Thank you, Member. The motion is in order. To the motion?

Question has been called. All those in favor? All those opposed? Abstentions? The motion is carried. Tabled Document 466-19(2) will be reported as ready for consideration in formal session through the form of an appropriation bill.

---Carried

Thank you, Ministers, and thank you to the witnesses appearing before us. Sergeant-at-Arms, please escort the witnesses from the Chamber.

Members, we will take a short recess, and we'll come back with our bills.

---SHORT RECESS

I now call Committee of the Whole back to order. Committee, we have agreed to consider Bill 31, an Act to Amend the Pharmacy Act. I will ask the Minister of Health and Social Services to introduce the bill.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I'm pleased to be here today to discuss Bill 31, an Act to Amend the Pharmacy Act.

The development of this bill is the result of swift effort by the Department of Health and Social Services and would not have been possible without the full support of the Standing Committee on Accountability and Oversight.

Madam Chair, the purpose of this bill is two-fold:

First is to ensure that residents continue to have access to life-saving naloxone kits in their communities and from organizations that work directly with residents at risk.

The proposed change will assist in the broader distribution of naloxone kits to non-health care providers and organizations outside of the NWT health system who can then redistribute the kits to residents who are at risk of opioid overdose.

The second purpose of the bill is to ensure that the health and social services system is supported to function efficiently and effectively, which is of particular importance during the current pandemic and our existing state of a public health emergency.

The authorization of electronic prescribing will support clear and secure communications between prescriber and pharmacist and improve patient safety and overall quality of care, increase convenience for dispensing new and refill prescriptions, and decrease risk of errors and liability when compared to handwritten prescriptions at the point of care.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank committee Members for the time they have taken in reviewing and responding to this bill.

I would be pleased to answer any questions Members have. And I have two witnesses to assist me. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister. Sergeant-at-Arms, you can please escort the witnesses into the Chamber.

Minister, can you please introduce your witnesses.

Yes, on the left is Kelly Mahoney, director of policy, legislation and communications, and on the right is Christina Duffy from the Department of Justice.

Thank you. I will now open the floor to general comments on Bill 31. Is the committee agreed that there are no comments -- oh, Member for Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I don't anticipate having any questions during the detail, but I would just like to echo the Minister's statements that I'm happy to see this bill coming forward. I think it was great work to get this done so quickly, and to date, the territory has not seen, you know, nearly the level of opiate deaths that many other jurisdictions have had, especially our neighbors in the Yukon are going through a tragedy over there, but I think the more we can make naloxone accessible and make sure is on hand as a harm reduction measure, the better, and we'll eventually save lives. So thank you, the Minister for this.

Thank you, Member. Any further comments? Does the committee agree that there are no further general comments? We can proceed to the clause-by-clause review of the bill.

Committee, we will defer the bill number and title until after consideration of the clauses. Please turn to page 1 of the bill. Clause 1, does committee agree?

---Clauses 1 through 8 inclusive approved

Committee, to the bill as a whole, does the committee agree that Bill 31, an Act to Amend the Pharmacy Act, is now ready for third reading.

Thank you, committee. Does the committee agree that this concludes our consideration of Bill 31, an Act to Amend the Pharmacy Act?

Thank you.

---Carried

Thank you, Minister, and thank you to your witnesses. Sergeant-at-Arms, please escort the witnesses from the Chamber.

Committee, we have agreed to consider Bill 32, an Act to Amend the Northern Employees Benefit Service Pension Plan Act. I'll ask the Minister of Finance to introduce the bill.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I am here to present Bill 32, an Act to Amend the Northern Employee Benefits Services Pension Plan Act .

The Northern Employee Benefits Pension Services Pension Plan Act, or NEBS, is a defined benefit pension plan that operates in both the Northwest Territories and Nunavut. NEBS provides pension services for municipal, local housing authority, and non-profit sectors in both jurisdictions. In 2015, each jurisdiction adopted mirror legislation to formally establish the pension plan.

The NEBS pension plan has been in existence, in one form or another, for over 40 years. Broadly speaking, NEBS pension plan is self-regulating, meaning government provides minimal oversight of the day-to-day operations of the pension plan, and the pension plan is administered by the NEBS Pension Committee for the benefit of plan Members.

This bill is intended to address administrative and regulatory issues that have arisen since the act was proclaimed and to ensure that the legislative framework will support continued growth and management of the NEBS pension plan.

The proposed amendments to the act were developed through an extensive collaborative process involving both the NEBS Board of Directors and the Government of Nunavut.

The proposed amendments under Bill 32 involve four distinct changes:

• First, redefine and name the pension committee as the legal authority responsible for operation and management of the NEBS pension plan;
• Second, changes to the composition of the pension committee to provide more flexibility with respect to the number of Members representing, first, the interest of employers and, second, the interests of individual plan members;
• Third, an expansion of the power that the pension committee has with respect to implementing policies and procedures required for proper administration of the pension plan. The Minister responsible for the Act will also receive a new power to regulate the scope and reach of the proposed new policies and procedures; and,.
• Fourth, a new regulatory power will be provided to the Minister responsible for the Act to approve temporary measures necessary to permit a timely response to a crisis or emergency that could imperil the financial standing of the pension plan and negatively affect the benefit security of its members.

This proposed new power is based on similar provisions contained in the federal Pension Benefits Standards Act.

Finally, these proposed amendments to the Northern Employee Benefits Services Pension Plan Act will not require any consequential amendments to any other GNWT statutes. That concludes my opening remarks, Madam Chair. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister. Would you like to bring witnesses into the Chamber? Sergeant-at-Arms, please escort the witnesses to the Chamber.

Minister, please introduce your witnesses.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, on the left Deputy Minister, Department of Finance, Bill MacKay. And on the right are legislative drafter, I believe, Sherry Giroque although I guess -- yes, she's nodding at me.. I didn't have her title with me, I apologize.

Sorry. Could you repeat the last name.