Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The Standing Committee on Agencies, Boards and Commissions devoted considerable attention to an understanding of the specific reasons why the Minister was inclined to eliminate the Board of Directors for the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation.

In general terms the rational for eliminating the board seems to be based on the following factors:

- The existing corporate structure and board structure is seen as not being consistent with ministerial government;

- The role of the board is perceived by the Minister to have changed to the point where it is no longer significant. Frequent debates over the roll of the Minister and the board of directors have occurred to the point, where the process of managing housing in the Northwest Territories can be seen as overly complicated and expensive. Reportedly, there have been difficulties in establishing clear lines of authority and accountability;

- The Minister has argued that the decision to eliminate the board of directors can be justified on cost factors alone. It has been estimated by the Minister that the total annual cost of board operations is approximately $600,000 with additional fiscal considerations related to goods and services taxation. This has been described as particularly significant in light of the federal government's decision to reduce base funding for new housing construction in the Northwest Territories by 59 per cent over the next two years;

- The high number of boards and agencies in the Northwest Territories was identified in the "Strength at Two Levels" document as a major issue to be addressed in reducing costs and ensuring effective Ministerial responsibility and accountability. This initiative is seen as corresponding closely to the model proposed in that report;

- Elimination of the board of directors would allow for greater ministerial involvement in ensuring that the housing policy is closely coordinated with economic, social, health and educational policies;

- Across Canada in response to increasing concern over housing and the cost of providing housing programs, the trend seems to be towards greater direct government control. The Minister advised the standing committee of his perceptions that most provinces including Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick have converted from corporations to departments, to achieve greater operating efficiencies. The standing committee, while fully understanding the Minister's position on the larger issue of eliminating the Housing Corporation Board, did want to take issue with certain of the specific assumptions which seem to underlay his stated rational.

The Standing Committee on Agencies, Boards and Commissions was somewhat concerned with the Minister's comments that the persistence of boards and public agencies might be seen as inconsistent with "ministerial government". Boards, agencies and public committees have been creations of successive governments within the Northwest Territories for many years and should not be seen as mutually exclusive of the trend towards increased clarification of departmental mandates and ministerial accountability.

The Minister's "blanket statement" that this board should be eliminated because it represents a structure which is not compatible with ministerial government risks sending a message that other boards and agencies will need to be eliminated simply because they can "get in the way" of ministerial objectives. Such a message is not acceptable to the Standing Committee on Agencies, Boards and Commissions.

The standing committee takes the position that there is a role for these agencies to play in the Northwest Territories and that, with open communication channels and clearly established roles, board functions can continue to complement the Minister's responsibilities and accountability by providing community input that would otherwise be lacking from departmental decisions.

This general argument should not be used as part of the rationale advanced for the elimination of the board of directors. It should also not be applied generally when considering any potential elimination of other boards or agencies. Public boards and agencies are not, in the standing committee's view, inconsistent with the principles of "ministerial government".

Similarly, the Standing Committee on Agencies, Boards and Commissions was concerned that the Minister presented his plan to eliminate the board of directors within the context of complying with principles outlined in the "Strength at Two Levels" document. That report concludes that there are too many boards and agencies, and that they represent "one of the greatest areas of structural inefficiency in the G.N.W.T."

The Standing Committee on Agencies, Boards and Commissions takes the position that the "Strength at Two Levels" report contains statistical inaccuracies with regard to the number of government created boards and agencies, over-emphasizes cost and inefficiency factors and gives inadequate consideration to the importance of ensuring input from the diverse and widespread communities across the Northwest Territories.

The Standing Committee on Agencies, Boards and Commissions wished to emphasize that the "Strength at Two Levels" report has never been endorsed by the Legislative Assembly as the planning document for which government reorganization should flow. The Minister should not be attempting to justify his decision to eliminate the board of directors at the Housing Corporation by referring to plans laid out in the "Strength at Two Levels" document.

With regard to cost factors, the Minister has also indicated that by eliminating the board of directors very significant cost savings can be realized. This may be true. However, the Standing Committee on Agencies, Boards and Commissions question whether tighter, internal controls might have resulted in lowering board costs as well.