It's only my third, I thought, Mr. Chairman. Anyway, my final question. I would like to ask both the candidates what do they see as their two or three priorities, both on a short-term basis that has to be done within the next six months and of a long-term basis that has to be carried out during the mandate of this Assembly. Thank you.

Mr. Morin.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I think one of the main priorities that we have facing us within the next week is our ability to get together and ability to set the direction of the new government. We have to do that and we have to do it fairly fast so that we know -- we as a Cabinet or Premier -- know what direction you guys want to go. It has to be very clear that we know what parameters we can move inso that we know what's likeable or a solution to some of our problems so that we can go and prepare a budget to present to this Legislative Assembly inthe winter months. That's very key and that would be the main priority: set the direction, then let's get down and get to work. Thank you.

Thank you. Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you. Mr. Arlooktoo followed by Mr. Roland and Mr. Barnabas. Mr. Arlooktoo.

(Translation) Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I was pleased to see the two candidates' strong endorsement of the need to move towards implementing Nunavut according to the timetable set out in the Nunavut Ad.. I believe that the Government of the Northwest Territories must send a strong signal to the federal government and to the Government of the NWT bureaucrats that our government is firmly committed to preparing for division based on the April 1999 timetable and that we will do our part to be ready to implement division in a timely manner as our people expect.

However, my questions have to do with housing. Drastic increases in social housing rents were implemented last year in my constituency. While campaigning, I learned from many of my constituents in social housing that they are facing real hardships in dealing with sometimes sharp rent increases in areas where the cost of living is already very high. People with middle incomes are finding it easier to quit their jobs and go on social assistance where the rent charged is much lower. Every time they make a little more money, they feel they are being punished. My question to both candidates is whether they will be committed as Premier to a thorough evaluation and review of the full impact, both positive and negative, of the new social housing rent scale?

Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you. Mr. Morin.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The new rent scale and consultation process was changed in the previous Assembly and it was made very clear to Members at that time the consequences of not changing the rent scale. First off, with the Housing Corporation what we did as a government was to develop a whole new range of home ownership programs so that people had home ownership programs to go to and those high-income people that did live in public housing were encouraged to apply for home ownership programs and thus free up the public housing units for our low-income people. That's approximately 3600 people on the waiting list in the Northwest Territories. That's the way it was done.

Through the Special Committee on Housing, we did go out and consult with all the communities inthe Northwest Territories as well as regional consultation and then it came to the Special Committee on Housing. Every recommendation came to that committee with the dollars attached to it. We had all the information there and that's how we based our decisions, on the information available. We could have sat back and done nothing and that would have cost us, I believe, around $11 million total as a cut in our O and M money from the federal government. Not only do we lose that $11 million, we'd have to find another $11 million to replace it. That's the reason that was done.

What I liked so much about the whole process was that now we do have a process in place where people drive the policy making of this government, the actual people from the community level. That is an ongoing process so the process is open to look at any policy within the Housing Corporation and it's to be reviewed every year and the policies are to be changed and adapted. If there's a problem with the policy, then it's our job as Members of the Legislative Assembly to change it. As long as we know the consequences of that change and what it costs. The policy is open for review because the process is in place already to do that. Thank you.

Thank you. Mr. Arlooktoo, your second question.

Thank you. My final question is for both candidates again and has to do with housing, but in this case, staff housing. I would like to ask the candidates if they're aware of the enormous hardships that are being felt by teachers, nurses and, in some cases, public servants who are living in remote communities, especially in the Baffin and probably in other regions of Nunavut, who have been hit by sizeable rent increases in the last couple of years and have seen the cash that they take home reduced to almost nil? I would like to ask them what they are prepared to do about these situations as they have caused a decline in public service morale and, as I understand it, difficulty in recruiting and to a point where public servants are doubling up in housing.

Mr. Morin.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I am well aware of that. We lost an excellent teacher in my community of Lutsel K'e because the rent got too high for her to afford and she was basically taking home clear, every two weeks, a hundred and twenty-some dollars after the rent. The cost of living in Lutsel K'e is the second highest cost of living in the Northwest Territories. Only Pelly Bay has a higher cost of living. So I am well aware of that issue, and I have raised it before. It should be raised.

My understanding of the new staff housing rent policy is that you are not too bad off if you are around the $20,000 mark, if that is your wage, and you're not too bad at $20,000 to $25,000, and if you're over $45,000, it's not bad, but there is a group in the middle that it seems to affect most. So that was supposed to be looked at, and I don't know if they have finished looking at that yet or not. But ultimately, in four years, if you leave the rent scale the way it is, that same group will be affected, so we have to look at that and see how we can make it better. Thank you.

Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you. Mr. Roland.

Thank you. Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you. Mr. Morin.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Decentralization has got to benefit the people at the community level. That is the bottom line. If we are going to decentralize to the regions, it ultimately has to end up at the community so the communities can control their own programs. If we get a better bang for our buck by doing that, then we should do it and we should continue to do it. Ultimately that is the key for us as Members of this Assembly, how we can get the dollar from this level to the community level in the smoothest and the most effective way. Thank you.

Thank you. Your second question, Mr. Roland.