Budget to be focus of winter legislative assembly sitting
Sitting begins Thursday; budget speech scheduled for Monday
Nunavut’s territorial budget will be the main focus of the winter sitting of the Nunavut legislative assembly, which begins Thursday in Iqaluit.
The sitting is scheduled for 11 business days from Feb. 22 to March 7, ending three days before the Arctic Winter Games begin in Alaska.
Government House Leader David Joanasie said in a statement the sitting will focus on the government’s main estimates for the 2024-25 fiscal year.
“The government plans to introduce four money bills this sitting,” Joanasie said.
“There are no government bills being introduced this sitting.”
The budget is to be tabled Monday afternoon when Finance Minister Lorne Kusugak delivers the budget address.
Arviat South MLA Joe Savikataaq, one of the deputy chairs of the committee of the whole, said in an interview that he and his fellow non-cabinet MLAs are keeping a close eye on the budget and will be eager to voice constituency concerns, despite not having much time to do so.
Savikataaq said he hopes the government will focus on measures to ease the cost of living in the territory.
“I know there’s a big push back now from Canada-wide about the carbon tax, and I think the government should be pushing more to try to get Nunavut exempt from all carbon tax as everything is really higher here,” Savikataaq said.
“I’m thankful right now that the federal government did exempt home heating fuel, so that’s helping out Nunavummiut right now.”
Savikataaq, who was premier from 2018 to 2021, expressed some frustration over what he said will be the “shortest winter sitting in Nunavut’s history.”
Savikataaq said that with all of Nunavut’s needs to be addressed, he’s “appalled” the government isn’t bringing any bills forward other than its budget bills.
“The length of the sitting is determined and dictated a lot by what the government brings forward in bills and other stuff it wants to do,” he said.
MLAs are elected to legislate, and setting a short sitting period means there’s less time for them to help their constituents, he said.
“We are more than halfway through this assembly and Nunavummiut need all the assistance they can get from this government,” Savikataaq said.
“All of the MLAs and ministers and the premier, we all ran to help Nunavummiut, and we should not forget why we ran.”
Joe and the other MLAs can introduce bills.
They can extend the sitting.
Nunavut always has a minority government.
The Regular MLAs are in control.
It’s up to them to decide to just complain, or to use their power to bring in the changes they know Nunavut needs.
They took down a Premier once. They have the power.
Time to take the cover off the sandbox and give the MLA’s their plastic shovels again.
Grandstand for a few days , Housing 3000 is turning into a debt monster, there will be a few sound bites, and everything will stay the same. Election in a year and a half,
😃 nothing gonna get done like always 🛑 wasting our money please
“There are no government bills being introduced this sitting.” Wow! really? Here they go to the 2024 Arctic Winter Games in Alaska! How nice!
Will the premier be there the entire AWG time with CGS minister. Personal free trip. Anyone know if either of them have family/friends at the games to watch.
To answer your question, yes he and his buddy were at White Horse awg For the entire time with family and friends. Thanks to GN money they will be treated from the beginning to the end again in Alaska. Why do you think their meeting this month is rushed.? They need time to pack and do makeup to look good for numerous photo s and videos. 😢
Caren & Aatami think Pauloosie is God sent so they will never remove so they have no choice until new members take over. Looking forward to that as we need to start seeing real work rather than wasting time traveling and having photo ops.