Oral questions. Mr. Pudlat.

(Translation) Mr. Speaker, I would like to direct this question to the Minister of Finance. In our area, as well as in Sanikiluaq, we know there is a panel on environmental surveys who have been requesting environmental assessment. Have you put aside money for their request for funding? They said they had received a percentage of what they had requested. The environmental panel had requested to do some surveys in their area. Maybe the Minister of Finance might know about this request or if they have funding for that purpose.

Mr. Pollard.

Mr. Speaker, I do not have any knowledge of it right now, but I will look into it for the Member. I am taking the question as notice.

The question is taken as notice. Oral questions. Mr. Antoine.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have a question for the Minister of Education. Yesterday I questioned the Minister about the monthly educational grant payments, and I know that all divisional school boards in the North are very concerned about this quarterly funding. Yesterday you indicated that your department has developed a paper that you will be taking to the Executive Council, and the Executive Council has not made a decision on how they are going to deal with this yet. Can you tell the House when you will be presenting this paper to the Executive Council?

Minister of Education, Mr. Allooloo.

Mr. Speaker, sometime this month I will be taking that paper to cabinet.

Mr. Antoine.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have talked to the financial people in the Deh Cho Divisional School Board. They take their job very seriously, and they indicate to me that they do a financial plan for the whole year. As you know, the year end is coming very soon, at the end of March. They are in limbo as to what is going to happen. So the sooner they have some sort of indication as to what is going to happen, the better. For people like myself who have students in school, especially in Simpson where we do not know whether we are going to have grade 11 or 12, we need to know as well. So would the Minister tell the House as soon as possible what kinds of plans they have? I would appreciate that. Mahsi.

Mr. Allooloo.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Member's concern is very well taken. Thank you.

Oral questions. Mr. Nerysoo.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. A question to the Minister responsible for Safety and Public Services. The Minister indicated in December that the committee dealing with the Mining Safety Act would begin its work in January. I would like to know if the Minister could indicate when the committee will start its work on the Mining Safety Act.

Minister responsible for Safety and Public Services, Mr. Patterson.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to assure the honourable Member that there has been quite a lot of work done toward a new Mining Safety Act. Good submissions have been received from a number of interested parties about the previous bill which had been tabled for public comment. I have also received a lot of good advice about good people who could serve on this committee.

Mr. Speaker, as I said, there is one fundamental issue that I am trying to resolve. I hope that I can resolve it as soon as today or tomorrow, one way or the other, so that I can report back to the House either that the committee can proceed or that there will be another course of action, if it will be required. So if I resolve this outstanding issue satisfactorily in the next few days, I expect to get the committee up and running fairly quickly, although later than I had hoped. Thank you.

Mr. Gargan.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to direct my question to the Minister responsible for the Workers' Compensation Board. Before Christmas I had the research division do work in the area of the operations of the workers' compensation boards across Canada and their accountability, with checks and balances. But the Workers' Compensation Board here does not seem to have that. If you look in your main estimates on the operations of the Workers' Compensation Board, there is no objective to see the level of performance or "performance for results" system. Would the Minister indicate whether or not the Workers' Compensation Board employs any performance standards, management for results system, or operational objectives by which its performance can be evaluated?

Mr. Patterson.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The "performance for results" system the Member refers to has not been applied to the Workers' Compensation Board, as far as I know. However, Mr. Speaker, I can inform the Member that there is a mission statement that has been adopted by the Workers' Compensation Board which lays out specific goals for the board, and I would be pleased to provide that information to all Members regarding that mission statement. Thank you.

Oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Gargan.

Mr. Speaker, one of the difficulties that a lot of the Members have, including people who are making claims, is with regard to the tribunal. They have two appeals processes, but they are both within the Workers' Compensation Board. The only province that has adopted an appeal outside the board is Prince Edward Island. The Minister just mentioned the mission statement is a performance -- I would like to ask the Minister whether or not there are any directions from the Workers' Compensation Board to have an appeals process outside the Workers' Compensation Board.

Mr. Patterson.

Mr. Speaker, the Member is quite correct. At the moment the so-called appeals tribunal, which is a group of three people -- the chairperson, who is a director of the board, and commissioners appointed by the Minister on the recommendation of the board -- is the last level of appeal. I think the Member is asking me whether any consideration has been given to changing that appeal process, and I would have to tell him that as of this date, as the Minister responsible, I have not considered a change to the final level of appeal, which would require an amendment to the Workers' Compensation Act. I have not contemplated such a change up to this point in time. Thank you.