Child care, hydro expansion among federal budget highlights for Yukoners
The latest federal budget is getting praise from some Yukoners, especially when it comes to child care, the environment and hydro projects.
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Posted: Apr 21, 2021 7:00 AM CT | Last Updated: April 21 We need to ensure that there is quality and good daycare for families that choose to have two parents working, said Kristina Craig, executive director of the Yukon Anti-Poverty Coalition.(Mike Rudyk/CBC)
Panel recommends bold, transformative overhaul of Yukon mining industry
Yukon s mining regime needs a major overhaul, according to the final report from an independent panel appointed by the territorial government. The Mineral Development Strategy report was released Thursday.
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Posted: Apr 16, 2021 11:34 AM CT | Last Updated: April 16
A mining claim in Dawson City, Yukon. An independent panel appointed by the Yukon government says it s time for new mining laws in the territory to ensure the industry is sustainable and benefits local communities.(Julie Landry/Radio-Canada)
Yukon s mining regime needs a major overhaul, according to the final report from an independent panel appointed by the territorial government.
If you ignored the face masks for a moment, you could stroll through any of the larger communities in the North and almost imagine that the COVID-19 pandemic hadn’t really happened. People would give you a wider berth as you passed on the sidewalk, and you might notice a stronger sense of “buy local” among the shoppers in the stores you visit. But people would be out and about. The streets would be busy, much as they were before the pandemic. Almost.
Indeed, a superficial scan of the data suggests that the territories are coming through one of their most challenging years in decades beaten, but not broken. Nunavut and the Yukon both recorded positive, albeit weak, GDP growth in 2020 1.8 per cent and 2.9 per cent respectively, according to Conference Board of Canada projections but they were the only two jurisdictions in Canada to do so. The NWT suffered more, seeing economic growth contract 7.6 per cent according to the conference board. But the loss is tempered by expectation
It calls for rewriting both the Quartz Mining Act and the Yukon Placer Mining Act.
The strategy recommends a much greater role in oversight of the industry by Yukon First Nations, and greater procurement opportunities for First Nations. It recommends greater opportunities for First Nations to gain equity in mining projects.
It suggests an overhaul of the collection resource revenue royalties.
The strategy recommends the promotion of mining in the territory be transferred from the Department of Energy, Mines and Resources to Economic Development to eliminate any perception of conflict of interest.
It recommends greater efforts in the classroom to educate Yukoners on the benefits of mining, to offset the negative legacies left behind by the industry in the past.