Thank you, Mr. Chairman. For the record, I was reading from the Standing Committee on Finance recommendations that the committee recommends that the Department of Education, Culture and Employment Programs remove the museum addition in Iqaluit totalling $1.95 million from its five year capital plan, including $200,000 planned for 93-94 until other regions have comparable facilities. And it is different from what is being suggested in the motion here.
And, for the record, I realize that some people are used to having us as Cabinet Ministers sit here but I believe it should be in recognition that, over a number of years in Iqaluit, this has been one of the areas that they have tried to promote and bring together and it was an ongoing, long-term, broad plan that fits into the entrance to the Pang Park or to Iqaluit and then north.
I have always known that it was a very important part of the overall development of cultural and traditional activities and how you display them and I know also that is was more of an overall educational retention of traditional artifacts that were very important for the people.
I know that Anne Hanson, the former Deputy Commissioner, did a great deal of lobbying to repatriate art that was in southern museums, and I felt the same way when we deleted from the Northern Heritage Centre because I felt that was important for restoration.
I do not believe that in the Nunatsiak area we have a centre comparable to the heritage centre in Yellowknife. And I do not know whether the motion has indicated that every region has to have a comparative facility. For example, there has been an idea that we should not have an Arctic College in every community; perhaps we can only afford two. So maybe the policy should have come forth that we are going to develop two and concentrate on that.
However, in dealing with the members of Iqaluit and the idea, not just for Iqaluit alone, but for a broader, global development of how to store traditional, cultural, institutional matters, and how to display them for other people coming into look at them. It is an overall concern and I wanted to say for the record that this is not a new planning idea from the Baffin region but more of a long-term global look at what we are going to do. We all know the Baffin is famous for its parks and for the development of traditional components to its society. I know they put a high priority on this area, not just for storing artifacts or museums but as a total part of education and value system, and to display it for other people and to have young people take part and know what is going on. Thank you. I felt that it was important to say this for the record. The Baffin does have a long term plan on how it feels all these facilities should be fitting in.