Mr. Speaker, over the years we have developed many policies on freezer allocation to communities and who is going to be responsible. Another policy has been developed; however, we are trying to work It into the budget because there is a cost implication to that. So the Department of Renewable Resources is looking at the policy that has come forward at this time and to see how that can be worked into the budget for this fall. Presently, the Department of Public Works has a budget for $936,000 per year and $19,500 per community freezer. This is for the operation and maintenance of the community freezers that presently exist.

As part of reassessing the community freezer program, other ways of using this money will be, for example, turning over to the hunters' and trappers' associations, band councils, or the appropriate agencies to maintain community freezers, or It could be used to purchase chest-type freezers or discontinue the use of large-scale community freezers.

So because of the cost implications, the last policy proposal that was put forward had quite extensive cost implications. So we are trying to work it into other alternatives and what people can handle within a budget. So yes, we are developing it. A policy was developed and the cost implications are being examined to see if we can deliver It to communities. From time to time, particularly in small communities, it may be appropriate, for example, rather than building a community freezer, to allow the community to have a certain amount of funds so that each individual can purchase a very large chest-type freezer. These are the cost implications that we are struggling with right now. Yes, it is an active file and we would like to see it through, but with what we came up with the last time, there were a lot of cost implications as a community freezer.