Ms. Mike.

(Not recorded)

Item 5, oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Gargan.

Thank you. My question is for the Minister of Social Services, Mr. Speaker. Some time ago one of the Minister's predecessors, Mr. Whitford, assured the House that his officials would brief the alcohol and drug administration from other jurisdiction about the Northwest Territories' decision to proceed with this policy. Would the Minister be willing to provide the House with the report of when and how this briefing was conducted?

Ms. Mike.

(Translation) Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, I will take this question as notice and report back to the House.

The question has been taken as notice. Item 5, oral questions. Mr. Whitford.

Mr. Morin.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. That responsibility has been transferred to the Department of the Executive.

Madam Premier.

Mr. Speaker, I believe that we did make a statement that there is a travel management office set up and we have requested responses to gather information from the industry and people who are interested in providing us with information and opportunities. The study will cover all travel undertaken by the Government of the Northwest Territories, including duty travel, student travel, third party travel and medical travel. The study is to examine the way in which the Government of the Northwest Territories manages the acquisition or reporting of the travel services it pays for, and it is to develop and recommend the approaches that should be pursued in establishing and operating the travel management office.

It was also to identify options available to the Government of the Northwest Territories which may be chosen or further developed for implementation in an overall travel management plan. It is also set up to identify options which will enable the Government of the Northwest Territories to better approve travel, track expenditures and capture travel data which will facilitate better travel management in the future.

What we have asked, in the advertisement, is to cover specific areas to provide to the government recommendations as to how the approval of travel and the review of the resulting travel claims could be better managed, as follows: to indicate ways in which the provision of fair options and other travel information may be made available in advance to manager approving travel; the training requirements for GNWT staff, which would be involved in travel approval or claim processing; the identification of information which should be capture to enable the GNWT to better manage its travel and options; recommend an alternative use of travel points to the GNWT benefits; identify immediate cost savings achievable; identify areas in which cost savings are achievable over the longer term; what will be required to realize these savings; and to identify the impact that reduced travel expenditures may have on the northern travel industry and northern air carriers.

We have received a number of responses from industry travel agencies and other people to provide an overall outlook in those areas. We are presently assessing them and we will be making a determination on which proposal should be accepted. To note, there has been some misunderstanding that this advertisement was not very clear and that some travel agencies felt that we were going to take over all the travel arrangements, but that was not the intent as was stated in the budget address today. Thank you.

Supplementary, Mr. Whitford.

Ms. Cournoyea.

We have an individual who is coordinating the work to be done, but we have not contracted out to any agency at this point in time.

Item 5, oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Whitford.

Ms. Cournoyea.

Mr. Speaker, the decision has not been made. However, I could inform the Member that submissions on the work outline were received from YZF Corporation Travel, Mack Travel, Inuvialuit Development Corporation and Marlin Travel Group, but no decision has been made. These are the proposals that have been received.

Item 5, oral questions. Mrs. Marie-Jewell.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have a question to the Minister of Renewable Resources. Mr. Speaker, since the Minister indicated that they may consider a lease to purchase concept for the maintenance facility, why is the department not entertaining proposals for the construction of this facility from the community of Fort Smith?

Mr. Allooloo.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. At the present time, we do not know what sort of facility we will require in terms of aircraft maintenance and training, et cetera. Thank you.