Madam Speaker, about a year and a half ago, shortly after I had taken over the portfolio of Justice, I communicated with the commanding officer of the RCMP. At that time, I discussed the same issue as I did with the new commanding officer, Mr. Watt, who came into the job shortly after that: that it's my job, primarily, to pass on the needs of communities, as I see them, through the eyes and the voices of the Legislature and the Members in it. It's his job to meet the policing needs with the existing resources he has under the existing contract. Between the two of us, we should try to work together the best we can under the environment.

It's not this government that has been holding the RCMP to less than what they should have been funded for in the first place. But it's been this government's commitment to try to find the money to bring them back up to speed, so to speak, and that's what I've been trying to do. The RCMP have been assured that that's what I'm still trying to do. As recently as Saturday night, when I met with the Commissioner of the RCMP from Ottawa, the same message was given to him: that we would try to do that.

But all the policing needs of the communities across the north stand on their own, I agree with that. I agree that the policing needs of Yellowknife can stand on their own as well. But it is true, for instance, that the Giant Mine strike didn't happen in Iqaluit, and it didn't happen in Inuvik, and it didn't happen in Resolution; it happened right here in the capital of the Northwest Territories. There is a billing dispute of $2 million. Now, that's a policing need of Yellowknife that's very specific. The jurisdiction falls under the federal government. The federal government had the power to move into a strike that was starting to escalate and get very ugly. There were calls from everyone to do that; it wasn't done. The problem now, even at this date, is if we don't do anything to get the federal government to recognize it, the same thing can happen again. We would still be stuck with another bill that's unpaid. And the RCMP are the ones who are suffering from this dispute at this time. I raise it because it's a huge billing dispute that's unique to Yellowknife.

We need to recognize that the funding shortfall here is starting to cost us. We've agreed with the Commissioner of the RCMP, Mr. Murray, that we should both try to get the federal government to recognize that, one way or the other, they have to do something. In this case, a specific policing need arising in the city of Yellowknife is going to have a big impact on the level of policing across the territories unless we come to some resolution fairly quickly on it. Thank you.