Thank you, Mr. Chair. I am pleased to be here today to talk to you about Bill 6, Cannabis Legalization and Regulation Implementation Act.

I would like to thank the Standing Committee on Social Development and the Standing Committee on Government Operations for their review of this bill and for the constructive feedback they have provided. A number of motions were made in committee, and I am pleased that the bill has improved as a result.

The development of Bill 6 required significant interdepartmental collaboration and has benefited from feedback from the public, Indigenous governments, community governments, and other stakeholders, received during an extensive engagement process that occurred during the summer and fall of 2017. Since that time, the joint standing committee has conducted further engagement with residents, and we look forward to hearing about that today.

We recognize that not everyone agrees with all aspects of the legislation being proposed, but, as a government, we have an obligation to make the best decisions we can to design a system that puts the health and safety of our residents first and that follows the guiding principles that received overwhelming support during the engagement.

In addition to the feedback received from our cannabis engagement process, other important factors that were considered when determining our approach included:

• discussion and information from other jurisdictions;
• discussion with enforcement partners;
• practical and financial implications for implementation in the required timeframe; and
• current research on the health impacts of cannabis.

Bill 6 includes three schedules.

In the first schedule, the Department of Finance proposes the new Cannabis Products Act. This will enable the GNWT to assume responsibility for the importation and sale of cannabis products through the Liquor Commission, under the direction of the Minister of Finance. The Act will provide for a cannabis mail-order system to communities that do not have a retail store, and those communities will have the option of holding a plebiscite to decide if restrictions or prohibitions will be put in place. The new act will set 19 years of age as the legal minimum for purchase and possession of cannabis and maintain the federal possession limits, which will allow adults 19 years of age and older to possess up to 30 grams in public and to grow up to four plants in a household.

In the second schedule, the Department of Health and Social Services is proposing the new Cannabis Smoking Control Act. It will place restrictions on the public smoking of cannabis products similar to laws governing the smoking of tobacco products, with a number of additional restrictions. The new act will also require cannabis retail outlets to post health warning signage distributed by the department.

In the third and final schedule, the Department of Infrastructure has proposed several amendments to the Motor Vehicles Act to create additional penalties for drug and alcohol impaired drivers. These will include zero tolerance laws for novice drivers, drivers aged 21 and under, and commercial drivers. Administrative licence suspensions will also be established for all drivers who fail a standardized field sobriety test or an evaluation by a drug recognition expert. The current legislation governing impaired driving will be amended to appropriately address drug-impaired driving and to reflect the repeal and replacement of the transportation section of the Criminal Code under the federal Bill C-46. Amendments are also proposed to allow the Registrar of Motor Vehicles to release driver's abstracts directly to law enforcement.

I would like to acknowledge the collaboration amongst departments to bring forward this legislation under the challenging timelines, and also the willingness of the committees to work together to review this bill and to ensure we are in a position to respond effectively to the federal legislation.

I would be pleased to answer any questions regarding Bill 6. Thank you.