Thank you. Member.

Thank you. No, it will not.

Thank you. Member for Frame Lake.

Okay. How come it did last time? Is it crafted differently this time? What's the difference here, and -- thanks, Madam la Presidente.

Thank you.

Madam Chair, I will have the clerk explain.

Thank you.

Thank you. Member for Frame Lake.

Yeah, no, okay. I appreciate that explanation. So it was really outside of the legislation. That was something that the Department of Finance of the day decided to do. So okay, I accept that. And thanks, Madam Chair.

Thank you. Are there any further general comments on Bill 73? Oh, yes, Member for Hay River North.

Thank you, Madam Chair. So there is actually an independent commission to review Members' compensation and benefits. It is required to be established under the Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act. It's appointed with individuals who are independent, neutral, and knowledgeable according to the legislation, and that commission is supposed to review and make recommendations about Members' compensation. That's because nobody wants politicians deciding what they get paid. This bill is to adjust the indemnities and allowances for Members. So despite the fact that this Act contains a requirement to have a commission to determine our -- or to make recommendations that, you know, hopefully we accept about indemnities, we are going ahead and adjusting them -- proposing to adjust them on our own. I think that's concerning in and of itself. So I just want to point that out so people are aware that we are taking a strange approach. And I admit that these are strange times with inflation what it is, but I'm not sure if -- I just want the public to be aware that this is the situation. So thank you.

Thank you. Are there any other general comments under -- on Bill 73? Does committee agree that there are no further general comments? Can we proceed to a 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?

Member for -- that's -- that's clause 2. Oh, okay, sorry. Clause 1, does committee agree?

Clause 2, does committee agree? Member for Hay River South.

The motion is in order. To the motion. Member for Hay River South.

Thank you. Thank you, Madam Chair. Basically what this amendment does is to freeze the wages or freeze the indemnity for this year until 2024, and there would be no increase. And I guess the reason that I brought the amendment forward is that you just -- you know, not too many minutes ago, we talked about how hard it is for people to survive in the Northwest Territories because of wages and the cost of living. And, you know, we've got to, you know, walk the talk as well. And, you know, as a politician, when I decided to, you know, to put my name forward, it wasn't about the money; it was about doing something for the people and being able to lead and being able to, you know, show them that, you know, why we are here and that's to stand beside them during good times and during tough times. And right now times are tough. So I would like to see -- again, I would like to see the wages -- or the indemnities stay the same, remain the same. And if this amendment does get -- you know, if it gets voted down, what I would be doing, I guess, with any increase, is probably -- what I would be doing is donating it back to -- or to the ski club in Hay River, the portion of the increase because, you know, we talk about NGOs and how they're suffering. So I think that it would only be the wise move for me. And I would encourage other MLAs to do the same. Thank you.

Thank you. To the motion. Member for Frame Lake.

Yeah, thanks, Madam Chair. I guess I want to start by saying that I have the greatest respect for my colleague from Hay River South, and I do believe that he brings forward this motion with, you know, integrity and the greatest, you know, intention of trying to show leadership and do the right thing. And I do commend him for doing that. And I appreciate all the work that he does for his constituents and so on. But I respectfully disagree. I think there are others that will use this as a reason to say -- I think it feeds into a narrative that, you know, politicians are paid too much, work too little, and are really expendable. And I think others believe that honestly. And we probably all have constituents like that. So I don't want to feed into that narrative, quite frankly. I think we all work very hard here. And, you know, I'm probably not the only MLA that is not doing this for the money because if I wanted more money, I would have gone back to my old job. So I -- but I don't want to feed into that narrative. And we did this in the last Assembly. I think it was the wrong thing to do as well. And in retrospect I don't think I would have done it.

And I think it's also a very delicate time for our government, you know, now that we're into negotiations with Union of Northern Workers, and I think that this bill in general and this amendment will be seen by some as interfering with the collective bargaining process. So for those reasons, Madam Chair -- well, and my colleague across the aisle, the Member for Hay River North, also said that, you know, it's a no winner for politicians. Whatever we decide to try to reopen discussion or debate around their own salary and remuneration, and I don't think we should be doing this, period. But -- and I'll be voting against whatever the outcome is unless my next amendment passes. But in any event, yeah, I want to commend my colleague for bringing this forward, and I think -- I do respect what he does, all the work that he does for his constituents. But I think that this does play into others' narratives around politicians not being very useful or helpful. So I won't be supporting the motion. Thanks, Madam Chair.