Thank you. You asked two questions in one. Minister of Public Works and Services, Mr. Morin.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. During the consultation process, we will be using independent consultants from the regions to consult with businesses, hamlet councils, local band councils and everybody else who has to be involved in this consultation process. We are also required, under land claims agreements, to consult with land claims organizations like the Sahtu, the Gwich'in and the Inuit people, to ensure that they're involved in any major change to any major government policy.

The general message that I've gotten from people in the communities and business people, everyone I've talked to so far has been positive about the consultation process. They like the idea that independent consultants will be consulting with them, with the support of DPW staff. The majority of the people I've heard from are in great support of this consultation process, except for the Northwest Territories Construction Association. The executive director is the only one who is dissatisfied with it. Thank you.

Supplementary, Mr. Whitford.

Minister of Public Works and Services, Mr. Morin.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. The idea of hiring consultants is so that the Department of Public Works staff is not doing the consulting; they're there as technical support people. An independent consultant who does not work for the department as an employee would be consulting with the people in the regions. That's how it is to be set up. Thank you.

Thank you. Supplementary, Mr. Whitford.

Minister of Public Works and Services, Mr. Morin.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I'm not saying that this would happen or the Department of Public Works civil servants would do this, but in some cases when people develop a paper they become possessive of it. Or when they're supposed to be going out to consult, they go out to defend the paper. That's not the case, I did not want that to happen. In this case, the Department of Public Works drafted a new business incentive policy. It's clearly by my direction that it goes out to consultation in draft form so that we can get the good ideas of the business people out there and the community groups, and implement that in a new draft. The best way to do that is to have an independent consultant to facilitate in the communities. We will be going to request for proposals for regional facilitators. That will appear in the newspapers in the next couple of weeks. I'm sure they will have business licences and all the instruments involved in running that type of business.

It will clearly be an independent process, with technical help from DPW so that we can document the good recommendations from the communities and the regions. Thank you.

Thank you. Final supplementary, Mr. Whitford.

Minister of Public Works and Services, Mr. Morin.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. We will ensure that all businesses, small or big, will have an opportunity to respond to the draft business incentive policy. Many have gone out in the mail already, I believe, to the communities and the regions so they have the document ahead of time. I'm looking forward to hearing from them so we draft a business incentive policy that will be simple but yet will close the loopholes there now that allow southern businesses to take advantage of the policy. Thank you.

Thank you. Item 6, oral questions. The honourable Member for Deh Cho, Mr. Gargan.