thebacha

The assessed values of Commissioner's land parcels is determined by the assessors in MACA's assessment unit, which is a unit independent of the land managers in the Department of Lands. They use an approach that is consistent from community to community across the Northwest Territories to determine the assessed value of each parcel. If the occupant of the parcel disagrees with the assessed value, there are appeal mechanisms through MACA that can implemented to review the assessment.

Territorial land value is determined by an appraised value of land as required by the Northwest Territories land use regulations, which the government commissions from an independent certified appraiser. The appraised value is used because most territorial land is in very remote areas of the territory and does not require services such as water, power, and fuel delivery. It is not possible, of course, to assess each parcel, but an appraisal of raw land is completed by the representative across the NWT and applied consistently. So there are two manners in which the values are determined.

Shane Thompson

Shane Thompson Nahendeh

I thank the Minister for that answer. So my next question is: how are Commissioner's land and territorial land fees determined/calculated?

Louis Sebert

Louis Sebert Thebacha

The department uses the assessed value which I have described to calculate the annual lease fee for each Commissioner's land parcel. This fee is based on the assessed value of the parcel each year. Some, such as seniors and non-profit organizations, may be eligible for a 50 per cent discount off the annual lease fee paid on Commissioner's land.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Nahendeh.

Shane Thompson

Shane Thompson Nahendeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I thank the Minister for that answer. My last question right now is: what are the fees for both Commissioner's lands and territorial lands used for? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Louis Sebert

Louis Sebert Thebacha

Of course, that depends on the value of the lands as assessed by the MACA assessment unit. That is with respect to Commissioner's land. For an average-sized lot, the cost is often in the area of about $2,000 a year. However, as Members will know, we are proposing a reduction from 10 per cent to 5 per cent, and so that $2,000 lease fee would then be reduced to $1,000 per year. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Frame Lake.

Kevin O'Reilly

Kevin O'Reilly Frame Lake

Merci, Monsieur le President. Earlier today I quoted a speaker sponsored by government at the recent 2018 Roundup conference. One of his messages was to not waste time on negotiations on treaties or land rights. Can our Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment who sponsored this talk tell us whether Cabinet is of the position that negotiations on treaties and land rights are a waste of time? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Masi. Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment.

Wally Schumann

Wally Schumann Hay River South

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Member knows that's not our position. The number one priority of this government is land claims and settling outstanding land claims and self-government agreements in the territory. That's a position that the speaker took. That's his position. We have our position and we work closely with all Aboriginal governments to move things along. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Kevin O'Reilly

Kevin O'Reilly Frame Lake

I'm really pleased to hear the Minister say that. This speaker who was sponsored by our government described environmental organizations as being non-Canadian, well-funded, with large offices in foreign countries, that tried to divide communities to stop economic development and instigate violence. Can the Minister tell the public whether there is any evidence that any of these organizations operate in the Northwest Territories, and if so, has their criminal activity been reported to the RCMP?

Wally Schumann

Wally Schumann Hay River South

No, I do not believe that we have had those types of activities in the Northwest Territories. What I can tell this House is our government works closely with NGOs on a regular basis. My department, in particular, has worked very closely with NGOs. In fact, our department has engaged directly with NGOs on natural resource legislation initiatives that we are bringing forward. We will continue to do so.

Kevin O'Reilly

Kevin O'Reilly Frame Lake

I would like to thank the Minister for that, again, that he doesn't share the views of the speaker although he sponsored the talk.

Our civil societies organizations in northern Canada have made tremendous contributions to our society. Some recent examples include the cooperative work and legal action to uphold the Yukon Umbrella Final Agreement and to protect the Peel Land Use Plan and the work here in Yellowknife that has resulted in a legally binding oversight in research development covering Giant Mine or remediation. Can the Minister tell us whether he recognizes the value and work performed by civil society, including environmental organizations in the Northwest Territories?

Wally Schumann

Wally Schumann Hay River South

This is Canada. Everyone gets to have their say. We believe everyone should be engaged in our processes, as open and as transparent as we can be. I think we are probably more and open transparent than any government in Canada. We will continue to move on that.

We are always open to all kinds of comments, no matter if it's legislation or public policy or what we are moving forward, but we are always open. We are not saying that criticism is a bad thing. Sometimes we need reflection on some of what we are doing and we take all comments seriously.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackson Lafferty

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Frame Lake.

Kevin O'Reilly

Kevin O'Reilly Frame Lake

Merci, Monsieur le President. My last question for the Minister: I stated earlier today that it's my view that it was very disturbing that our government would sponsor this individual to give such an inaccurate, divisive, and hateful account of civil society. I wonder whether this is something that we can expect from our government in the future. I would like to know from the Minister whether it's the intention of our government to continue to sponsor such misinformation or whether we can expect a more balanced approach in the future. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.