Thank you, Mr. Chairman, colleagues, ladies and gentlemen that may be in the gallery, people of the Northwest Territories that may be watching and members of the press that are here today. I want to first of all congratulate our Premier-elect, Mr. Antoine. Congratulations, well done. All of us, I am sure, will support you heartily. I want to also give my sincere compliments to Mr. Kakfwi for the initiative to provide an interesting and very competitive race. I would also like to thank Mr. O'Brien for his expression of confidence in me, by putting my name forward as a Member of the Cabinet of the Northwest Territories. People have asked me if I would put my name forward, they were supportive. I have had support from my family. It has been a difficult question, Mr. Chairman, because it does require a tremendous commitment which I think all of us realize. We have been here some time, but I appreciate the support given to me by those who were interested in putting my name forward and encouraging me to run. Whatever happens at the end of the day, I am confident that we will all work together and move forward in this territory.
As we all know, Cabinet is teamwork. Each person must contribute to the ultimate goal of service to the people and the benefit to the people of the Northwest Territories. A Cabinet Minister must also be an individual, an individual who is strong and who can stand on his, or her, own two feet and be independent enough to deal with the many tough issues that Cabinet Ministers have to deal with, the tough decisions.
The Minister's role should not be such that his or her service to the ordinary Members is lost, nor to his or her Cabinet colleagues. All of us, Mr. Chairman, have different skills, gifts and experiences to bring to the table. Many of our skills and gifts are the same, but some of us do have varied skills and they are all to be complimented. Those people that are running today, they are all very capable and very suitable candidates.
I think I have some skills developed over my lifetime that I feel would contribute to the smooth and efficient operation of Cabinet. In my younger life, I was a public servant for this very government. I spent many years here and learned a lot and appreciated what I learned through that. I was able to apply it to many other areas. Following my career as a civil servant, I was a businessman in the publishing business for about 20 years. My business background taught me how to manage money, employees and how to be of service to the public. Almost four years ago, I decided to change my career and enter politics. Let me just say that the combination of having been a public servant, a businessman and now a politician, I think are assets that can contribute very well to this government.
What are the skills of a leader, you might ask, that I consider important? Integrity, honesty, openness, but a leader is also someone who can direct government programs and redirect those programs if they are ineffective. Being a leader, is someone who can stimulate and direct government employees to implement the government's policies, an agenda set by this Legislature. We all know that Cabinet Ministers represent a broader constituency of people all across the Northwest Territories. They must be able to relate to a very wide spectrum of people across the north, but also relate with those on a national stage. They must be strong enough to be recognized, respected and perceptive enough to be approachable.
In the coming years, we will no doubt face many more difficult problems. Some of those problems are on our horizon today. We must address the problem of forced growth in our government. Each year, we are spending more and more money on the social envelope area, but the social lot of our people is not keeping pace. Our suicide rates are amongst the highest in the country and our substance abuse rates are amongst the highest. We have to address this concern. This concern has to be addressed in a very, very serious way.
It is no secret that alcohol, drug-related crimes and resultant social problems cost this government tens of millions of dollars. It is high time we acknowledge that it is our number one problem and we should address it as our number one problem to find solutions to it. We have to address the major concerns of our front line workers, the teachers and nurses and I spoke on that just the other day. One of the most important and effective ways to deal with our problems, both physical and social, is through economic growth and job creation. Job creation and economic activity has to come from somewhere. For me, it comes not just from the development of non-renewable resources sectors such as mining and oil and gas, but also from such industries as fisheries, forestry, harvesting and marketing of country foods, arts and crafts and tourism. The development of our renewable resources sector goes beyond mere economic benefits, but to the heart of most communities. Northern people have always relied on the land and animals for their survival and it continues to play an integral part of our economy today.
The best solution to our social problems is to get people jobs. Jobs for people in all of our communities. No matter what we offer people in the form of income support, education upgrading, social support systems, what people really want at the end of the day, is a job. Real jobs in such areas as the value added industries of our resources such as mining and forestry.
We have to have a Cabinet that addresses the issues that are out there. Issues like government contracting processes. Cabinet has to address the issue of morale in our public service and restore the security of their positions. Our employees need confidence in themselves again. At the same time, public servants have to know that at this time we cannot go into a wholesale expansion program and that in these continuing tough economic times they must, like all of us, continue to be more creative, more effective, more efficient.
In closing, Mr. Chairman, I would like to say that I do not shy away from a challenge. I do not shy away from the issues. I may not necessarily agree all the time with my colleagues on the approach to problem solving, but providing a different viewpoint is healthy. What is unhealthy is the stifling of viewpoints.
I am committed to be a very effective individual, if I am elected to Cabinet. I offer you my skills and commitment to make a positive contribution to the people of the Northwest Territories because they are the number one priority. I am asking those of you for support for a Cabinet post and I would be personally very honoured if you voted for me. We live in exciting times, Mr. Chairman. They have been exciting times here in the north and I am sure they will continue to be exciting and wonderful times for us all. Thank you.
---Applause