Thank you, Member. Minister.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Human resources happen to fall within the purviews of the Department of Finance. I happen to know, whether wearing either one of my hats, that the Department of Justice and supported by the Department of Finance, do have robust policies in place that they follow whenever there is a question of needing to terminate an individual. Individuals who work within the corrections service, by necessity, have to meet a very high standard of conduct, given the position of trust that they're in and that, if there are concerns with their performance, that those processes are the processes to evaluate their performance in human resources are going to be followed. It is my responsibility, and will be my responsibility, to ensure that those processes are followed, to review those processes if necessary. I can certainly commit to doing so if necessary in order to ensure that those procedures and processes, which are meant to be objective and independent and fair, are followed. I'm confident our partners in the union will do the same and will take their roles seriously, and I would like to assure the Member that we will continue to perform those functions in the best accordance with the law. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Minister. Just a reminder to all the Members, as well, that any questions go to the chair first, not directed to the Minister. Member for Thebacha.

Mr. Chair, I also want to ask the Minister why we are following BC standards and not using Canadian standards in justice?

Thank you, Member. Minister.

I can only assume, Mr. Chair, that the Member might be referring to the fact that there are individuals who have attended the Northwest Territories from British Columbia with specialized skills, to deliver specialized training, but the Department of Justice applies, to the extent that there is a criminal code, the federal criminal code, and to the extent that it's the laws of the Northwest Territories, and indeed we have developed our own training program for corrections officers with northern components within that, and will continue to refine and deliver that program in the Northwest Territories to corrections officers here. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Minister. Member for Thebacha. Corrections. Please turn to page 267. Justice, corrections, operations expenditure summary, 2020-2021 Main Estimates, $38,511,000. Does committee agree?

Committee agrees. Thank you. The next section is court services, beginning on page 270, information item on page 272. Are there any questions? No questions. Please turn to page 271. Justice, court services, operations expenditure summary, 2020-2021 Main Estimates, $14,281,000. Does committee agree?

Agreed. Thank you, committee. Legal aid services, beginning on page 273, with information item on page 275. Any questions? Member for Yellowknife Centre.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I am looking at the compensation and benefits line under legal aid services, and I see it's increased by about $900,000 since the 2018-2019 actuals. Can the Minister tell us what's driving this increase? Thank you.

Thank you, Member. Minister.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Just confirming that the actuals can sometimes include vacant positions that may or may not have been filled at the time, whereas the main estimates assumes all the positions that have been allocated to the department. We would point back to the revised estimates to show the difference. I can note, Mr. Chair, that there is some increase as a result of increases related to the collective agreement, and the increase in funding for one additional position with the outreach lawyer. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Minister. No further questions. Any further questions with respect to legal aid services? No further questions. Please turn to page 274. Justice, legal aid services, operations expenditures summary, 2020-2021 Main Estimates, $7,013,000. Does committee agree?

Thank you. Office of the Regulator of Oil and Gas Operations beginning on page 276 with information item on page 278. Any questions? Member for Frame Lake.

Thanks, Mr. Chair. I'm just wondering, the Minister's in kind of a funny position here with regard to the OROGO budget. Is this prepared by the staff of OROGO, and then, provided to the Minister for review and/or approval? Thanks, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Member. Minister.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Staff of OROGO do, certainly, have a significant role in completing the materials and it, of course, still have to be put together in conjunction with the Department of Justice. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Minister. Member for Frame Lake.

Thanks, Mr. Chair. Does this budget go to the Financial Management Board? Who signs off on the budget? Thanks, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Member. Minister.

Mr. Chair, it follows the same process as the rest of the main estimates. Thank you.