Mr. Patterson asked three questions regarding the placement of advertising supplements in Above and Beyond magazine.

1. What was the cost of advertising supplements in Above and Beyond magazine featuring NWT Housing Corporation, MACA and Education?

Above and Beyond magazine has a circulation of 30,000 copies per issue, 17,000 of which are distributed in the Northwest Territories. In the territories, the magazine is sent by direct mail by the publisher to municipal and community governments, their council members, the membership of territorial and regional aboriginal and non-aboriginal organizations, business and industry. It is also available as an inflight magazine on First Air.

The following information indicates the cost of placing advertising supplements in the magazine by various departments and the number of additional copies of the insert that were delivered to each department for additional distribution purposes.

Housing Corporation; date - October 1994; cost - $35,310; extra copies - 1,000; Education; date - April 1993; cost - $35,000; extra copies - 2,500; MACA; date - December 1992; cost - $27,310; extra copies - 700; MACA; date - October 1991; cost - $35,400; extra copies - 600.

2. Is it the policy of the Government of the Northwest Territories to purchase advertising copy from publishers who present the advertising as if it was an editorial copy without identifying it as a paid advertising supplement?

No. Identification of the copy as an advertising supplement is the prerogative of the publisher.

3. Is it not the policy of the Government of the Northwest Territories to tender such significant advertising supplements to northern publishers so as to give every northern business equal opportunity for government advertising business?

Contract regulations generally require tendering for contracts over $5,000, but exceptions can be made in the case of sole-source contracts when only one party is considered capable of performing the work. As there is more than one magazine publisher in the NWT, departments will be directed to make sure they invite proposals for the production of special advertising supplements.