Mr. Speaker, I certainly would be willing to direct my department to undertake such an evaluation, but, as I say, I believe that it should be done in the context of the conclusion of this commission review, so it may take some time yet before that analysis can be done. Yes, I will do it, but I think we should have the results of the review in hand to ensure that we get the full picture. Thank you.

Oral questions. Supplementary, Ms. Mike.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. A supplementary to the Minister of Justice. Would the Minister be willing to approach Mr. John Bayly or Mr. Lazarus Arreale, the Northwest Territories representatives on the RCMP Public Complaints Commission, with the request that more culturally consistent procedures be developed for hearing the complaints of aboriginal Northerners?

Mr. Patterson.

Mr. Speaker, the honourable Member has asked me to evaluate the adequacy of the process, and now she is asking me to reach a conclusion on the adequacy of that process with respect to a culturally sensitive viewpoint. I am certainly willing to approach the Northwest Territories representatives on the Public Complaints Commission review with our recommendations as to how the process can be more sensitive to victims and to aboriginal people involved in the process, but I think it should happen after we have done the evaluation that the Member has requested. Yes, once the evaluation is done, I would not hesitate to approach our representatives on that commission and the Solicitor General of Canada, who is responsible overall for the Public Complaints Commission, with our advice on how the process could be improved. Thank you.

Mrs. Marie-Jewell.

Mr. Speaker, first of all I would like to seek unanimous consent to extend question period.

The honourable Member is seeking unanimous consent to extend question period. Are there any nays? There are no nays. Question period will be extended. Mrs., Marie-Jewell.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have a question for the Minister of Justice. We recognize and know that the Minister of Justice has granted extra RCMP security for the current dispute happening at the Royal Oak mine site. I would like to ask if the Minister has, to date, received a confirmation from the federal government as to whether or not they will be absorbing these extra RCMP costs?

Mr. Patterson.

Mr. Speaker, I would respectfully correct the Member's preamble to her question. As Minister of Justice, I have concurred with the commanding officer, G Division, for additional RCMP reinforcements in connection with this labour relations dispute. The reinforcements were provided and authorized by the commissioner for the RCMP Canada and the Solicitor General of Canada. The answer to the Member's question is, no.

Mrs. Marie-Jewell.

Can he give us an estimated cost of what this is mounting up to be?

Mr. Patterson.

Mr. Speaker, as of today, the RCMP reinforcements have been here for three weeks at between $50,000 and $60,000 a day, plus the cost of two turnarounds in the vicinity of $30,000 for aircraft charter. That works out to an estimate of over a million dollars. We have not yet received a detailed breakdown.

Mrs. Marie-Jewell.

What measures is he taking to ensure the federal government will absorb this cost?

Mr. Patterson.

Mr. Speaker, both myself and Madam Premier have written a number of clear and strong letters to various federal Ministers, including the Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs and the Solicitor General for Canada, stating our view as to why the responsibilities for these extra police reinforcements rest with the Government of Canada and putting the Government of Canada on notice that we hold them financially responsible for these bills. There have been a number of letters written in that connection, in addition to discussions at the officials level.

Mrs. Marie-Jewell.

Mr. Speaker, when the Minister made a Minister's statement on June 17, he indicated in this House that as of Friday, June 12, the costs had reached one million dollars. It is now June 23rd. So I would suspect it would be something like two million dollars. What steps toward a solution of trying to address and minimize the cost of this issue does he intend to take?

Mr. Patterson.

Mr. Speaker, Members of cabinet and senior officials are meeting regularly, sometimes twice a day, to assess this very difficult situation We are now considering how we might enforce with the federal government our determination that these costs are the federal responsibility. Cabinet will be considering options tomorrow morning, and the House will be advised of the next steps we might be taking in this connection.

Mr. Lewis.