Seven things to know about the Nunavut legislature’s spring sitting

Busy since May 22, the Nunavut legislature now calms down: the next sitting open to the public doesn’t take place until Oct. 23. (PHOTO BY JANE GEORGE)

The spring sitting of the Nunavut legislature wrapped up on June 14—and if you live in Nunavut, unless you had your head in a melting snowbank, you know that the MLAs ended this sitting with a series of unprecedented actions.

Here is a brief recap of the top highlights of this sitting, which started May 22 and ended with the swearing-in of the territory’s new premier, Joe Savikataaq:

1. The MLAs overturned the government of former premier Paul Quassa, with the following actions:

• June 12: a notice of motion for the removal of Paul Quassa, MLA for Aggu from his role as premier.

• June 14: the passing of this motion in the house.

• June 14: a leadership forum that resulted in a new premier for the territory, its fifth, Joe Savikataaq, and the return of Iqaluit–Tasiluk MLA George Hickes to cabinet.

• June 15: the naming of a new cabinet.

2. The MLAs did their business as lawmakers and approved the government’s $166-million operations and maintenance budget. That part of the territorial budget, tabled May 28, anticipates that the Government of Nunavut will receive about $2.2 billion in revenues.

They approved these expenditures with Bill 4’s assent—the final step in making a bill into law. This bill authorized the GN to make about $166-million operations and maintenance expenditures for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2019.

They also passed Bill 5, which approved supplementary appropriations of roughly $129 million to defray the capital expenditures of the GN for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2019.

3. The MLAs passed other new laws:

• Bill 6, which amended various statutes to change the designation of “senior judge” to “chief justice” in Nunavut.

• Bill 3, which amended several Acts to regulate the usage and transport of cannabis, and made a number of clarifications with respect to the term “drug,” in response to the legalization of non-medical cannabis being contemplated by Parliament.

• Bill 7, on the regulation of cannabis following the legalization of non-medical cannabis being contemplated by Parliament.

MLAs didn’t get to Bill 1, the Corrections Act, but they did table many documents, ranging from the Office of the Chief Coroner of Nunavut’s “Recommendations to Prevent Domestic Violence-Related Deaths” to a feasibility study on water treatment infrastructure in Rankin Inlet.

4. The MLAs raised social issues, repeatedly, in the assembly chamber, and called for the government to take action on mental health and addictions, domestic violence, and sex abuse, with an MLA releasing a coroner’s report on deaths from domestic violence that had not been given to the public before and MLAs asking the government to deal with the high rate of child sexual abuse in Nunavut.

5. The MLAs finally talked about energy, including the new carbon tax, by which the Nunavut government could rake in $15 million next year (although, by 2022, the federal carbon tax will extract $11 million from Nunavut household income) and they learned that the cabinet had rejected a uniform power rate structure for the territory, but would raise power rates by 6.6 per cent over the next two years.

6. The MLAs looked at how Nunavut should spend money: they complained about the $500,000-plus spent by the GN to attend this year’s Northern Lights Conference and Trade Show in Ottawa and about the promise of government support that was withheld from the Grays Bay Road and Port project and the Kugluktuk Elders Facility project.

7. The MLAs started to lobby for their infrastructure needs, such as how to provide clean water to Rankin Inlet and Sanikiluaq.

The legislature will hold its fall sitting from Oct. 23 to Nov. 8. That’s when the MLAs will look at the 2019-20 capital estimates for infrastructure and other business.