Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in June, the Premier announced the government's plan to decentralize certain government services and positions to regional centres, such as Rankin Inlet and Inuvik, to improve the sluggish economy in these areas. First, I want to state that I cannot readily accept the government's positive assessment of Yellowknife's current economic prospects. In fact, Yellowknife faces harder times. As the government moves to further decentralize its services, the loss of positions in Yellowknife will most certainly be felt by this community.
I want to make it clear that I do however support economic development initiatives in the regions. Surely the government could introduce more creative development measures. We need new initiatives, not just ones which simply move jobs from one place to another. Furthermore, in a period of fiscal restraint I am very concerned about how much the move of positions and services out of Yellowknife will cost this government.
The capital and one time costs for the government's proposed decentralization initiatives are projected to be $5.8 million. In addition, the projected ongoing annual costs are $2.3 million. In fact, these figures are conservative cost estimates as they do not account for the expense of moving people from Yellowknife to the regions or the expense of recruitment and hiring people from the south for positions which may not be filled by people already in the communities.
Mr. Speaker, given the current state of the economy, I firmly believe that we must give careful consideration to the most efficient and worthy use of limited government funds. The increasing federal cutbacks to the N.W.T. budget necessitate responsible fiscal management. For example, because the federal government has cut back on its financial commitment to our housing programs, we are hard pressed to allocate the necessary funds to address the very serious housing shortage that we face in the N.W.T.
The capital cost alone for decentralization represents the dollar figure for approximately 542 houses. Ongoing annual costs projected for decentralization provide another 222 units each year. Each additional housing unit benefits more than just those who eventually reside in them. The overall economic impact of the construction activity in the communities provides jobs for those who build the housing units and revenue to support local business.
Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.