The Honourable Minister Pollard has been asked by Mr. Morin to answer any questions and look after House business in his absence. Thank you.

Thank you. Government House Leader, Mr. Pollard.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, I don't know why all the houses were not done when the appraisers first visited Coral Harbour, and I don't know why the trip was cancelled in September, because I understood it was going to go ahead. But, the government is anxious to sell and if there are people anxious to buy, then we will send appraisers in there just as soon as we possibly can, Madam Speaker. Thank you.

Thank you. Item 5, oral questions. Just before we go on to written questions, I want to advise Members that I have been very lenient with the amount of time spent for preambles, and questions that have been posed during the past two days. However, in our new session in February, I will ask Members to be conscientious of the length of time used for preambles in questions posed. And, I would like to ask Ministers to be conscientious of the time spent in answering questions. Thank you.

Item 6, written questions. The honourable Member for Iqaluit, Mr. Patterson.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. My written question is to both the Ministers of Public Works and Personnel, as follows.

Would the Minister responsible for the Department of Personnel please advise this House of the following:

As I understand the staff housing strategy, all staff housing units were to be assessed for energy efficiency and state of repair. The Department of Personnel was then to reassess and adjust rental rates and rental increases, to reflect the condition of the housing unit.

1. Was there an assessment of the condition of the so-called "white row housing" units in Iqaluit?

2. What were the results of those assessments?

3. Have those results been reflected in reassessed rents?

Would the Minister responsible for the Department of Public Works please advise this House of the following. As I understand the staff housing strategy, all staff housing units were to be assessed for energy efficiency and state of repair. The Department of Personnel was then to reassess and adjust rental rates and rental increases to reflect the condition of the housing unit.

1. Was there an assessment of the condition of the so-called "white row housing" units in Iqaluit?

2. What were the results of those assessments?

3. Have those results been reflected in reassessed rents?

Thank you.

Thank you. Item 6, written questions. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Antoine.

Mahsi, Madam Speaker. I have a series of questions. They are all related to the same subject. This is for the Minister of Renewable Resources.

Would the Minister of Renewable Resources please provide the following information to this House. A breakdown of the following species of big game taken last year in each hunting zone in the Mackenzie mountains:

- moose - bull, cow and calves

- caribou - bull, cow and calves

- grizzly bears

- black bears

- Dahl sheep - rams, ewes

What did each outfitter do with the meat of the animals taken?

Did any of the meat go to the communities? If so, which communities and when?

What was taken out of the country? Trophies? Were there export permits issued? How were they issued?

What was the number of people employed by the big game outfitters from each committee in the Deh Cho region, the Sahtu region and the Gwich'in region? Who were they and when were they employed?

Mahsi.

Thank you. Item 6, written questions. Item 7, returns to written questions. Item 8, replies to opening address. Item 9, petitions. Item 10, reports of standing and special committees. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Antoine.

I have a report here that I wanted to read, but there is so much paper here that I can't find it.

Thank you. Your motion is in order. To the motion. Mr. Pollard.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. To the motion. Madam Speaker, the committee uses some rather strong language, "Members expected that the government would be further advanced in the process of deficit management". We are fairly advanced, Madam Speaker. "Lack of preparation", we are fairly well-prepared, Madam Speaker, in our opinion. I do admit that the paper does not clearly specify or assess the details of their various choices, but I heard in the review, from various Members, that it's consultation, consultation, consultation. If I had come forward with a paper and placed it upon the table and said, well this is what we intend to do, then I would have likely received a response from Members saying, well you never consulted us, you didn't priorize with us. So, I placed a rather bland paper before this House to enable Members to do exactly what it says here in the issues and recommendations on page five, "Members believe" and I quote Madam Speaker, "that the government must establish spending priorities which accurately reflect the current political realities of all Members of the Legislative Assembly and citizens of the Northwest Territories". Where else am I going to get that political reality except from Members of this House? Who better can I get the reading of the Northwest Territories and its constituents from, but the Members who represent those constituents right on the floor of this House. So, that was the information that I was looking for, Madam Speaker.

Madam Speaker, the report goes on to say that we must make an effort to have a plan for ten years. Madam Speaker, there is not a government across this country right now that can plan beyond three or four years. That's how fast this fiscal situation

is moving in the Northwest Territories, in the Yukon, in all of the provinces and with the Government of Canada.

Madam Speaker, it's like trying to keep up with a runaway train. What I wanted to do, by placing that discussion paper before this House, is to say look, give us some ideas of what the priorities are of this particular Legislative Assembly. I heard last week, I listened and I learned that social issues are a large concern. That's good, I know what to take to FMB the next time I'm there, to discuss with the Members the fact that you want to see senior citizens taken care of. You want to see the food basket money increase. You want to see that we have caring programs for people who are not as fortunate as us. I take that and understand it and I will do something about it.

But, you see, there are other things that we need to know. We need to know whether you want to priorize housing or whether you want to priorize education. We want to know whether you want to invest money in the economy. We want to know whether you want to continue with parks. We want to know whether you want to continue with an infrastructure for transportation. We want to know whether you want us to put pavement down on the road or leave it as gravel. We want to know if you want to put a new airport in or lengthen an airport or put in a new building. We want to know what Members are feeling, with regard to the political aspirations of their communities and the needs and the wants of their constituents. That was the reason that we placed this paper there.

Now, if you want us to come to you and say, well this is the decision that we've made based on what we've seen and heard maybe from Chambers of Commerce, maybe from the Association of Municipalities, maybe from a lot of the social organizations out there, that's fine. We'll bring that back to you and say, this is the budget as we see it. But, we really would have liked to get some discussion going to give us some direction about where you, the people who represent the people of the Northwest Territories, are coming from.

So, I will not be moving the motion today to move it into committee of the whole, Madam Speaker, as I think the committee report definitely suggests that I shouldn't do that. I want to let Members know that I am prepared to consult in groups, individually, any way you want to do it, on how we put together our budgets for the next three, four, five years and what emphasis should be placed upon those budgets. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Pollard. To the motion. The honourable Member for Iqaluit, Mr. Patterson.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I would just like to respond to some of the comments made by the honourable Minister of Finance. Madam Speaker, first of all, I would like to assure the Minister that, as an ordinary Member, I am well aware of the responsibility that we have, especially in a consensus system, to take responsibility and participate in some of the difficult decisions that we know are ahead of this government and indeed other governments in this country, at this point in our history. At the same time, Madam Speaker, the Minister of Finance is correct when he says that there is a high expectation about consultation, but Madam Speaker, I don't believe that what the Minister himself has admitted is a bland paper, a paper with very little detail to it, a paper with

very little flesh to it, is adequate consultation. I think that the Minister must understand that, rather than shying away from participating in the tough decisions that have to be made, the hesitation on the part of Members on this side of the House, is that we simply don't have the detailed knowledge of departments, we don't have the detailed knowledge of the financial implications of various cuts and restraint measures to properly assess the implications of the various options presented.

I think that the problem here is that we are seeking a middle ground. Not, the extreme that the Minister of Finance has suggested would happen, where we would be presented with a fait accompli, where he would bring in a detailed package of restraint measures and take his chances in the House. That is not in the spirit of consensus or the spirit of consultation that we want, but neither is having a rather vacuous debate on a paper that is full of bland principles. I think what is missing here is that we would have liked to have some flesh put on those principle and on those options that were presented to us. With respect, that's what's deficient in this paper, it simply doesn't follow through and give us the concrete implications of some of those options.

That's the problem here, Madam Speaker. I think we would have liked to have seen a paper with more detail and more flesh to it. I hope that, as we work to face this crisis together, there still will be a mechanism developed whereby that kind of more detailed discussion of options can occur before we finalize the coming fiscal year's O&M budget. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Thank you. To the motion. The honourable Member for Yellowknife Frame Lake, Mr. Dent.

Thank you. To the motion.

Question.

Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? Motion is carried.

---Carried

Item 11, reports of committees on the review of bills. Item 12, tabling of documents. The honourable Member for Deh Cho, Mr. Gargan.

Madam Speaker, I wish to table, Tabled Document 11-12(5), the First Annual Report of the Languages Commissioner of the Northwest Territories for the year 1992-93.

Thank you. Item 12, tabling of documents. Item 13, notices of motion. The honourable Member for Baffin Central, Ms. Mike.

Madam Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to go back to tabling of documents.