As always I am very impressed by her passion for the topics we discuss in the House of Commons.

I think she presented some good arguments today in support of dividing this bill in two parts so that we can better examine it.

Does she think there is a chance the government will agree to this proposal?

Ève Péclet: Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her question. I also admire her intelligence and her luminous spirit, which brightens up the House of Commons.

I would like to say that I believe in the Conservatives’ goodwill, that I believe the Minister of Health and Minister for the Arctic Council when she says that they will look after Canada’s north.

I would like to believe that, but unfortunately, we have been quite disappointed over the past two years. That is why it is important for all MPs to rise today to tell the government that enough is enough and we must work together for Canada’s north.

This bill must be split in two. So we must continue to call on the government here in the House to listen to what our democratic institutions want and also what Canadians want.

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Elizabeth May : Mr. Speaker, my comment for the hon. member for Thunder Bay—Rainy River is in absolute support of what he has just said.

I had the pleasure, and it was a pleasure, of working for the then Minister of the Environment from 1986 to 1988 and putting legislation forward as part of a majority government, putting forward legislation to committees where we welcomed changes. As an example, the Canadian Environmental Protection Act was put forward without a priority substances list. The idea of a priority substances list came from an opposition member of Parliament on a parliamentary committee for environment. My boss, the Minister of the Environment, Tom McMillan, saw that it would be a benefit and would improve the act. This was a normal occurrence.

Parliamentary committees studying legislation used to be essentially non-politicized zones. We went in there, set our partisanship at the door and worked to make a better bill. I mourn that this is lost now. The comments that the member is making on this specific bill apply to every piece of legislation we have seen go through this House. Every piece of legislation in this place is treated as though accepting a single amendment to any government bill is a political defeat that the administration today will not tolerate. That is an offence to democracy, and I appreciate the member’s mentioning it.

John Rafferty: Speaker, I appreciate the member’s comments. She is absolutely right. That is the feeling that we in the opposition get in committee. We know that these are worthwhile amendments and we wonder why the Conservatives consider that it would be some sort of defeat if they were to accept any of them. Perhaps the Ottawa bubble syndrome causes them to think that for some reason they would lose votes.

I do not know what they are thinking, but the thinking should be that we go through all of the controls to make sure that we come forward with the best legislation possible.

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This week the Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development met to discuss Bill C-47, and Supplementary Estimates (B) 2012-2013.  Bill C-47 is an act to enhance the Nunavut Planning and Project Assessment Act, and the Northwest Territories Surface Rights Board Act, and to make related and consequential amendments to other Acts.  The Committee met late on Monday due to a vote in the house, and unfortunately the meeting was cut short and some of the witnesses could not be questioned due to the vote. The Committee did hear from the Minister, the Department of Justice, and the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs.  There was a focus on the exact breakdowns of the new supplementary estimates, and exactly where the money would be going.  An emphasis was also placed on improving access to clean water on reserves, and the improvement of waste water systems. The witnesses from the Department of Justice and from the Department of Indian Affairs only gave an opening statement; the members were not able to question them due to time constraints.

The minutes from the meeting can be found here.

Wednesday December 5^th, 2012

The Committee met this Wednesday December 5^th, to discuss Bill C-47 in further detail. The meeting started an hour late due to another vote in the house. The meeting was only an hour rather than the regular two. The Minister was not able to make it to the meeting, however two representatives from the Nunavut government appeared to give opening statements concerning Bill C-47 (available here.)

The representatives from the Nunavut government emphasized the importance of Bill C-47 to the people of Nunavut, and emphasized the length of time it has taken to get this Bill completed and the need to have this piece of legislation passed.  During the meeting there was a distinct effort by the committee members to note that consultation with the community was extensive during this process of creating this legislation. The Nunavut Land Claims Act was mentioned multiple times during the meetings, information concerning this act can be found here.

Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. was also mentioned multiple times, and it was mentioned that they may provide some information at some point, information concerning this organization can be found here.

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