Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Tree of Peace has operated educational programs since 1972. I was approached by Mr. Eagle on March 25 because he and I had, in fact, been involved in many of these contribution agreements in the 1970s. He told me that he was uncertain about the future of the Tree of Peace but he had nothing in writing as to what exactly was happening and what the commitments were. I talked to the Minister of Education who assured me that, in the last week of December, a letter had been sent to the Tree of Peace indicating what the future of the kindergarten programs, and the funding arrangements for adult education programs, would be.

That afternoon I went to the Tree of Peace and found that the last letter that the Tree of Peace had received from the department was from a year and a half ago. So, I returned to the House and asked Mr. Nerysoo if he would fax a copy of the letter to Mr. Eagle, so that Mr. Eagle would know exactly what was intended. No such letter was available, so a new one was written dated March 25 that went to Mr. Eagle indicating that, in fact, as of the end of this year, June, there would be no money for the kindergarten program. This program has existed, as I have said, Mr. Speaker, since 1972 because it is a very unique kind of program in which 32 students are involved and 80 per cent of them are aboriginal young people. The impetus for the program began with Florence Erasmus in the early days, who felt very strongly that young aboriginal people should have some grounding in their language and culture. It was on that basis that this particular program was funded through the Tree of Peace. The department has indicated in its letter to Mr. Eagle that he would like to discuss what options may be available to the Tree of Peace if they wish to continue with this program, and they are prepared to sit down to discuss it. However, it seems clear from the letter that the department no longer wishes to fund the kindergarten program at the Tree of Peace and there should be an explanation as to why, in fact, that program is now being cut. Thank you.

Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Pudluk.

(Translation) Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I stand today with regard to the response I received to my question concerning the effect of dumping waste in the ocean by PanArctic, and also of the DEW Line covering up the debris, to

the environment. Mr. Speaker, the return to my written question of February 23, regarding DEW Line and PanArctic, is that the response is not appropriate, it is not adequate. To my understanding, the answer to my question appears to support the dumping of the waste in the ocean. It does not state that they will be confronted to make an agreement with the companies involved.

I further want to say that when we have been away from our country it is hard to determine what it is like. After I have been away from Pond Inlet for awhile, I soon forget what it is like. All of us from the north know the ground which we walk on. If we are to say we are from the Arctic it is true. We all know that the response to my question from the Minister responsible for the environment, the Minister of Renewable Resources...

Mr. Pudluk, your allotted time has elapsed.

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

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

(Translation) Thank you, Mr. Speaker and colleagues. We all know the area, Beattie Island is where the graves are located. It has been 140 years since those bodies were buried. We saw through television that after 146 years, the bodies which had been buried, when they were dug up, you could still distinguish the bodies and the features, you could recognize them. Today, if you were to be buried in the permafrost of the north, after 146 years you could be recognized. In the statement it is stated that the debris, the garbage, which had been buried underground will reappear in the summer. As far as I know this does not happen because the permafrost does not thaw out very deep.

The way in which I understood the response is, after they are dug up, after they have been buried, they would surface again. I do not agree with this. The response in the written letter, I have come to realize, did not come from the Minister. The response was prepared by the department which is supporting the dumping of the waste in the environment. With an agreement from the Minister, his department can easily do this. So, I do not believe in this response to my question. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

If I could just remind Members, we are coming to the end of the session. So If the Members could please show respect to the House and each other as we wind down the session, it would be appreciated. Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Patterson.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to respectfully comment on statements made by the Minister of Social Services yesterday, in response to Mr. Koe's questions. To the effect that "...it would not be advisable to use the agreement for the transfer of social services responsibilities to the town of Iqaluit as a model because it is ten years old." Mr. Speaker, to inform this House, the town of Iqaluit has been unhappy with these agreement for many years. The agreement is an agency agreement. It gives the town very little flexibility to set its own priorities in the social services areas within its responsibilities. It retains significant controls over major decisions in social services headquarters in Yellowknife and, until recently, payment authorities as well.

I would respectfully suggest that the Honourable Minister of Social Services be committed to responding to the long standing request of the town of Iqaluit to modernize and revise the agreement between her department and the town so that it is not an agency agreement, but a real community transfer agreement. It is not acceptable, in my opinion, that the Minister of Social Services should appear complacent about this ten year old model being inadvisable. She should be committed to revising and updating the agreement so it is a real transfer of power and not a clone of a departmental program. That agreement will not be a model for community transfer as long as there is continued resistance from the government to amending the agreement to transfer real authority and discretion to the town of Iqaluit.

When I was Minister of Social Services, I took steps to ensure the agreement would be substantially amended with fundamental character changes, but I was not around long enough to follow that through. The town is ready and willing to be much more than the department's agent. The town is anxious to set its own priorities and manage available funds with the flexibility to respond to shifting local needs and demands.

In closing, I urge the Minister to direct her officials to work with the town and revise this agreement.

Mr. Patterson.

Thank you.

Thank you.

---Applause

Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Zoe.

Mr. Zoe, your allotted time has elapsed.

Agreed.

---Agreed

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

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

(Translation) Thank you, Mr. Speaker. With regard to the statement made by my colleague for High Arctic, Mr. Speaker, the Members sitting on both sides of the House all know that we have grown up in the north and when we were growing up, we never experienced our ancestors dumping waste in the environment. We will be encouraging the government to try to not spoil our environment. We all share the same world and we do not want to dump waste in our environment. There is no agreement in place to prevent the dumping of waste in our environment. Mr. Speaker, I am in full support of the Member for High Arctic and his struggle. I just wanted to comment on that. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause

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

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. I would like to make a few comments on the state of our economy and employment in the Northwest Territories. Mr. Speaker, many Members of this Assembly, especially our colleague Mr. Todd who has since moved to the other side of this House, have made many eloquent statements about our economy and the status of unemployment in the Northwest Territories.

In the last Assembly, there was a special committee that looked at the economic situations and did extensive work and prepared various strategies. I think the report was titled the SCONE report and dealt on various strategies dealing with arts and crafts, small business, transportation, renewable resources and tourism.

Yet today, Mr. Speaker, we are still faced with the same situations: high transportation costs; chronic unemployment; increased taxes; increasing our WCB rates which affect employment; and increasing paper burdens on businesses, organizations and residences. We are still talking about these things. The budget address which the Minister of Finance presented to this House relies greatly on non-renewable resource developments and hydro developments. I guess his wish and all of ours is that some of these developments would come to fruition and solve some of the problems we are experiencing.

Also, the new programs, the amalgamation of Education, Culture and Employment Programs, and the Public Works and Housing programs put together are hopefully going to help resolve some of these issues. However, we still need better communication. I think our time for words and studies are long passed. We have heard these over and over again, now is the time for action. Mahsi.

---Applause

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise today to give my position on uranium mining in any area of the Beverly Qamanirjuaq caribou range. At the time of the federal environmental assessment review hearings which took place in the Northwest Territories for the Kiggavik mine, I had not really taken a position. As the local economic development officer,

I stood before the panel and indicated that the opening of the mine would create employment in the Keewatin region.

Mr. Speaker, at that time it was my mandate to assist in the creation of employment. That mandate is still part of my responsibilities today. However, I have to take into consideration all the surrounding elements of such proposals. One of the ongoing concerns is the effect that such mines will have on the wildlife which our people have depended upon for thousands of years. Especially in the area around Baker Lake, there is essentially one type of animal which the people are able to subsist on. That, as everyone should know well by now, is the caribou. There are other wildlife which the people hunted traditionally such as the musk-oxen, however they are an endangered species in the area where I live. Mr. Speaker, I would very much like to support something which will create employment, but a uranium mine has too many unanswered questions which even the people in the industry are not able to answer. I, therefore, have to oppose any move to open uranium mines.

I have over the years become one of those people who is a weekend hunter and thoroughly enjoy traditional foods. I would like to pass on these trades to my children and with the prospects of uranium mines opening in the area where the caribou roam, I do not know whether my children will be able to hunt and eat the same kinds of foods that I am able to enjoy.

I would like to show my appreciation to the people in the community of Baker Lake who fought to hard to preserve our traditional way of life. They were the same people who made presentations at the FEARO hearings against the Kiggavik mine. I believe they did the right thing. I hope they will continue to work together to oppose any opening of uranium mines in the Beverly Qamanirjuaq caribou range. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.