Madam Government Leader.

On April 1 the freeze is off, so the department can proceed to advertise the position. I cannot say that it will be filled April 1, but it will be filled once the competition is run and once the competition has been completed and people have applied and been selected. So it probably will not be April 1, but it will be somewhere near that time.

Mr. Arvaluk.

When we had an economic development officer in Coral Harbour, because of the way the community functions, it is very active in business ventures, and that economic development officer was very busy. When the economic development officer was moved to Repulse Bay, for what reason I do hot know, then he was apparently was quite bored. Can the government assure me that they will consider where the economic development officer is most needed, rather than having a political relocation? We have great potential in Coral Harbour, but yet without any sort of consultation with that community, the position was moved to Repulse Bay.

Government Leader.

Mr. Chairman, I will make sure that the Minister of Economic Development is apprised of the concern and takes into consideration to consult with the MLA to determine the area where that position is most needed.

Staffing, not previously authorized, $9000. Agreed?

Agreed.

--- Agreed

Department Of Personnel, Total O and M,

Agreed

Total department, $9000. Agreed?

Agreed.

--- Agreed Justice

Police Services, Total O and M

Justice, O and M, police services, not previously authorized, $1,153,000. Mrs. Marie-Jewell.

Mr. Chairman, recognizing there has been an inflationary cost pertaining to the Police Services Agreement of $1.1 million, and recognizing that we pay in the NWT at least 70 per cent of the RCMP's cost to deliver the police services, has the Minister ever considered any type of alternatives where other types of police services are provided by people in the NWT?

Mr. Patterson.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. believe the Member has a very good point; I do believe there is potential for looking at alternatives to the present very expensive arrangement. For example, I expect to meet soon with a community in the Keewatin that wants to talk about better utilizing their community by-law officers to help with police services in the community and help provide those services as an alternative to providing members to the RCMP. So I am very open to ideas like that, but I think they will work best when they are coming from the community level.

Mrs. Marie-Jewell.

That is good to hear. I am concerned with the type of services that we get after normal working hours, particularly in the late hours of the day. In many communities in the NWT, if there is a need for the services, the phone call is automatically transferred into Yellowknife and then dispatched from Yellowknife to the community. What really bothers me is that we pay 70 per cent of their costs, but the services for that percentage and this $1.1 million is only a portion that we spend. We spent $23 million for police services in the NWT and we do not get full 24 hour services in the communities. There are many communities that do not even get services from a police officer. Are they looking at alternatives to ensure that police services will be available to the public after the normal working hours, when they place on these dispatch services where members have to be called in a community on a concern that pertains to that particular community?

Mr. Patterson.

Mr. Chairman, I think this is probably one of the most common frustrations and complaints that has been drawn to my attention about community policing services. I do not have a solution in hand today, but I have drawn this issue to the attention of the police, and I will hope that I can find a way of dealing with this very aggravating situation in the community. I do sympathize with community members who call in an emergency and end up getting switched to a remote location. I would like to do something about that, Mr. Chairman. I think that we could expect a better service in emergency situations than we appear to be getting right now. I agree with the Member on that, and will work to resolve it. Thank you.

Mrs. Marie-Jewell.

The other question I would like to ask is for information with respect to this Police Services Agreement. Can the department give us some indication as to how much they pay for police transfers with regard to the benefits that are granted for the police services that we receive in the North?

Mr. Minister.

Policing Is Biggest Part Of Department Of Justice Budget

Mr. Chairman, that is something I do not have at hand, but I will certainly be prepared when the O and M budget is presented, or before, if the Member wishes, to provide that kind of a breakdown. Policing is the biggest part of the Department of Justice budget. It is by far the largest single item, and most of the costs are salaries and wages and related expenses. But I do not have the exact proportions at hand at this moment. Thank you.

Mrs. Marie-Jewell.

Just one further comment, not with respect to the funding that is being requested to be approved, I but basically in respect to the amount -- going back to the previous comment of getting police service for 24 hours. I would like to indicate to the Minister that probably one of the suggestions to consider in local policing is for his department to consider individuals to assist the RCMP in regard to addressing concerns of the community after hours, as opposed to the phone calls going into Yellowknife and then being dispatched back to the community. That takes so much time, and when there is a dire emergency, it is most frustrating for people at the community level. I appreciate the fact that the Minister has brought that concern to the RCMP, but I certainly would appreciate if that concern was addressed, taking into account that we do expend some $23 million of our budget for police services. The type of services that we need in an emergency I think is critical. Maybe some creative thinking can be done with respect to type of committees.

I guess the concern I have is not only when emergencies occur, but I would be safe to say that the majority of break and-enters or any type of vandalism done to many government institutions, whether they be schools or whatever, is probably done during those hours when the police are not policing the community. As a government we would probably save a substantial amount of money if we can provide those services to take preventive action. Thank you.