Come to order. I would like to take this opportunity to welcome you back to the continuation of the Second Session of the Legislative Assembly. I think the summer is over, and it seems to have been too short for some of us. I look forward to a productive session so that I can get back home again to enjoy the fall, before the snow comes to the Northwest Territories.

I have the honour of being Speaker for the next three days while the Honourable Michael Ballantyne is representing us at the International Meeting on Democracy in the province of Quebec. I would request that you be kind to me, and I will be kind to you.

Before proceeding to the orders of the day I would like to inform the House that I have received the following communication from Her Honour the Deputy Commissioner:

"Mr. Speaker, I wish to advise that I recommend to the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories, the passage of Bill 33 - Appropriation Act, No. 2, 1992-93 during the second Session of the 12th Legislative Assembly." Signed, Helen Maksagak, Deputy Commissioner. Item 2, Ministers' statements. Mr. Kakfwi.

Thank you, Mr. Kakfwi. Ministers' statements. Mr. Pollard.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I give notice that on Thursday, September 10, I will deliver the budget address. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you. Ministers' statements. Item 3, Members' statements. Member for Thebacha.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to move that Ministers' statement, update on national constitutional reform negotiations, be moved into Committee of the Whole.

Do you have a seconder?

Sorry, Mr. Speaker. Yes, Member from Mackenzie Delta.

Thank you. Motion in order. All those in favour? Down. Opposed? Motion is carried. That Minister's statement 82-12(2) will be put into the Committee of the Whole later on. Member's statements. Mr. Gargan.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. On August the 26, around 5:00 p.m., a very serious incident occurred on the Mackenzie River. About a half mile downstream from Fort Providence a barge being towed by the N.T.C.L. vessel M.V. Jack MacNiven was observed by local residents as damaged and leaking oil.

Mr. Speaker, this could have been a serious environmental mishap. The barge was carrying a total of 830,000 litres of light fuel, diesel. At 11:00 a.m., on the morning of August 27, I chartered an aircraft and flew over the accident site. I was very concerned by what I saw. A crudely constructed containment boom had been placed around the damaged barge but was clearly ineffective in holding back the oil against the swift river currents. From my vantage point it was clear that the oil was dispersing quickly.

I observed evidence of the spill extending down several sub-branches of the Mackenzie as far as Millis Lake. The total dispersal of the oil seemed to me to cover an area approximately forty miles long. I have maps of the affected area and will make them available for honourable Members and interested members of the public to look at.

I was particularly concerned to see concentrations of oil in shallow and weedy sections of Millis Lake. Mr. Speaker, this was not only my concern. During the time I was in the air I saw no signs of any action from the federal agencies who have responsibility for the management of this sort of environmental problem. I understand that the accident was reported to the Government of the Northwest Territories spill line and promptly passed along to the Canadian Coastguard and the Federal Fisheries and Oceans personnel. However, it is my opinion that these federal agencies, from the beginning, took an approach that was less than serious.

The Department of Fisheries and Oceans was not on the scene until mid-afternoon of the following day and I am not sure how extensive their water sampling procedures were. I even understood that the Department's spill specialist was in Tuktoyaktuk. Again, as I surveyed the situation from the air, I observed no coastguard supervision of the site, even though the containment boom was clearly failing to retain the oil spill. I must say, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Gargan, your time has been expired. You have to ask for unanimous consent. Mr. Gargan.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to get the unanimous consent to continue my statement.

The Member is asking for unanimous consent to continue on with Members' statements. Are there any nays? There are no nays. Mr. Gargan.

Thank you. Honourable Members, Mr. Speaker. I must say, Mr. Speaker, that the response from the territorial government official is to be commended. I contacted the Honourable Dennis Patterson, Minister of Health, around noon on August the 27, shortly after returning from air survey.

I was impressed with how quickly our cabinet swung into action as the acting government leader, the Honourable John Pollard, called a meeting of the Ministers to deal with this matter.

I was also glad my honourable colleague from Nahendeh was available to attend the meeting and participate in the coordination of this government's response. I am aware that the Minister of Renewable Resources, the Honourable Titus Allooloo and the Minister of Transportation, the Honourable Tony Whitford, acted swiftly to travel to the site and make observations of the damage. One thing has troubled me about our government's procedures in this regard, however. I was informed by the acting government leader that none of the Ministers were aware of the incident until after my August 25 telephone call to Mr. Patterson.

It seems that while there may be well-developed channels of communication information for environmental crises to agencies and officials, assistance for advising the responsible Ministers may have been lacking. I intend to explore the communications procedure both within the relevant territorial departments and with the federal agencies in question over the next several days.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to conclude my statement by commenting that, in my view, neither the federal agencies nor N.T.C.L. have given this matter appropriate attention over the days that followed. I am aware that there has been inadequate consultation with hunters and trappers from my region with respect to the observations made by the spill areas. I am also concerned that the attitude of both the federal agencies and the transportation company has been to purposely down-play the potential seriousness of the spill.

It seems that the company has tried to come across as saying it was only a relatively small spill and it will all evaporate. So it is no big deal. Wrong, Mr. Speaker. This is a big deal. Not only for this government, which will be faced with a series of difficult decisions about the approval of northern development of the years to come, but it is also a big deal for traditional aboriginal people who hope to rely on the land, waters and animals the Creator entrusted us to look after. We have been the custodians of this land for centuries before there was ever a transportation company or before there was a federal government.

The apparent lack of concern shown by these parties and their willingness to treat this matter as a minor everyday risk offends the role that we play as curators and defenders of our natural surroundings. I will be urging our government to follow up on this issue with additional testing and with the establishment of a firm agreement and regulations geared towards ensuring a more adequate response to such environmental crises. Thank you Mr. Speaker.

---Applause

Thank you, Mr. Gargan. Member's statements. Mr. Zoe.

Mr. Zoe, your time has been expired. You have to ask for unanimous consent, Mr. Zoe.

The Member is asking for unanimous consent to continue on with Member's statements, are there any nays? Proceed, Mr. Zoe.

Thank you, Member for Slave Lake. Members' statements, Member for Nahendeh.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. I am concerned about the Northwest Transport Company Limited barge that spilled over 12,000 litres of diesel fuel into the Mackenzie River on August 26 as well, this is a serious matter to me and my constituents since we live down the river from that spill, and the communities of Jean Marie River, Fort Simpson, and Wrigley. Mr. Speaker, the short term damage to the environment in these particular cases is unknown to me at this time. Hopefully, there will not be any adverse long term damage from this spill. Mr. Speaker, this accident could clearly be much worse since the barge was carrying over 830,000 litres of diesel. However, this accident clearly illustrates the need for territorial watch strategy to deal with the transport of dangerous goods on waterways throughout the north. Many of our northern communities are located on major waterways. Our

people still rely heavily on the resources from these waterways for food, water, and transportation. The spillage of oil, and other dangerous goods, threaten the delicate ecological balance that exists on many of our rivers and lakes. It is time for this government, and the federal government, to initiate a review of the current policies dealing with environmental accidents. The development of a comprehensive policy, or strategy, for the transportation of dangerous goods on waterways throughout the Northwest Territories should be a priority. This strategy should be developed in close consultation with all effected communities, and should include a review of current regulations to insure that they are strong enough to minimize the possibility of accidents, to develop an emergency response action plan to deal with environmental accidents in an efficient and effective manner. In closing, Mr. Speaker, I would like to commend the honourable Member from Deh Cho for his prompt response to the spill on Mackenzie River. I am sure that the actions of this Member, and the Members of the government at that time helped to minimize the effect of the potentially dangerous and tragic situation. Mahsi Cho.

Thank you, Member for Nahendeh. Members' statements. Mr. Pudlat.

(Translation) I was going to say that in regards to oil spills, I would like to make a comment. I know that this happens once in a while, but in the north, we often see spills also near Iqaluit and Pangnirtung, so I heard about this spill just after it happened, and I was told that I should not be concerned, but because I know it will have an effect on the food and the environment, I think we should be concerned about it. I just want people to look at this as being important, and it should be looked into more carefully because it will affect the food, and I just want people to look at this as an important issue. I was told that I should not be concerned about it, but I know it is hazardous to our health. Thank you.

Thank you. Members' statements. Mr. Todd.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. On June 29, this House passed a significant motion recommending the development of a hiring north policy for public service positions within the Government of the N.W.T. I rise today to express my support for this principal. The hiring practice followed by this, and previous governments, has appeared at least to me to favour the southern transient population for far too long. It is now time to see the people of the Northwest Territories manage the public service on behalf of the government.

---Applause

With the July 29 motion, this House gave the cabinet direction to develop a policy that would make it standard practice to hire long term northerners. Under circumstances where specific expertise is presently not available within our northern workforce, it may be necessary to consider other candidates. The decision to advertise and recruit from southern Canada should be the exception rather than the rule, no different than the tendering of contracts. Hence to this, where managers choose southern recruitment solely for the sake of expediency such as the secretarial competition in Inuvik with the regional health board, to me, borders on ridiculous. This decision to recruit southern candidates should become a political, rather than a bureaucratic judgement. Consideration should be given to hiring southerners only on a term basis, and only with a formal plan for eventual replacement by northern workers. Mr. Speaker, during the debate on June 29 my honourable colleague from Mackenzie Delta stated that it is incumbent on this Assembly to provide all northern people with hope that they can find permanent employment as a result of their efforts to obtain a sound education and develop a professional career. Now is the time to make hope a reality. Thank you.

---Applause

Thank you. Members' statements. Member for Thebacha.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, residents of Fort Smith have been, for many years, proud of our Fort Smith Health Centre. It provided medical services upon which we have always felt that we could depend upon. It is true that within the past year or so, certain inefficiencies and strange relationships in the health centre boardroom have been recognized. However, there has been little to suggest that patient care, or the smooth operation of the facility has been in any way compromised. That is why the people of our community have been dismayed and frustrated by the actions of the newly appointed Minister of Health. In an attempt to respond to reports about internal communications, and difficulties within the board, the Honourable Dennis Patterson appointed a public administrator to operate and manage the facility. In doing so, Mr. Speaker, he sent a signal to the public that whenever a board gets to be problematic, the best way to address the problem is to encourage resignations from the board members and leave the problem for the Department of Health to fix up. Heaven forbid, Mr. Speaker.

Shame, shame.

Far worse, he created suspicion, innuendo and misinformation within my constituency in respect to the adequacy of medical care provided by the health centre. By failing to indicate the basis for his appointment of a public administrator, and by his subsequent actions, I believe that the Minister has created an environment which has reduced the peoples' confidence in a facility that we were once proud of. There is no alternative now but to request that the Commissioner establish an inquiry under section two of the Territorial Public Inquiries Act. The public inquiry should deal with all aspects of the operations of the Fort Smith health centre. The central factor in this problem has been the unprecedented harassment of one of the medical staff, a man, who unlike most of the Minister's officials, has made a long term commitment to living and working in our community. I am absolutely astounded and dismayed by the Minister's...

Excuse me, Member for Thebacha, your time has expired. Member for Thebacha.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I seek unanimous consent to continue with my Member's statement.

The Member is asking for unanimous consent to continue with this statement. Are there any nays? No nays. Member for Thebacha.

Thank you, honourable colleagues. Mr. Speaker, I am absolutely astounded and dismayed by the Minister's latest decision to refer to a Saskatchewan based report which makes unfair allegations about this valued professional to a closed-door investigative tribunal established under the Medical Professions Act. The secretive and costly process can only serve to escalate concerns and frustrations within my constituency. At a public meeting on September 3,

where at least 100 people attended from all across the community, agreed that this is not the appropriate procedure. They called, unequivocally, for a public enquiry. Mr. Speaker, I have written both to the Minister and the Commissioner with my request for a public enquiry. I want Members of the House to know that I will continue to pursue this critical issue in this House on behalf of my constituents. Thank you.

---Applause

Thank you. Members' statements. Mr. Ningark.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We are aware that this government is going through fiscal restraint and financial hard times. The present situation called for streamlining and cutting back in our taxpayer's money. One of the ways I would like to suggest to the House, and to the people of the N.W.T., is that we should look at the fundamental part of dealing with the problem. One is stopping the leakage of the G.N.W.T. construction dollar. Later today, I will be asking the government about this issue. We, as elected by the people of the N.W.T., must ensure that the money, especially during economic times, stays in the N.W.T. The people of the N.W.T. in our communities, take full advantage of and benefit from the money that belongs rightfully to the people of the N.W.T. Mr. Speaker, as I mentioned earlier, one of the ways of dealing with economic times is ensuring that money stays in the N.W.T., and I intend to make that known during the next few weeks. Thank you.

---Applause

Thank you. Members' statements. Item 4, return to oral questions. Mr. Morin.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have a return to an oral question asked by Jeannie Marie-Jewell on June 17, 1992, release for public disclosure of bid prices from tenders. Sealed tenders are opened in the public and certain information is announced about the bids. The contract regulations state: "Upon the tenders being publicly opened, the chairperson shall announce whether or not security, if required, was furnished with the tender; the name of the person who submitted the tender; and the amount of the tender, and he shall record that information in a register which shall be signed by him and a witness."

The contract regulations do not provide similar instructions for the public opening of requests for proposals. Requests for proposals are evaluated on several criteria, not just on price. They do not contain an overall price, therefore, the bid price is not announced. It would be misleading to do so. For requests for proposals, only the name of the bidder and the information about the security is announced and recorded. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you. Item 4, returns to oral questions. Item 5, oral questions. Mr. Todd.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is to the Minister of Personnel. On June 29 this Assembly passed a motion brought forward by the honourable Member for Mackenzie Delta, recommending that development of a hire north policy for public service positions. The motion further recommended that the Minister of Personnel should report back to this House during the September session on the status of the policy. Will the Minister indicate, to date, what progress has been made by the government in preparing this important policy.

Thank you. Mr. Kakfwi.

Thank you. Oral questions. Mr. Pudlat.

(Translation) Thank you, Mr. Speaker. To the government leader, I was very happy when you approached the communities regarding the capital projects, and I am wondering if you have received answers to the question you asked the communities regarding capital projects. Thank you.

Thank you. Ms. Cournoyea.

Mr. Speaker. We are pleased with the response from the communities, but I will refer the question to the Minister of Finance.

Thank you. Minister for Finance.

Thank you Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as Members know, this was a new process that we tried this year and I will be honest and say that I was kind of crossing my fingers to see if it would work. From the responses that we received from the communities, and other parties that we sent a questionnaire out to, has been very positive and remarkably, Mr. Speaker, when we collated the things together with what the departments wanted to do, we were very close. There will be a further consultation with communities before the actual budget is put together, but yes, we did receive good response and it seems to be working well. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you. Oral questions. Member for Natilikmiot.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In light of my Member's statement, I suggested that other ways of dealing with economic times is stopping the linkage with the G.N.W.T. construction dollar. I would like to ask the government leader, Madam Government Leader, I would like to know, how much of the G.N.W.T. construction dollar during the fiscal year 1992-93 was awarded in the N.W.T.? I also recognize that we still

have a few months to go through and how much of that money was awarded to the contractors outside of the N.W.T.? Thank you.

Thank you. Madam Premier.

Mr. Speaker, I know that in our attempts to try to respond to the communities and keep the amount of dollars in the Northwest Territories, we are making some progress. On the exact dollar figure, I will refer the question to the Minister responsible for construction projects, the Minister responsible for the Department Public Works.

Thank you. Mr. Morin.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will get that information for the honourable Member by the end of the week. Thank you.

Thank you. The Minister is taking that question as notice. Oral questions. Mr. Gargan.

Mr. Speaker. I have got your copy of the details, according to the government, on what occurred after the spill which happened in Fort Providence on August the 26. It was not until the next day that the Minister of Renewable Resources, around 10:30, was advised of the spill. I would like to ask the Minister whether or not he was informed of the spill at that time, at 10:30, or whether or not he was informed of it after I informed the government of the spill?

Thank you. Mr. Allooloo.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In response to the Member's question. Yes, my office was notified on August 27 around 10:35 in the morning. If my memory serves me right, I remember we were in an Executive Council meeting all morning that day. I got into my office about 11:30, and the notice was on my desk. The barge ran aground at about 5:45 on August 26, and was reported at 8:05 by Evelyn Krutko, who is our renewable resource officer, as soon as she was told. She, along with the R.C.M.P., went down to the spill area as soon as they could, by boat, and reported back again to the spill line.

The volume, the perceived volume at the time, was about 2,790 gallons, that is about 62 - 45 gallon drums. Later, we were told that the spill was a little over a 1000 gallons, which translates to about 24 - 45 gallon drums. Yes, Mr. Speaker, my office was noticed at 10:35. Thank you.

Thank you. Supplementary, Mr. Gargan.

Mr. Speaker, it was around 11:00, or 1:00, in the afternoon of the 27 that the Ministers and the honourable Member from Nahendeh met on the course of action to be taken. It was following that, that there was a charter into Providence. I would like to ask the Minister, between the time of 10:35 and that time, what kind of action did his Department take when he was informed that there was a spill? Did he wait until the Executive met to discuss it, or did he take action right away?

Thank you. Mr. Allooloo.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As soon as the spill was noticed on August 26, 1992, at 5:45, the first report that came out was from our office at 8:05 that night. At 8:15 the spill line notified Bob Loutitt, who is the Canadian Coastguard, the lead agency in responding to spills in water from ships. At 8:15, at the same time, N.T.C.L. reported this is on August 26 to spill line that they were transferring fuel and moving the barge to a safer area. At 8:20 the spill line notified the Canadian Coastguard with a second report of that day. At 9:00 the Renewable Resources officer and the R.C.M.P. officer, as I indicated earlier, went down to the site by boat when the N.T.C.L. was transferring fuel from the punctured tank.

The following day, at 8:30 in the morning, the pollution control division, which is my Department, distributed the three reports received from G.N.W.T. agencies and communities, these are Fort Smith region, emergency measures organization, Fort Smith Renewable Resource Superintendent, Municipal and Community Affairs lands division, Department of Transportation, and Hamlet of Fort Providence.

At 9:23, on August 27, Fort Providence Renewable Resource Officer took a tour, by helicopter, the boom had been put in place around the barge and evidence of sheen was found about 25-30 miles downstream. Islands near spill site showed the presence of oil at the water line.

At 10:30, Mr. Speaker, the Fort Providence Renewable Resource Officer returns from the helicopter site tour, then at 11:18 the Fort Providence Renewable Resource Officer faxed results of helicopter river inspection to the Pollution Control Division of my department. At 11:40, the Government of the Northwest Territories emergency measures organization contacted Pollution Control Division of my department for information to provide to the Executive regarding a press release.

At 11:47, the spill update from the Fort Providence Renewable Resource Officer was distributed by the Pollution Control Division to spill line signatories and G.N.W.T. contacts. At 11:59 requested information was faxed to emergency measures organization. At 12:15, a meeting was called by the Acting Government Leader, Honourable John Pollard, to discuss the spill events and the events that took place after that. Thank you.

Thank you. Oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Gargan.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I asked the Minister whether or not he took any course of action when, at 10:35, the Minister of Renewable Resources offices advised of the spill.

Were you advised of the spill at that time and did you take the appropriate action to ensure that there was not too much damage, did you wait until the Cabinet met at 12:15, or did you wait until that time to take the necessary action?

Thank you. Mr. Allooloo.

Mr. Speaker, my office was notified by my department at 10:35 and at that time the Executive was meeting in the Executive boardroom, as soon as I got into my office the report was on my desk. Right after that, the Acting Government Leader called a meeting of all our players to inform all of us what had been happening at Fort Providence. Thank you.

Thank you. Oral Questions. Member for the Baffin Central. Excuse me, Mr. Gargan, the last supplementary.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask my final supplementary to the Minister of Renewable Resources. There were a couple of people on the river, Ernie and Walter Bonnetrouge who reported the incident to the Wildlife Officer in Fort Providence around eight o'clock. N.T.C.L. reported the spill around 8:15, but the spill occurred around five o'clock in the afternoon.

I would like to ask the Minister whether or not N.T.C.L. reported it between that three hour period when the spill was on, or did they only act after the Wildlife Officer made his observation.

Thank you. Mr. Allooloo.

Mr. Speaker, my information tells me that the first report that came out from N.T.C.L. to spill line at 8:15, the spill occurred at 5:45, and there was nothing reported prior to that by N.T.C.L., although the first report to spill line was done at 8:05 by Renewable Resource Officer. Thank you.

Oral questions. Member for Baffin Central.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have a question for the Minister of Economic Development and Tourism. Honourable Members may be aware that three exploratory fishing vessels have been working to evaluate the potential of the in shore fishery on coastal waters in the Iqaluit area.

This has not resulted in any promising findings for the commercial development of this fishery. Mr. Speaker, I now wonder why the decision was made to put a priority on testing the in shore fisheries potential around Iqaluit instead of expanding our knowledge of zones where a viable harvest has already been demonstrated.

My question is, can the Minister of Economic Development and Tourism indicate why this summers test fishing efforts were concentrated in the Iqaluit area rather than more promising sea beds in other regions of the Baffin coast?

Thank you. Mr. Pollard.

Mr. Speaker, the exploration in Frobisher Bay was the start of a project that is going to take a couple of years, at least, to look around for promising fishing areas off the coast. It is just a start, I admit that we have not found anything as yet in Frobisher Bay, we will be moving to other areas and it will be a systematic search Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

Thank you. Supplementary, Member for Baffin Central.

Supplementary Mr. Speaker, I understand that on October 30, 1990 Mr. Pollard was in the House when the honourable Member for Iqaluit made the following statement "I am convinced that the in shore fishery in the waters of Iqaluit and other Baffin communities, Pangnirtung already has a good turbot fishery under way, offers good potential for appropriate jobs for unemployed Inuit in my constituency. I am also confident that test fishery will produce results. I am certain that there are great renewable marine resources in our waters, scallops, shrimps, char, turbot and cod".

Can the Minister indicate how much his decision to target Iqaluit as a site for exploratory fishing was influenced by Mr. Patterson's enthusiasm over Frobisher Bay fishery and potential jobs for his unemployed constituents.

Thank you. Mr. Pollard.

Mr. Speaker, number one I did not select the areas that vessel would fish, or that those vessels would fish, that was done locally in Iqaluit by the E.D.A. board. Secondly, Mr. Patterson at no time has approached me and tried to influence me with regards to the location that exploration should be done in the Baffin. Thank you Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, oral questions. Supplementary, Member for Baffin Central.

Mr. Speaker, corrections please, I hope that I did not give an impression that he influenced you. My question was, at the time when Mr. Patterson made that statement, how much influence did he have in getting this test fishery going in Iqaluit?

Thank you. Mr. Pollard.

Mr. Speaker, as I said, I do not select the areas that they are going to fish, and with all respect to Mr. Patterson, I was not influenced at all by what he said. It is not something that I get involved in as to where that vessel would fish, and I have no influence in that regard. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you. Final supplementary Member for Baffin Central.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Final supplementary for the Minister of Economic Development and Tourism. Would the Minister table a detail plan for future test fishing activities including a summary of consultation used in identifying target sights for exploratory fishing?

Thank you. Mr. Pollard.

Mr. Speaker, I will endeavour to get that information and table it in the House. Thank you.

Thank you. Oral questions, Mr. Todd.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Minister of Health. The honourable Members will recall this House dealt this session with a bill to amend the Medical Care Act. As amended, the act now allows the Department of Health to make arrangements with physicians for payment on other than a fee for service bases. Fortunately, the Standing Committee on Legislation insisted the provisions should be included in the Medical Care Act, which would require the Department of Health to obtain approval from the effected health or hospital boards for finalizing any agreements with the doctors. Can the Minister of Health tell this House whether or not the Director of Medical Insurance has entered into any agreements under the Medical Care Act to pay physicians on other than a fee for service basis.

Thank you. Mr. Patterson.

Mr. Speaker, no I can not tell the House. I would have to take the question as notice, and get back as soon as I can. Thank you.

Thank you. The question has been taken as notice. Oral questions. Mr. Ningark?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is directed to the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, on behalf of the people of Gjoa Haven. The people of Gjoa Haven are getting extremely anxious to know if the proposed hockey arena is going to be completed without having to have new activities between phase one and phase two. I would like to get assurance, and comfort, from the Minister if the project will be completed without having to have new activities between phase one and phase two. Are we going to be able to see the arena completed within this fiscal year? Thank you.

Thank you. Mr. Allooloo.

Yes, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you. Oral questions. Mr. Nerysoo.

Mr. Speaker, on July 2 of this year, 1992, I received a letter from Mr. Whitford with regard to the question of legal opinion on the matter of transferring of jurisdiction for aboriginal people to this government. Now, the honourable Member indicated to me in the letter that a legal opinion does exist on this particular matter, and in fact, he indicates that the Government of the Northwest Territories legal counsel states that although the right to legislate the Northwest Territories is federal, the federal government has delegated this authority to the Territorial Legislative Assembly through the Northwest Territories Act, in section 91 of the Constitution Act. Now this includes delegating the authority over Indians. I am somewhat curious, Mr. Speaker, first of all, that does not necessarily respond to the question that I asked, and I am kind of curious as to how section 17, which says nothing in section 16, shall be construed as giving the Commissioner and counsel greater powers with respect to any class of subjects described therein than are given to legislature of provinces under sections 92 and 95 of the Constitution Act. Now I am curious how the responsibility, or I should say the jurisdiction, of aboriginal people has been transferred to the Government of the Northwest Territories as he indicated in this document. So I want to ask the Minister whether or not the legal opinion indicates the transfer of jurisdiction, and whether or not the Minister could, in fact, provide that information to me.

Mr. Nerysoo, we do not get really which Minister you are asking. Would you repeat that please?

Sorry, Mr. Speaker. I did not want to make things more difficult for you, but the Minister of Social Services.

Mr. Patterson.

Mr. Speaker, I must confess, I have not a clue what the Member is talking about, and I will have to take the question as notice. Thank you.

Thank you, then for taking the question as notice. Oral questions. Member for the Kitikmeot.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I have a question for the Minister responsible for Government Services and Public Works. For the past several months, I have been attempting to acquire a copy of certain leases which the government has entered into with private property holders in my constituency. Senior officials in the Department of Public Works have repeatedly stated that the government has not been inclined to permit the release of these leases to Members of the Legislative Assembly, or that their policy on this matter is under review. I find this response absolutely unacceptable. The public, and its representatives in this House, should have every right to know how the government is spending its money when it enters into leasing arrangements. Mr. Speaker, my question is, will the Minister responsible for Government Service and Public Works advise the House whether he has established a policy which prohibits the release of leasing information to the public, or members of this House?

Thank you. Mr. Morin?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have been made aware through the Standing Committee on Finance that they are interested in that information, and I think the Members of that committee have been given that information. Thank you.

Thank you. Oral questions. Member for Thebacha.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I hope the Minister of Health, who does not have a clue, does have a clue about what I am going to talk about. I am sure he does.

Mr. Speaker, on August the 26, the Minister of Health went to Fort Smith to open a personal care unit, at which time he was greeted by a group of demonstrators who asked for a public inquiry into the Fort Smith Health Centre. At the time, the Minister of Health indicated that it was premature to request a public inquiry, without holding a public meeting. Mr. Speaker, I held a public meeting on September 3, and by noon on September 4, I had a letter hand delivered to the Minister's office requesting for a public inquiry. Will the Minister advise this House whether or not he has made a decision on my request for a public inquiry? Thank you.

Thank you. Mr. Patterson.

First of all Mr. Speaker, I did meet, very informally, on my way to celebrate the opening of the Northern Lights Senior's Citizens Personal Care Facility, those persons who expressed their concern about a doctor in Fort Smith. There were some people in the crowd who suggested a public inquiry. I did use the word premature, Mr. Speaker, when I responded to those persons, but I did not say it was premature without holding a public meeting. I said that I thought that it was premature. Mr. Speaker, the legislation approved by this Legislative Assembly, the Medical Profession Act, is specifically designed to deal with situations like this where there are concerns about medical practise. The act is tailor made to deal with concerns about medical practise in a fair, thorough and objective way. I might add, the Member is incorrect if she assumes that the inquiry called for under the Medical Profession Act would only be held in camera. Mr. Speaker, since we have specific legislation approved by this Legislature to deal with medical practise issues in an objective, thorough way, by medical professionals, I think that is the appropriate process to deal with these concerns, not the Public Inquiries Act. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you. Supplementary, Member for Thebacha.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. First of all I want to correct one of the comments the Minister stated. I do not appreciate insinuations directed to me that I had placed incorrect information in this House. When the demonstrators met with the Minister I was not available, however, immediately the Minister, himself, indicated to me that he felt it was premature to request a public inquiry until a public meeting was held. Those were his exact words to me, not to the demonstrators. Mr. Speaker, since he has indicated that he does not want to consider a public inquiry, I would like the Minister to tell me, in this House, a yes or no answer, will he consider holding a public inquiry irregardless of the board of inquiry that he established last week, into the whole issue of the Fort Smith Health Centre.

Thank you. Mr. Patterson.

Mr. Speaker, such a matter, I expect, would have to be approved by cabinet. These are, in our experience to date in the Northwest Territories, very expensive undertakings. I would expect that such a matter would be discussed by cabinet. To answer the Member's question, at the moment, having just appointed a board of inquiry under the Medical Profession Act to deal with the issue of medical practise the Member refers to, would not consider recommending another inquiry or a public inquiry to cabinet. No. Thank you.

Thank you. Before I go back to the Member for Thebacha, I would like to recognize His Worship, the Mayor of Rae-Edzo, Mr. Dan Marion, in the gallery.

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Thank you. Supplementary, Member for Thebacha.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have some questions for the Minister of Health about the procedures used by the medical board of inquiry, established under the Medical Professions Act. I would respectfully draw your attention that my question will not be referring to the substance of any matter that is before such a body. I will ask him a question which should certainly be within the realm of his knowledge, since he just set up this board of inquiry, about the procedures that are required under the act. Mr. Speaker, section 26 of the act provides that a board of inquiry under the Medical Act, must with all due dispatch, conduct a hearing to investigate matters referring to it. Can the Minister advise this House, Mr. Speaker, whether his department has bothered to develop standards for how long this process is?