Money bills and a ‘how’ mandate: Premier previews winter legislative sitting
Capital budget, 3 spending bills in plans as MLAs reconvene in Iqaluit
Nunavut Premier John Main, seen speaking to reporters in November, says the government needs to be “wise” with public dollars but “bold” with spending on community infrastructure. (File photo by Arty Sarkisian)
Premier John Main is staying tight-lipped on which projects his government plans to fund and how much spending will be included in the territory’s new capital budget for the fiscal year starting April 1, 2026.
But when Main, in his other role as finance minister, tables his capital budget bill in the legislative assembly Friday — outlining plans for spending on construction, renovations and equipment purchases — Nunavummiut will see a mix of new and previously announced projects.
“Our intention is to be wise with public dollars in terms of expending it on infrastructure, but also to be bold and to make sure that we’re investing where it’s needed most,” he said in an interview.
The tabling of the capital budget is a primary focus for Main as MLAs reconvene for their winter sitting, which starts Thursday and runs until March 19.
Some areas where Nunavummiut and MLAs have called for improvements, he said, include schools, health centres, power generation, airports and water treatment.
The capital budget is one of two spending plans the Government of Nunavut will unveil this year.
Typically, the capital plan for the coming year is tabled when MLAs meet in the fall sitting. However, territorial elections last October shifted the schedule.
As a result, Nunavut’s new operations and maintenance budget covering salaries and the day-to-day costs of running the government is also delayed. It won’t come until the spring sitting, scheduled to begin in May.
Additionally, Main said, there will be three “money” bills to consider. He declined to provide details before introducing them but said they would reflect operations and spending during the transition period between the previous government and the new one.
“Just because there was an election doesn’t mean the machinery of government and departments can stop,” he said.
“There will be a lot of reference to things that have happened just in the period leading up to and then since the election.”
When the winter sitting ends March 19, Nunavut Commissioner Eva Aariak is set to deliver her speech from the throne.
Also on that date, Main plans to table his government’s mandate document outlining its priorities, which he declined to delve into for now.
After spending time crafting it with fellow MLAs and Inuit organizations, Main said his hope is that it will “serve Nunavummiut well.”
There’s no “shortage of issues” in Nunavut, he said, such as housing, health care and education. The question is how the government will address them.
“It’s easy to agree on housing, for example, as a priority. But once you start discussing how to make things better, that’s where I think there can be widely varying viewpoints on what the government’s role should be,” Main said.
“So the mandate will help to direct us, not just what we’re working on but how we’re getting things done.”
Inuit being led by inuit. NOT!
Colonialism rejuvenated after 25 years.
Sad, ain’t it?
It’s Nunavummiut being led by Nunavummiut, as it should be.
John main is an Inuk regardless what he looks like, he’s a true arviatmiut
No, not sad at all. Nunavummiut choosing other Nunavummiut. Utterly and completey unremarkable.
Valid observation, Jimmy. On another note, what do you think is the difference between an Inuit brain and a European brain?
I dont know yet if Main will be a good Premier or not, however he is not a transient and they are truly the ones we need to keep out of power. I have no doubts about his dedication and care for all Nunavumiut. Inuk and non-Inuk alike.
Hope he is a good Premier.
Now..lets let the government start by ,,,paving the runways in every Nunavut community where it needs ,,,cdn north planes are getting too small for passenger / cargo configurations , start and retain jet service in Nunavut and get with the times, put a competitor in the air to relieve the cost of flying to ….wait…..Canada from Nunavut. that’s it for now airports too you know .
If the heart is in the right place, right person for the job regardless of skin color…damn colonizers, get with the times, your brain is stuck in pre-historic times….better yet, you stay there and leave people alone and let them work.
Thank you, Premier Main, for commiting to a “how” mandate.
Let me suggest that the mandate should focus on where Nunavut will build capacity, how Nunavut will go about building that capacity, and what Nunavut will do to ensure we retain that capacity.
How will we train, hire, and retain more Inuktitut speaking teachers?
How will we train, hire, and retain construction workers in every community?
How will we train, hire, and retain Inuktitut speaking health care workers in every community?
How will we build the capacity to replace the southern consultants whom we currently pay hundreds of millions of dollars each year?
The last government left this government with a huge hole of deficit.
Has the media brought this to light? Im curious why our media have not discusses this with our Premier and how it can affect new projects to start or to be shelved.
pJ ran a huge deficit, over three hundred million in the hole, in a short period of time. I don’t get why this has not being discussed. It affects the GNs ability to start any new projects and kill any new or exciting projects.