Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Tu Nedhe, that Bill 13, An Act to Amend the Motor Vehicles Act, be read for the first time.

The motion is in order. To the motion.

Question.

Question is being called. All those in favour of the motion, please signify. All those opposed? Motion is carried.

---Carried

Bill 13 has had first reading. Item 18, first reading of bills. Mr. Todd.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Tu Nedhe, that Bill 14, An Act to Repeal the Public Service Vehicles Act, be read for the first time.

The motion is in order. To the motion.

Question.

Question is being called. All those in favour of the motion, please signify. All those opposed? Motion is carried.

---Carried

Bill 14 has had first reading. Item 18, first reading of bills. Item 19, second reading of bills. Item 20, consideration in committee of the whole of bills and other matters: Tabled Document 14-12(6), "Open for Business" - Privatizing the Northwest Territories Power Corporation; Tabled Document 23-12(6), Report of the 1993-94 Electoral District Boundaries Commission Northwest Territories; Minister's Statement 11-12(6), Return to Session; Committee Report 6-12(6), Report on the Review of Bill 3 - Guardianship and Trusteeship Act; Committee Report 7-12(6), Report on the Review of Bill 7 - An Act to Amend the Arctic College Act; Committee Report 9-12(6), Investing In Our Future, October 1994; Committee Report 10-12(6), Report on the Review of the 1995-96 Capital Estimates; Bill 1, Appropriation Act, No. 1, 1995-96; Bill 2, Aboriginal Custom Adoption Recognition Act; Bill 3, Guardianship and Trusteeship Act; Bill 7, An Act to Amend the Arctic College Act; Bill 8, An Act to Amend the Public Utilities Act, with Mr. Whitford in the chair.

Agreed.

---Agreed Committee Report 7-12(6): Report On The Review Of Bill 7 - An Act To Amend The Arctic College Act

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The standing committee has had the opportunity to review Bill 7, An Act to Amend the Arctic College Act, and has presented its report in the House for consideration. As is stated in our report on the review of Bill 7, the standing committee has two concerns:

1. that this bill places the authority to establish and name colleges in regulation. The committee is not convinced that the establishment and naming of colleges should be decided behind closed doors;

2. that this bill repeals the Science Institute Act and the potential loss of Science Institutes into peripheral abilities may have serious implications on science research and activities in the north and that the colleges' priorities of training and education would overshadow the Science Institute.

Mr. Chairman, I would like to indicate that although the committee passed a motion to refer this bill to the committee of the whole it could be debated clause by clause, that the committee also pass a motion not to support Bill 7 in its present form. The motion for non-support received unanimous consent by Members in attendance. The standing committee fully supports the creation of two colleges in the Northwest Territories to prepare for Nunavut.

The committee also was concerned, however, that this bill places the authority to establish and name colleges in regulation. The decision to create or dissolve colleges is important to the public, as well as Members of this House. The committee is not convinced that the establishment and naming of colleges should be decided by Cabinet.

The committee believes that these decisions should have a level of accountability to the Members of the Assembly attached to them. Therefore, I have a motion, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The Standing Committee on Legislation recommends that the establishment and naming of colleges be established in legislation where Members of the Assembly may participate in the process and, further, that the legislation expressly limit the creation of colleges to two, one in the west and one in Nunavut.

Question.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, that concludes our report on Bill 7.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. This is one situation that I don't like being placed in, but I am placed in it. The fact is, my name is mentioned in the committee report because I am an alternate Member of the Standing Committee on Legislation. As an alternate Member of this committee, I have been quite active in the committee and have participated in some of its deliberations.

In this case, I participated in some of the discussions and deliberations that led up to the review of the Arctic College Act. I find myself in a precarious position where I am opposed to the recommendations made by the Standing Committee on Legislation. The situation I find myself in is that a motion was passed by the committee not to support Bill 7 in its present form. Fortunately, or unfortunately, I wasn't at that meeting.

But I was present during some of the deliberations and I find myself in this position because, as an alternate Member, you are called when you are required, usually to make a quorum. The door is always open to participate and, at the time the motion was made, I wasn't present. But I did by letter and by personal presentation to the committee, express my concerns. I was hoping that the committee would, somewhere, give a qualification that the total committee was not in agreement with the position taken by the majority of Members who voted.

That didn't happen, so I find myself, today, having to state my case of my opposition to the committee on the matter of the bill repealing the Science Institute Act. I personally am in favour of the amalgamation of the Science Institute with Arctic College. I also supported the decisions made by Cabinet, I think it was a year and a half ago or longer, to move the Science Institute to the communities. One community that is impacted, obviously, is Inuvik where the western headquarters of the Science Institute would be located. That decision was made quite some time ago and we have been waiting, very patiently, for the repeal of the act and the approval of the new act so that the move can take place accordingly.

If the Members of this Legislative Assembly support the committee's motion not to present Bill 7 in its present form, then those types of activities wouldn't take place. That's why I'm raising these issues and concerns. It has bothered me greatly because of the position I have been placed in. I have no other recourse, other than to make this statement at this time. As I mentioned, I work with the committee. I told them I would be making this statement. They have it in writing that I don't support what they stated in the report, and I wanted to make my position very clear, for the record. Mahsi.