Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, one of the items that is part of this negative $151,000 is a negative $500,000 to transfer funding from the youth initiatives program to the Department of Education, Culture and Employment. Mr. Chairman, I think that a lot of Members will have concerns about this.

The youth initiatives program was one of those few government programs that I think had extremely broad support by ordinary Members in this House. I think that this government has come under serious criticism in the past for not ensuring that the public was aware of the youth initiatives program and ensuring that funds were not lapsed. There has been an awful lot of criticism for the amount of funds which have lapsed in this program every year, at least since I've been elected and I expect it went on before that.

Mr. Chairman, when we travelled with the Special Committee on Health and Social Services, we found an awful lot of people in the communities who are unaware of this program. And I know of situations where after, as a committee Member, I made people aware of the program's existence that they made application and were successful in getting funding. I don't believe an adequate publicity program was ever entered into by this government to ensure that the people of the north knew of the availability of the youth initiatives program. I am very concerned that because it has been lapsing funds in the past, that this was seen as an area from which funds could be taken for another project.

I'm not trying to say that the pilot project to which these funds are being transferred is not worthwhile, I don't know enough about that project to make that assessment. But I do think that what the youth initiatives program was intended to accomplish was a very important goal, and I'm very disturbed to see the reduction in the youth initiatives program funding. I would much rather have seen all of the funds being spent, but I think the only way that was going to happen would be if this government got busy and made sure that people across the north knew how to apply to use those funds. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.