Thank you, Mr. Whitford. Good afternoon. Orders of the day, item 2, Ministers' statements. Mr. Todd.

Mr. Speaker, most residents of the Northwest Territories would agree that alcohol abuse poses a frightening risk to the health and happiness of our communities. At the same time, the reality is, for many people, responsible and moderate liquor consumption has become an accepted part of the contemporary Canadian lifestyle. As Minister responsible for the administration of liquor control in the Northwest Territories, I would like to take this opportunity to announce a significant initiative that will relate directly to this government's role in the sale, distribution and regulation of liquor products.

As you are aware, Mr. Speaker, the territorial Liquor Act sets out the framework for our current liquor control practices. This legislation provides for the sale and distribution of liquor, for the issuances and monitoring of liquor licences, for local options systems that allow communities to exercise some jurisdiction over liquor control, and for a number of other key regulatory areas.

Last month, I wrote to honourable Members of this House to indicate that I was planning to carry out a comprehensive review of the Territorial Liquor Act. Today, I am pleased to advise that we will be proceeding immediately with this initiative.

Mr. Speaker, although this act has been amended several times over the years, the principles and substance of our liquor control legislation have not been examined in detail since 1969, when the Choquette report recommended that former Commissioner Hodgson should bring in the existing regulatory system. The act is now over 23 years old and it is badly in need of an overhaul. It is time, particularly considering the recent reminders provided through addictions awareness week and by the tabling of the final report of the Special Committee on Health and Social Services, to get serious about improving our liquor laws.

In launching this initiative, I want to assure honourable Members that the review will be driven by a process of public discussion and community consultation. The Department of Safety and Public Services will be undertaking an ambitious communication strategy to find out how NWT residents want to see liquor products regulated. It is not going to be good enough to simply copy liquor control models from other jurisdictions. We need legislation that reflects the values, the priorities and the ideas of people in communities all across the Northwest Territories. We need a made-in-the-NWT approach.

The intention is to bring forward a legislative action paper outlining new and positive approaches to liquor regulation around this time next year. Once the House has had an opportunity to review these principles carefully, we will proceed to draft a new Liquor Act.

It will be important to count on the participation of the Liquor Licensing Board and the participation of MLAs and their constituents. This venture simply can not succeed without extensive involvement by individuals, groups and communities throughout the Northwest Territories.

Recently, we have seen a number of good examples of the way public participation, and input from Members of this Assembly, can be instrumental in the development of liquor policy. For instance, there have been repeated requests from the public, from the Standing Committee on Finance, and from individual Members of this House for a fresh look at the privatization of certain public operations.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to inform the House that, earlier this year, Cabinet did in fact approve the privatization of the liquor warehouse distribution centres in Inuvik, Hay River and Norman Wells. These initiatives have now been successfully completed.

In August, many Iqaluit residents turned out at the liquor licensing hearings to express their opinion about the prospect of a new cocktail lounge. The members of the Liquor Licensing Board listened carefully to their views and denied the application. This sort of public participation has proven to be an important component in licensing decisions and is something we want to encourage at every opportunity.

Issues have also been brought to the our attention, very recently, by a number of parents and school authorities who have been concerned about the availability of low-alcohol beverages currently being sold openly in convenience stores and grocery markets. We are now acting quickly to put effective mechanisms into place that will restrict the sale of these products to youngsters.

---Applause

Mr. Speaker, these are only a few examples of what can be accomplished when people get directly involved in the development of government liquor policy. There are many others. I am certain that, by working together during this comprehensive review of the Liquor Act, we will succeed in crafting new legislation that is effective, balanced and reflective of northern values. Thank you.

---Applause

Thank you, Mr. Todd. Item 2, Ministers' statements. Mr. Kakfwi.

Thank you, Mr. Kakfwi. Item 2, Ministers' statements. Mr. Kakfwi.

Thank you, Mr. Kakfwi. Item 2, Ministers' statements. Mr. Nerysoo.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it has been 11 years since the Special Committee on Education produced its report, Learning Tradition and Change in the Northwest Territories, and seven years since the report of the Task Force on Aboriginal Languages. Since then, there have been fundamental changes in the economy and in political and constitutional development, as well as in education, culture and employment in the Northwest Territories.

The shape of government itself is also changing. The current Legislative Assembly has emphasized the importance of planning, the delivery of quality programs and the importance of reporting and measuring program results.

The establishment of the Department of Education, Culture and Employment in August 1992, has provided opportunity to use program resources more efficiently and effectively by creating stronger links between cultural programs, child day care, education, training and employment development. This consolidation, coupled with the current climate of change throughout the NWT, provides my department with an excellent opportunity to consult with northerners to ensure that our programs and services will meet the needs of the future. As a result, the department is developing a strategic plan to guide the direction and delivery of education, culture and employment programs to the year 2010.

During the spring and summer, information was collected from our many partners, from the general public and from department staff. From this information, we have established some general directions in the document called, Towards a Strategy to 2010, which the department is proposing to use for more extensive consultation.

The document identifies a number of principles upon which the future direction of education, culture and employment programs can be based.

These include the principle that decisions be made as close to the community as possible. If programs and services are to meet community needs, people in the community should have more say in directing the design and delivery of services.

The document is also based on the principle that culture is fundamental to individuals, to communities and to institutions. Culture should be the foundation of all our programs and services the Department of Education, Culture and Employment offers.

Another principle addresses the need for a solid base of knowledge, skills and attitudes on which people can build and develop skills for life. Learning should be a process that begins in early childhood and continues through elementary and secondary schooling, and throughout adulthood.

Strong reading, writing and math skills are essential today and will continue to be important for the future success of our students. These skills are necessary for developing an educational foundation for the future. In addition, employers are looking for new and improved skills in technology, communication and problem solving.

Part of a teacher's role today is to help students develop these basic skills and to support students so they can learn how to learn, in order to meet the continuing challenges of a rapidly changing world. The role of students is to approach their education responsibly. The support of their parents and communities is essential for their success.

Mr. Speaker, we are living in a globalized society in which information is essential for growth and development. In order for the people of the Northwest Territories to take their place in such a society, they must have access to information. Rapid advancements in technology are opening new avenues to sharing information. Our existing networks for distance education, school and public libraries, television, radio and telephone, should be linked to form the base for a comprehensive information network for people of the Northwest Territories, making information sharing a reality in the north.

The strategy has three critical elements, strengthening and developing partnerships, improving our programs and services, and using our resources more effectively and efficiently.

Mr. Speaker, as I travel around the Northwest Territories, I have recently become aware that there is a sense of change among northerners and a renewed sense of optimism. For many years, northerners have looked forward to land claims and the division of the territories and these things are now becoming realities. We are at a key point in the development of the Northwest Territories and my department wants to ensure that our programs and services are able to meet the changing needs of northerners. The directions for the future proposed in the consultation document need to be debated by all stakeholders in education, culture and employment and the public in general. The comments and directions we receive will shape the development of a final strategy to be completed in the spring of 1994. This strategy, in turn, will guide our programs into the next century. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Nerysoo. Item 2, Ministers' statements. Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Whitford.

Thank you, Mr. Whitford. Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Gargan.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Since the late 1960s, the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs Development has provided financial support to assist in the development of policing arrangements for Indian communities. It has entered into a variety of arrangements with band councils in most provinces for the provision of policing services.

Aboriginal communities, not unlike other segments of Canadian society, have experienced a rapid growth in crime. Coupled with this situation are the concerns raised by Indian leaders about the adequacy of policing services and their ability to deal with the unique needs of aboriginal communities.

Currently, there are approximately 74 communities covered by the First Nations Policy. Not one of those communities are in the north. Mr. Speaker, the policy was developed in 1991. Our government has only made initial inquiries about the options available under this program. The benefits of First Nation community police forces are too significant to pass over.

This is an opportunity for each community to determine how and by whom they will be policed. More importantly, it is an opportunity to ensure that policing will be sensitive to culture and beliefs. It is time for this government to recognize that the aboriginal policing and justice administration is of significant importance to the Dene and Inuit of the Northwest Territories.

It is time for this government to respond to the needs and desires for aboriginal policing in this territory and begin to walk down the path to developing the programs appropriate to that aspiration. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Gargan. Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Lewis.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Listening to an interview with the federal Minister of Finance, Mr. Paul Martin, last night, he confirmed what Canadians had feared most: the federal deficit is much greater than anyone ever predicted. In fact, the deficit, between $44 and $46 billion, is frightening.

Against this gloomy picture, it is obvious to me that we can't be very optimistic about special assistance from the federal government to deal with our deficit reduction problems until we've exhausted all possibilities of dealing with it ourselves.

I believe the new federal government will be required to take very tough measures. I believe we will be judged on our ability to do likewise. Our weakness on the revenue side -- our limited ability to raise taxes -- means government will have to reduce and revise its expenditure priorities.

In my view, this means that, for the foreseeable future, we should go slow on the creation of more levels of government and the intended expense for new bureaucracies. Our priorities should be on infrastructure, especially transportation, housing and training facilities and the concentration on the development of our human resources and on attracting outside capital.

I don't believe our current economic problems in Canada are related to the constitutional failures of the Meech Lake and Charlottetown Accords, it is much deeper than that. It relates to our inability to pay for the services that people have come to expect. I believe the next couple of years would be best spent dealing with economic matters and on the practice of good government, rather than more constitutional wrangling and the creation of even larger bureaucracies and more government, as we develop new forms.

On this issue, we should follow the lead of the Prime Minister. He has decided that constitutional talks should rest for a while. If we must continue, it should be a low-cost activity and a low-key activity, while we attend to the real business of good government.

---Applause

Thank you, Mr. Lewis. Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Kakfwi.

Thank you, Mr. Kakfwi. Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Pudlat.

(Translation) Mr. Speaker, we have radio stations in our smaller communities. They are a very valuable asset to the communities. Under budget restraint, the contribution grants for $6,000 in smaller communities seems too small for operating radio stations. When we are in our constituency, it is very difficult to release money to operate radio stations.

In my own community, we always have to contribute money to radio stations since we do not get enough contributions or grants from the government. Mr. Speaker, the $6,000 have been in the plans for I don't know how many years. Perhaps, sometime, we could have these contributions raised for operating radio stations. Mr. Speaker, the contribution amount for $6,000 is the one I'm talking about.

Thank you, Mr. Pudlat. Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Arngna'naaq.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to take a couple of minutes of Members' time today to speak on a matter which many of the people in the eastern Arctic are concerned about. Over the past few days, we have listened attentively to discussions about difficulties that some of the Members are having, and this has to do with the highways.

Mr. Speaker, I wish that we, in the east, would have highways to speak of. This, however, is not the case. For too many years, the Government of the Northwest Territories has been preoccupied with the comforts of southern Canada and how those comforts could be brought up north. In doing so, it has concentrated on the western Northwest Territories and not the whole of the Northwest Territories. In fact, I believe that to be the case today.

The concern I am raising has to do with access roads. Mr. Speaker, Mr. Todd has made reference to this a number of times in this House, and I appreciate that. However, once again, the indications that we receive in the east are that there are no policies on access roads. There is a major difference between access roads and highways.

Access roads which are being requested would be used mainly by hunters, trappers and fishermen. This is where I have difficulty. While we were at a meeting of the hamlet council in Baker Lake, early this month, a representative of the Department of Transportation stated that a policy on access roads would have to be created which deals with recreational roads.

Mr. Speaker, why would a policy on access roads have to be created? Are there not any access roads in the west? How is it that the Government of the Northwest Territories is able to make roads in the west and not in the east? I would like to point out that a hunter from the south would be considered a recreational or sports hunter, but when you come into a community, of which the majority are aboriginal people, the hunters and fishermen are not recreational hunters. They are actually trying to feed their families. I have stated many times, when Inuit hunters are hunting, they are hunting for food. They are hunting to supplement the food they receive from Social Services or from their employment. This is true, at least, in the communities which I represent.

They are not out there hunting to show what...

Mr. Arngna'naaq.

Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to continue my statement.

The honourable Member is seeking unanimous consent. Are there any nays? There are no nays. Please proceed, Mr. Arngna'naaq.