Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act  Mr. Speaker, I want to point out first of all that the Beaufort Sea was not included in the devolution agreement. It was a real frustration to the Government of the Northwest Territories of the day that this one key component that would generate revenues was not included. The Nor

Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act  Mr. Speaker, I will be splitting my time with the member for Glengarry—Prescott—Russell. I am very proud to join my colleagues to speak in full support of Bill C-88 today. The Prime Minister stated that no relationship is more important to our government and Canada than the one

Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act  Mr. Speaker, I would like to correct the member on his comment regarding the sets of negotiations going on in the Northwest Territories. We currently have 10 sets of negotiations going on. Some of them are fairly small. They are community self-governing negotiations. However, at

Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act  Mr. Speaker, in the member's statement, she talked about the self-economy for the north. I find it interesting, because the Beaufort Sea was not included in the devolution agreement, neither was the Norman Wells oil field. These are two economic drivers that could certainly cont

Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act  Mr. Speaker, I remember when the decision was made many years ago. The leaders from the Northwest Territories were outraged. The Tlicho chiefs were very upset. The grand chief of the day, Eddie Erasmus, said, “We are Canada’s treaty partner. We thought the days of the government

Natural Resources  Mr. Speaker, far too many northern Canadians are energy insecure. Most communities in the Northwest Territories rely on diesel as their primary energy source, and several use diesel as a backup source for other aging energy infrastructure. Energy generation is both a significan

Northwest Territories Municipal Elections  Mr. Speaker, many places across Canada held their municipal elections for mayor and council in the past couple of weeks, just as we did in my riding of Northwest Territories. I want to express my gratitude for all those who put their names forward to represent their neighbours an

Orange Shirt Day  Mr. Speaker, this Sunday, September 30, we mark the annual commemoration of Orange Shirt Day. It started in 2013 when participants wore orange to commemorate survivors and raise awareness of the tragic legacy of Indian residential schools. This day was inspired by the story of a

National Defence Act  Mr. Speaker, the bill proposes the introduction of a victim liaison officer. Could the parliamentary secretary tell us what the role of the victim liaison officer would be to ensure that no victim is left behind?

Biosphere Reserves  Mr. Speaker, this afternoon, I am pleased to be co-hosting, with members from all parties, a reception on the Hill recognizing Canada's 18 UNESCO biosphere reserves. These 18 biosphere reserves have the distinction of including both some of the most pristine ecosystems in our cou

National Indigenous History Month  Mr. Speaker, I would like to invite members of the House, and all Canadians, to join me in celebrating National Indigenous History Month, beginning June 1st. This is a great opportunity to learn about the culture, traditions, and contributions of first nations, Inuit, and Métis i

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, it was a huge moment when we had our former prime minister apologize to the people who went to residential schools. It went a long way in acknowledging that there was a wrongdoing. However, although the principles behind the residential schools were established by th

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, as I indicated earlier, I had mixed feelings about speaking to this motion and all of us in the House of Commons passing a motion to call on the Pope to issue an apology, because forcing someone to apologize does not really sit well with me. However, I think it is im

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I will be splitting my time with the member for Ville-Marie—Le Sud-Ouest—Île-des-Soeurs. I was a little reluctant to stand up today to speak to this motion. However, I felt it was my responsibility as an indigenous member of Parliament to talk about this very impor

Natural Resources  Mr. Speaker, our government believes that a sustainably developed resource sector is essential to the success of the Canadian economy. Getting this right requires us to work with indigenous peoples as equal partners through well-defined, predictable processes, like we do through