Mr. Chairman, with regard to the three acts. Since the bill was introduced, we have been having some discussions with band councils. They have a concern with regard to empowering the local municipalities to administer lands and real property, even prior to resolving the issue of who owns the land. I think that's the problem that some of the communities have, with regard to these amendments to the act.

The other thing, Mr. Chairman, is that we had public meetings in major communities, but we haven't really gone to smaller communities where they have band councils and hamlet councils. Although big cities like Yellowknife support this, it's because it reassures them that their land is secure, that it's not going to go to anybody else. In the municipalities, once you empower the municipalities to do that, then it takes away the power of the land through the band councils. Anything they do in giving property to other people, it becomes real property. The act itself, assures people that nobody else will get that land, even though we might be looking at disputed lands whether it's under claims or non-claimant areas. It's really giving one group of people the authority to disperse and to give.