Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, last week I made a statement about my disappointment with this government's handling and administration of the Canada/Northwest Territories cooperation agreement on aboriginal languages and French. The issues came to light when the first annual report of the Languages Commissioner of the Northwest Territories was tabled in this Assembly. Mr. Speaker, it seems that some Cabinet Ministers are not completely enamoured with this report, nor do they agree with some of the information which was printed in the report. For example, the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment stated, and I quote from unedited Hansard of December 1, "There is refutable information in this report." He also stated, and I quote, "I have read the summary and in my view, it is not completely accurate." Mr. Speaker, I understand that Members have the privilege of making comments on reports and I know that certain groups of people in this House have access to much more information and decision-making responsibilities than others, and should be given the chance to review and investigate the issues and concerns raised by people in positions such as the Languages Commissioner.
However, Mr. Speaker, I have great concern when Members, who are in a position of authority, make statements which try to alleviate the focus from their responsibilities. The main point in the Languages Commissioner's review of the languages agreement is that this government lapsed significant amounts of funds, which I believe could have been used to support and enhance many of our northern languages projects. Mr. Speaker, the responsibility rests with each Minister to encourage, enhance, and promote the use of aboriginal languages in the workplace and in the north. To me, it doesn't matter that the underspending was $1,000 or $1 million dollars. The point is, all the funds should be utilized for the items for which they were budgeted.
Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to continue my statement.