Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Let me begin with a simple question to the House: Raise your hands if anyone likes the idea of higher fuel prices. I didn't think so. I didn't think I'd see a one, Mr. Speaker. Yet today that's exactly what our people are faced with. They're forced to live with these prices as they skyrocket upwards. It's a burden felt at every single kitchen table, every small business, and let me tell you when they're facing the pumps, it doesn't matter if you live in Yellowknife, the Sahtu, or even in the Mackenzie Delta, everyone is feeling the pinch of the pump price, Mr. Speaker.

Now, just under a month ago, the federal government took action. What did they do? Well, there was a nationwide announcement that they'd have a fuel tax holiday of 10 cents per litre off gasoline and 4 cents off diesel. For families, now, Mr. Speaker, trying to stretch that dollar, that is real relief, Mr. Speaker, and it's been welcomed relief seeing what's going on. So across Canada we're seeing other leaders take action, whether it's the Premier of Manitoba or Ontario. It doesn't matter about your politics; they care about their people and they're showing it.

Mr. Speaker, it's time we look and step up. That's what the people are asking for. There's an uncomfortable truth, unfortunately, because this government isn't doing anything.

So let's start with first. What are they doing? Nothing.

Second of all, with respect to this, the hands have been tied.

So while our residents look for leadership of this government and not see it, I am saying we need to look within ourselves to find how do we unlock legislation that has been in place since 1997 that has frozen our tax rates on gasoline.

Mr. Speaker, I think about that. Nearly 30 years ago, almost a generation ago, wrote a law that stuck our gas prices into an Act, and we just can't change it if the times like this, where we're facing a modern crisis of affordability, and yet we can't do anything. Mr. Speaker, those rates are trapped in rigid legislation. We need to reflect and ask ourselves how do we get them into nimble regulations.

As families are facing these challenges, whether you're a truck driver going down the Mackenzie Valley Highway someday or maybe you're just a family trying to get by buying groceries here in Yellowknife, we're all facing these challenges of crisis.

The seed of opportunity here, Mr. Speaker, is this government could do something. It could pivot very quick. It could move and move that locked-in gas fuel tax rate into regulations, and we could be helping people. Mr. Speaker, as my time dwindles away, I will have questions for the Minister during oral question period. Thank you.