Total region, $200,000. Agreed?

Agreed.

---Agreed

Buildings And Works, Total Capital, Agreed

Total buildings and works, $200,000. Agreed?

Agreed.

---Agreed

Motor Vehicles, Total Capital, Agreed

Total activity, $200,000. Agreed?

Agreed.

---Agreed

Transportation Planning

Buildings And Works, Headquarters, Total Capital

Page 11-20. Buildings and works, headquarters, total region, $1,179,000. Agreed? Mr. Todd.

I wonder if the Minister could give us some indication of how many northern consultants and engineering firms have been used, versus outside firms.

Thank you. Mr. Minister.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. We use very few outside consultants. My department tells me that we mostly use the northern consultants to do this work, or our staff.

Thank you. Mr. Todd.

So we are going to be provided with a breakdown. Well, I suppose this stuff has not gone to tender yet, sorry. It is okay.

Buildings And Works, Fort Smith, Total Capital

Fort Smith, total region, $22,049,000. Member for Thebacha.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, I would like to ask the Minister, with respect to recognizing his budget dealing with the highways, if his department has done anything with regard to the efforts of the community of Fort Smith to address the road through Wood Buffalo National Park. I would like to know if his department has dealt with that issue. I am aware that the Department of Transportation, when it was in with DPW, had granted Fort Smith some dollars to look at getting this road developed. I believe the study was submitted to the department. Could the Minister give me an update as to what has been done and what they intend to do? Thank you.

Thank you. Mr. Minister.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. If the Member is asking about the Wood Buffalo National Park loop, this highway is a federal responsibility. We maintain it on behalf of the federal government and the Government of Alberta. We have no tentative plan at this point to do any work unless the federal government and the Government of Alberta ask us to do some improvements or rehabilitation of the road. The only area that we are responsible for is to maintain it.

Member for Thebacha.

Mr. Chairman, I am not too sure whether the Minister recognizes what road I am talking about. Currently on Highway No. 5 you go through a good portion of Wood Buffalo National Park. But it is not in respect to the road on Highway No. 5. It is basically the road that was there back in 1958 and has grown over considerably, leading from Peace Point into Vermilion. But it is what they called an old winter road that was used back in 1958. I recall back in 1988 the government had granted Fort Smith -- I do not believe they gave them $100,000, but their intention was to give them $100,000 to complete the study to see how they could address this road. But as a result I think their study cost to the tune of only $40-some thousand. There has been no further follow-up from that study. Since the study has been completed and the money was granted by the government to address this, could the Minister indicate to me as to what the status of this road is?

I just want to note that I recognize the roads of Wood Buffalo National Park are the responsibility of the federal government. However, I know that we maintain those roads, and I know the federal government does reimburse the territorial government for maintaining those roads. I guess the fact of the matter is that some of those roads in Wood Buffalo National Park are in territorial jurisdiction and within my constituency.

Thank you. Mr. Minister.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I really do not understand the Member's question. All the roads that are south of Fort Smith are in Alberta, and most of them are in the national park. It is a federal and Alberta's responsibility to construct roads in that particular area, since it is in Alberta and also in the national park. I wonder if the Member could rephrase her question.

Thank you. Member for Thebacha.

Mr. Chairman, I would like to ask the Minister, since the government has granted the community of Fort Smith, I think somewhere to the tune of $50,000 to do a study with respect to the road off Highway No. 5 that leads into Alberta, can the Minister advise me the status?

Thank you. Mr. Minister.

Mr. Chairman, I would like my deputy minister to respond to that question.