Oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Ningark.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. M.A.C.A. is directly involved with the municipalities within the territories. I am sure M.A.C.A. is very responsive to the communities within the territories. Would the Minister tell me, and inform the House, that he will do everything he can on this request, which has been requested by a number of communities? Thank you.

Mr. Allooloo.

Yes, Mr. Speaker.

Oral questions, Mr. Gargan.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to direct my question to the Minister responsible for the Workers' Compensation Board. Welcome back, Dennis.

On a previous occasion, I have commented in this House about the policy that has been established by the Workers' Compensation Board to define who is, and who is not, a hunter for the purposes of section 10-1 of the Act. On June 23, I reminded the Minister that this policy had been ruled as contrary to the spirit of the legislation by the board's own appeal committee. The Minister assured me that he would have a new policy in place by the end of this summer. He also took my supplementary as notice when I asked him what the board was using in place of the policy.

Since the Minister, and the board, have had the summer to work over the new policy, could I ask the Minister today, what action he has taken to replace the previous definition of who is principally engaged as a traditional hunter, trapper or fisherman?

Mr. Patterson.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, unfortunately, since this issue was last discussed in this Legislature, there have been some other major issues and problems that have occurred at the Workers' Compensation Board, and I must inform the Member that my expectations that we would have a new policy in place by the end of the summer may have been a bit optimistic.

I can tell the Member, however, that the matter has been worked on intensively by the Workers' Compensation Board. Our government, principally the Department of Renewable Resources, and I do believe they are close to a solution, but it has not yet been finalized. Thank you.

Oral questions, supplementary, Mr. Gargan.

Supplementary, Mr. Speaker. I would like to ask the Minister what guidelines has the board had, to make its decision on which hunter and trapper claims should be compensated?

Mr. Patterson.

Mr. Speaker, as I understand the work that is being done, the criteria for measuring injury will be the same as is applied to any other accident in any other work place. There will be no special definitions of injury, and disability, for hunters. They will be treated the same as any other person that comes to the W.C.B. for coverage.

Secondly, the board is working on a definition of hunter, which is done locally at the community level, and not be some distant claims adjudicator or other remote person.

Thirdly, the committee working on this issue has agreed that it will be necessary to expand the coverage criteria, to make it easier for more hunters to be covered, than were covered under the previous policy.

Having said all that, the setting of an appropriate income level for determining awards for injured persons may well have to be adjusted for hunters, and may well have to be special for hunters, as compared to other workers.

That is what I can tell the Member about the directions that are being taken. I am told that the work is close to being concluded, within weeks. Thank you.

Item 5, oral questions. Mr. Pudlat.

(Translation) Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have a question that I want to ask the Minister of Social Services. I am not sure what the policies are, as an M.L.A. here in the territories or across Canada, there are committees under social services. Many of them have fallen, this could be due to shortage of funding, or perhaps there is a new policy in place. They used to have committees, and they would get $25, they have been reduced to receiving $5.

I wonder if the Minister of Social Services can respond to whether this is a new policy for Social Services Committee Members. We understand that they now receive $5, and I was asked to bring this forward to the Minister of Social Services. Is this a new policy, to reduce the honorarium? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

If he is unable to respond today, I hope that he will be able to do so during the sitting of this session. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Patterson.

Mr. Speaker, I will take the question as notice. I will note the Member's desire to have an answer before the end of this session. Thank you.

The question has been taken as notice. Item 5, oral questions. Mrs. Marie-Jewell.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have a question for the Minister of Intergovernmental and Aboriginal Affairs.

Mr. Speaker, last week the Minister had put forth his Minister's statement regarding the meeting of the Committee of Political Leaders, in respect to the working document that he presented to the House, tabled in the House, last June, regarding the commissions report, and Working Towards a Common Future.

He indicated in this House, that I.R.C. was going to develop a work plan and interim budget for consideration of the Members. At the time, he also indicated that he tabled the report, and he would like to take time to discuss it in committee of the whole, during this session.

I would like to ask the Minister, when does he intend to bring this document into committee of the whole and discuss it further, to get the Members' viewpoints on that particular document? Thank you.

Mr. Kakfwi.

Item 5, oral questions. Supplementary, Mrs. Marie-Jewell.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As the Minister indicated to this House, this work plan is to be developed, and is being developed by I.R.C. on the recommendation of the political leaders, without consultation of the M.L.A.s.

Can I ask the Minister, whether or not he is waiting for a work plan, the draft work plan, that they have requested, before he considers bringing forth the document Working Towards a Common Future for our discussion, and our viewpoints. Thank you.

Mr. Kakfwi.