Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The issue surrounding GNWT sourcing and procurement systems are, sadly, nothing new. Over the life of this Assembly, my colleagues and I have heard from countless stakeholders from the private sector about the recurring and yet unresolved issues surrounding procurement. We are now at a crossroads. The GNWT cannot continue to deny the significant lack of confidence concerning public procurement expressed by the northern business community.
Together, Regular MLAs have supported calls for procurement reform and have worked cooperatively through standing committees to bring forward a comprehensive report on procurement issues. Conflicting policies and practises are key concerns of the business community. The stated goals of these procurement and sourcing systems are to help ensure a healthy and prosperous northern private sector, and yet small companies are expected to compete with much larger southern ones who will utmost always be able to bid a lower cost than their local counterparts. This underbidding by southern firms who have access to beneficial supply change and the GNWT's inconsistent and opaque policies fail to ensure that the core of the business incentive and other procurement incentive programs are achieved.
This report and years of advocacy from this side of the House should be a wake-up call for our government that it needs to do better on procurement and meaningfully change how it does business with our hardworking private sector. If we wish to see northern businesses thrive, then we need to see the GNWT's procurement policies updated to reflect the high cost of doing business in the NWT and to ensure procurement opportunities are, above all, fair, transparent, and benefit Northerners above all else. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.