Sorry, just chatting about housing, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, I move that the chair rise and report progress.

Mahsi. There's a motion on the floor to report progress. The motion is in order and non-debatable. All those in favour? It's unanimous. Motion is carried.

---Carried

I will now rise and report progress.

---SHORT RECESS

May I have the report for Committee of the Whole. Member for Deh Cho.

Madam Speaker, your committee has been considering Bill 23, Bill 29, Minister's Statement 264-19(2), Tabled Document 681-19(2), Tabled Document 694-19(2), and would like to report progress. And Madam Speaker, I move that the report of the Committee of the Whole be concurred with. Mahsi.

Thank you. Do I have a seconder? Member for Yellowknife North. All those in favour? All those opposed? Abstentions? The motion's carried.

---Carried

Third reading of bills. Minister of Finance.

Madam Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, that Bill 71, Appropriation Act (Infrastructure Expenditures), 2023-2024, be read for the third time. And Madam Speaker, I would request a recorded vote.

The motion is in order. To the motion. Member for Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. When the capital budget was first introduced, I had a number of requests that would require my vote, and they were the same requests I've made for repeated years. They're largely ones of information, Madam Speaker. I do appreciate the Minister's new approach to passing more realistic capital budgets. I was informed today we may or may not have an asset management plan; it's certainly something I've never seen. But I'd like to go through what I would expect to be in a capital budget, and it would largely be an asset management plan.

The first question would be, what do you own? There is no public listing of what GNWT current assets we own. The second question required in an asset management plan is, what is it worth? The tangible capital assets in the public accounts put it at about $3.6 billion but we know many of our assets have amortized to zero net book value. I think if you took the modern replacement value of all of our assets, we're in 10, $20 billion territory. We know that the power corp does have an asset management plan, and it is a very, very terrifying number, the costs that they need to replace their assets. But that's not public information for the GNWT.

What is the condition of our assets? I know the department does, you know, both on our vertical and our horizontal inspections, but we also know that our deferred maintenance backlog is in the tens of millions of dollars behind. And I think it's generally fair to say that the condition of all of our infrastructure is in poor shape.

What needs to be done? This is the next question in the asset management plan, and this is a bit of a prioritizing. What is the immediate things, what are things not in compliance with building codes? That's not public information.

What do you need to do it? This is a question not just about money; it's about, you know, do we have the specialties, do we have the staff, and we know we've kind of landed on this $250 million a year figure that that's about the capacity of this territory to deliver capital. And so it should inform all of our next 20, 30 years of planning. I don't think the labour shortage for skilled trades is going to get any better any time soon. So that has to figure into our decision-making.

How much will it actually cost? This is both an operations and maintenance, a deferred maintenance, and a replacement cost question.

And lastly, how will we pay for it?

All of this information should be contained in any asset management plan. These are the questions we require all of our municipalities to answer before they are provided with money. It is not something the GNWT states publicly. And I think, you know, recently I heard a power corp official describe the increasing rate increases the risk of a death spiral. And what happens is if those rates go much higher, they're going to lose customers and then they're not going to have the money to replace their very aging hydro infrastructure let alone the hundreds of kilometres of transmission lines and new infrastructure they are planning to build.

We've heard repeatedly in this House the state of our housing corp infrastructure. They know that their capital is way behind, definitely in need of maintenance. If we are ever going to actually address the housing crisis, we know it's at least a billion dollars; I have heard the president of the housing corp say. MTS repeatedly states that their entire fleet is aging out; it is in need of replacement. I'll note during this process, the power corp, we get zero information of that. It's not included in our capital budgeting process. I get that but I think it would be helpful to include the power corp as an information item just as we do housing corp, similar for MTS.

You know, there's no public reporting on the states of our roads and bridges. I know we do inspections of them. I know we're spending hundreds of millions of dollars to both replace current bridges that are well outdated and to build some very, very significant new bridges. All of this information I think exists in different places in the GNWT, but it's not coherently presented. All we get is this one-time snapshot that doesn't even show me what has actually been spent. It doesn't show me what's being spent in future years.

I know there's this debate about whether I can get the information publicly about what a project is projected to cost before tendering. But nowhere do we actually publish what the final cost of any projects were. That's information I had to repeatedly ask for on the floor of this House. Nowhere did we find out whether those projects are actually on time and on budget. We've seen what the Fort Good Hope seniors complex, as an example; that it fell off the budget years ago but is in nowhere complete, nowhere on time, and nowhere on budget. I think some sort of regular reporting of whether we are actually delivering this $250 million we are about to pass is actually going to get built and what's going to occur with it.

We know there have been years and years of delays, and there is a variety of reasons for what those delays are. But I think that all needs to be publicly recorded and it needs to be included when the Cabinet comes forward and asks for hundreds of millions of dollars in new spending. Those questions need to be answered, and they need to be answered publicly. For that reason and those reasons, I won't be in favour of this capital budget. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Thank you. To the motion. Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.

Thank you. To the motion. Member for Great Slave.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, I do agree a lot with both what my colleagues have said so far about the capital estimates.

When I look at our budgets and the way things have changed and the supplement -- the appropriation acts that are coming through, I see a lot of missed opportunity. I think that over the last several years we've lagged on projects that could have kept a lot of our Northwest Territories businesses going. Just the amount of money that we're now not spending and are moving into future years I think speaks volumes to that. Unfortunately, I don't think the GNWT is able to execute projects in a timely or cost-effective manner. And as such, then I do echo the comments of my colleague from Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh, that rather than spending more money on the government bloat and the administrative glut, that we put that money into the hands of Indigenous governments going forward and Indigenous organizations and allow them to take on their own projects, empower them to do their own work. And, you know, I have to say I think the GNWT has failed over the last several years to keep our economy going with capital spending. And as such, it's time to give the Indigenous governments a shot at it. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

To the motion.

Question has been called. The Minister of Finance has requested a recorded vote. All those in favour, please rise.

All those opposed, please rise.

All those abstaining, please rise.

The results of the recorded vote is 13 in favour, one opposed, and one abstention. The motion is carried. Bill 71 has had third reading.

---Carried

Third reading of bills.

Members, I will ask you to now close your laptops and phones down. Mr. Clerk, will you ascertain if the Commissioner of the Northwest Territories, the honourable Margaret Thom, is prepared to enter the Chamber and assent to the bills.

You may be seated. Members, on behalf of the House, I thank the Commissioner, the Honourable Margaret M., Thom, for being here today. It is always a pleasure to have her in the chamber.

I'd like to thank the pages who have been with us for this sitting. It is wonderful to see our youth with us in the chamber. I hope you have learned a little about how our unique form of consensus and how it works, and that you will stay interested in the Legislative Assembly where your representatives make decisions that will affect your lives now and in the future. Please keep up the good work.

I'd like to also encourage all our pages and all of our youth throughout the territory to learn about our Youth Parliament Program. Each year we host students in grade 9 to 10 from across the territory and hold a model session here. They have the opportunity to speak to and debate issues of importance. If you think you would be interested in the youth parliament, I encourage you to apply.

Thank you also to the interpreters who have joined us for this sitting and put up with us and our fast talking. Our languages are vital to our cultures and we honour our official languages by using them. The interpreters make this possible for us.

Members, I finally want to take a moment to thank our long-serving Sergeant-at-Arms, Mr. Brian Thagard. We don't typically acknowledge our staff for their vital contributions to our successes; however, this is the last sitting of the Assembly before his upcoming and well-deserved retirement. So today I am making an exception to recognize Mr. Thagard for his hard work and dedication. Mr. Thagard has had a 32-year career with the Government of the Northwest Territories, and for the past 18 years he has served this institution as our Sergeant-at-Arms, making him the longest currently serving Sergeant-at-Arms in Canada.

---Applause

I know he doesn't like limelight. His greatest satisfaction is keeping the lights on, as he would say, so I will keep this short.

As Sergeant-at-Arms, Mr. Thagard has helped run a wonderful page program, bringing in youth from across the territory and giving them an experience that otherwise would not be available to them. He was also integral in setting up our direct-to-home broadcasting system, including appearing at the CRTC hearings in support of our application to have our proceedings designated as a must-carry channel on direct-to-home satellite television throughout the territory. As Sergeant-at-Arms, Mr. Thagard has overseen the security, operations, and improvements to the Legislative Assembly building for nearly two decades. We consider this building to be a place of the people, and we see the philosophy throughout the work of Mr. Thagard and his team. The improvements he has overseen to improve both accessibility and security in this building are a great example of how he has been able to strike the necessary balance between running a safe and secure Legislative Assembly building while ensuring that the building and our proceedings remain open and accessible to the public.

Brian, you have been a part of this Assembly for so long that most of us cannot remember or imagine this place without your dedication and leadership. While I know that we have recommended the appointment of a very capable successor, we know that you will be missed. On behalf of this institution, I wish you and your wife Patrizia the very best in the next stages of your life. Brian, the world is your oyster; make the best of every day.

Members, next Friday, November 11th, is Remembrance Day, and I encourage each of you, and all Northerners, to take some time to reflect upon and honour those who have served this country in the Canadian Armed Forces. These brave men and women dedicated, and in some cases gave their lives, to fight for our country and to make a better future for each of us. In these troubled times, their service and sacrifice are deserving of our gratitude more than ever. Members, please join me in thanking our veterans and serving members of our armed forces.

---Applause

Members, although this House will not sit again until the new year, we will remain busy. Our days will be filled with ongoing business of committees and government and our most important work serving our constituents. It's still a few weeks away, but as we enter the upcoming holiday season, I ask that you take some time to reflect upon what this season means to you. I also remind you to take the time to celebrate with your family and friends. Let them know how much they mean to you and how much you value their love and support and show them that they are appreciated.

This is the time of year can be difficult for many people. If you find yourself having a difficult time, please reach out. There are many people who care about you and who are willing to help you in any way they can. If somebody else is having a hard time or you believe that they may be, please make a point of checking on them. As Northerners, we help each other, we support each other, and we rely on each other. As we celebrate the holidays, please remember to do so safely. Travel safely on our roads and on the land. Thank you, colleagues.

I'd also like to take the time to -- this is Jennifer Franki-Smith, our clerk's last day in the House as when we return in February, she'll not be here and she may not be back. And we may see her if some of us get back in here in the next term. Hopefully she comes right back.

So orders of the day, Madam Clerk.