Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It is now exactly six months since the strike at Giant/Royal Oak began. Mr. Speaker, it makes me very sad to see the industry which made this city prosper for five decades is in danger of collapsing around us. The strike at the Royal Oak Mine is the most bitter and violent strike we have ever had in the Northwest Territories.

Mr. Speaker, one of the great victories of the union movement was winning the right to collective bargaining. This is supposed to be the alternative to violence and to confrontation. It is supposed to be the civilized way to do business. In this case, Mr. Speaker, the two parties have clearly failed to bridge their differences and it is not my place, or any other M.L.A.s place to attribute blame. We have been told it is not appropriate for M.L.A.s to become involved in industrial disputes. When we did become involved this summer we were told quite bluntly by the Minister of Labour that we were out of line, we are interfering and making it more difficult for an agreement to be struck since the parties to the dispute would expect us to do their work for them, or at least to take sides.

What is appropriate though, Mr. Speaker, is for M.L.A.s to express the concern of their constituents. People in Yellowknife, Mr. Speaker, are outraged at the level of violence that they see taking place around them. Weekends in a frontier mining town often in the past saw brawls on a Saturday night, Mr. Speaker, but friends were always around to intervene and differences were quickly patched up. The violence we see today, Mr. Speaker, is of a different magnitude. It is as a result of hatred and desperation. Citizens are beginning to live their lives differently as a result of what they see going on around them. They have gone into their shells, they do not socialize, they do not go out so much.

The city was quiet this weekend but, below the surface, there is a deep disquiet. People are disgusted that no one seems capable of bringing the vicious dispute to an end. Outside the parties to this dispute, Mr. Speaker, only one man, Hon. Marcel Danis, the Minister of Labour, has the power to resolve the crisis.

I worry about the future of the mining industry, Mr. Speaker, the future of collective bargaining in the Northwest Territories and the future of this city.

Mr. Speaker, I believe that the vast majority of constituents in this city have spoken in a way that reflects the public concern. Thank you.

---Applause