Good afternoon. Item 2, Ministers' statements. The honourable Member for Hay River, Mr. Pollard.

Thank you, Madam Speaker, and good afternoon. Madam Speaker, I wish to advise Members that the Honourable Stephen Kakfwi will be absent from the House for the remainder of the week to attend constitutional consultation meetings in his constituency. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Thank you. Item 2, Ministers' statements. The honourable Member for Baffin Central, Ms. Mike.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. On October 31st I was asked a question by the honourable Member for Inuvik dealing with the resignation of two NWT directors from the International Committee of the Arctic Winter Games. The question was based on a news report that the members were forced to resign. I replied, "not to my knowledge."

On my return from Iqaluit, it was brought to my attention that a number of Members had a concern about my response to the question by Mr. Koe. Madam Speaker, when the decision was announced to hold the games in Yellowknife, rather than Inuvik, the deputy minister of Municipal and Community Affairs was instructed to examine a number of options on where we go from here.

Those options included having the deputy minister determine whether the directors were prepared to consider resigning their positions on the committee as a sign of protect against the manner in which Inuvik was disqualified as a host community, and the lack of procedures for the host jurisdiction to participate in making the final decision. I subsequently received a letter from Mr. Donald Cooper informing me of his decision to resign from the committee for personal reasons. In addition, Mr. Ian Legaree stated in a letter to the committee that his resignation was in protest of the decision.

Madam Speaker, I want to inform Mr. Koe and Members of this House that my response to his question was not adequate because it responded to the preamble of the question, rather than the question itself. I want to apologize for any misunderstandings my response may have created. Thank you.

Thank you. Item 2, Ministers' statements. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Yellowknife South, Mr. Whitford.

Thank you. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for North Slave, Mr. Zoe.

Thank you. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Antoine.

Mahsi, Madam Speaker. I rise today to express my concerns about the Canada/Northwest Territories infrastructure agreement that was signed on August 24th of this year by the Minister of Finance.

It is a good agreement because it puts additional money into communities for the development of their infrastructure. Although, Madam Speaker, I am somewhat disappointed about there being a cap on the amount of money available to smaller communities, particularly when these are usually communities that need the most help in developing their infrastructure. I understand that these restrictions were a precondition of the federal, not the territorial government. I applaud the efforts of the Minister in attempting to have this money distributed in a fair and equitable manner. I believe the negotiations were done with the best intentions under the restrictions placed on the access to the money by the federal government.

Madam Speaker, I am also concerned that some bands and Metis locals will not be able to benefit from this agreement because they do not have the funds to match the contribution from the federal and territorial governments.

I strongly urge this government to give as much leeway as possible to band councils and Metis locals, particularly those that have not signed a final land claims agreement, therefore do not have the accessible cash. This money should be distributed as fairly as possible, and among concerned stakeholders in each community.

Madam Speaker, my understanding of this agreement is that it is designed to improve the infrastructure in each community and to provide opportunities for training and employment for northerners. The agreement is being administered by the Department of Education, Culture and Employment, and I strongly urge each of the communities, the band councils and other aboriginal organizations to take advantage of this program to improve the quality of life in their home communities.

Madam Speaker, I will be monitoring progress of this agreement and will probably be asking questions in the future, perhaps even this afternoon. Mahsi cho.

Thank you. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Baffin South, Mr. Pudlat.

(Translation) Thank you, Madam Speaker. I have a concern regarding SBX-11 radios in my constituency. This has been a concern and the concern is that even though people don't have a licence to operate the radios, they operate them anyway. I believe we could get charged if we don't have a licence because they are aware of other people who are operating radios without licences. Some people in their communities are saying that they don't have to renew their licence because other people don't. I wonder how this can be operated properly. I will be raising questions later. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Thank you. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Deh Cho, Mr. Gargan.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, I have listened with interest a few weeks ago to the statement made by the Minister of Transportation about the positive results achieved by his department in running the community access road program. Madam Speaker, the community access road program is a good program. It is a good example of the government program meeting the needs of the people it is supposed to serve. I might drop a hint to my

constituents that the money from this program could be obtained to improve access to our traditional hunting grounds up around the Horn River.

Unfortunately, for my friend across the way, Madam Speaker, I do have a problem with one of his department's programs. I see in his budget that the Department of Transportation has budgeted money to improve the access roads into the larger communities on the highway system. We just have to look at the road that goes past this Assembly to see the results of this program; nice wide shoulders, turning lanes to speed up the flow of traffic, truly a modern transportation engineering...

---Laughter

Madam Speaker, if only the Queen visited us here every year, we would probably have paved roads to Coppermine and Inuvik by the year 2010.

Madam Speaker, I can agree with the principle of this program, however, they have forgotten someone. The road to the Hay River Reserve is very narrow. After or during a snowfall, no one driving can see the edge of the road. Madam Speaker, I have driven that stretch of the road from the highway to the reserve, a distance of only eight kilometres, and have seen the tracks of as many as four vehicles in the ditch after a snowfall. Madam Speaker, I am the first to admit that some of these mishaps may be the result of not driving on these road conditions often. But after darn near ending up in the rhubarb myself last year, I am of the belief that it is more the road's fault than the drivers'.

Madam Speaker, I strongly urge the Minister to also look at access roads in the smaller communities on our highway system, such as the Hay River Reserve, with a view of improving them also.

Madam Speaker, can I get unanimous consent to conclude my statement?

The honourable Member is seeking unanimous consent to continue. Are there any nays? There are no nays. Proceed, Mr. Gargan.

Thank you, Madam Speaker, honourable Members. We don't need pavement or turning lanes, but a few extra feet of shoulder on the road would go a long ways to improving driving conditions on the way to the Hay River Reserve before we have any tragic accidents. Mahsi cho.

Thank you. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Iqaluit, Mr. Patterson.

Madam Speaker, I've been out of the House for a few days this week, therefore, I am taking the liberty of making a little longer statement than normal, I want to warn you...

Boo.

...with the agreement of the House.

---Laughter

Madam Speaker, I'm very pleased that the business incentive policy is being reviewed. Although it has done a lot of good over the years in supporting northern employment, my assessment of the BIP today is that it is dominated by a centralized bureaucracy who apply the letter of the policy in each case and who lack the knowledge of local situations to make good judgements about eligibility based on the spirit and intent of the policy.

The result is that today certain cheaters are taking the Northwest Territories and its government for a big, big ride. The easiest way for me to describe the problem is to cite the rent supp tenders for social housing in Iqaluit this summer. The winning firm, Nova Construction, has not only northern but local preference, I understand. What actually happened in my constituency on this tender? Nova apparently won this tender on the basis of northern preference. The decision was made in Yellowknife. Nova was rated ahead of companies whose owners do live in the north, with significant assets, offices and resident managers. Who owns this company? Mike Mrdjenovich. He's a nice guy.

---Laughter

I have nothing against him personally. I see him occasionally in Iqaluit, but I understand that he lives on a ranch in Alberta. How does he rate northern preference? What did Nova contribute to the NWT or local economy with this job? I assume they were given the job on the basis of a promise to construct locally. They did subcontract construction to a local firm. However, that firm, in turn, subcontracted a big part of the construction work to Cedarcrest Homes of Winnipeg, Manitoba. Maybe all those employees of Cedarcrest Homes have been on a job somewhere in the NWT for three months and have an NWT health care card.

I would like to request permission to continue, Madam Speaker.

Thank you. The honourable Member is seeking unanimous consent to continue. Are there any nays? There are no nays. Please proceed, Mr. Patterson.

Thank you. I would like to know if they have NWT health care cards. If they do, then they'll also get exempted from the NWT payroll tax. They live in Winnipeg. They are cited to justify northern employment to qualify for local preference. They get a rebate on NWT payroll tax because they have health care cards and they live in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Shame.

Now, that is not the only damage this company has done to the territorial economy. In the eastern Arctic, for government contracts, the GNWT requires the use of operation sealift, the government tendered sealift operation, so that economies of scale can be preserved and sailings can be guaranteed.

Nova was required to use operation sealift. What did they do? Their construction materials were brought up on Rock Lessard's barge. This Quebec company was actively shopping around this summer in Iqaluit offering $100 per ton less than the operation sealift rate. Reputable GNWT contractors and long time northern companies honoured their commitment to the Coast Guard sealift. Nova brought their materials up on the Rock Lessard barge. The result, the cancellation of this expected cargo, delayed an August sailing for one month and resulted in the complete cancellation of another sailing.

Many local firms lost a precious summer month due to this default by Nova and the increased costs will be passed on to everyone else so that this firm can violate a condition of the tender call and thumb its nose at the NWT Housing Corporation and the Government of the Northwest Territories.

Madam Speaker, this seemingly favoured company got about half of the rent supp contracts in the NWT this year. I want to ask questions of Mr. Morin about Nova. Does the Minister know that the owner of this company lives in the south? Is the Minister aware that Cedarcrest Homes is doing substantial work on this job for a company which the Housing Corporation gave northern and, apparently, local preference? If so, will there be punitive actions taken for Nova's apparent violation of tender call conditions? And, now that the BIP review is postponed, what is the Minister going to do to ensure that literal bureaucratic analysis of the provisions of the BIP do not any longer result in continuing rewards for cheaters? Thank you.

---Applause

Thank you. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Yellowknife North, Mr. Ballantyne.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, yesterday a potentially dangerous situation developed in my constituency. A troubled individual barricaded himself in a residence, threatened the police, threatened to kill himself and could have endangered the public. The RCMP emergency response team, under Inspector Al McIntyre, and a tactical team led by Staff Sergeant Grundy mobilized and were on site in 37 minutes. They secured the area, evacuated people who might be in danger, set up a communication line and started negotiations immediately. Negotiations were successful and the individual was taken into custody with no harm done to the public, the police or to the individual.

Madam Speaker, across the country and in the north, these types of incidents are becoming more common. It is becoming increasingly important that well-trained, well-equipped RCMP teams are available to respond to these types of situations. A well-trained police team, as was demonstrated yesterday, is able to protect the public, minimize risk to themselves, and are able to take the time to negotiate a peaceful solution to dangerous problems posed by such troubled individuals.

These incidence don't only happen in large communities, they can happen in any community in the Northwest Territories. We have to ensure that the police have adequate manpower, training and equipment to the job we've entrusted to them. I offer our congratulations to the RCMP emergency response team who handled a potentially dangerous situation in a professional and efficient manner. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

---Applause

Thank you. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Inuvik, Mr. Koe.

Mahsi, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, I rise today to give Members of this House an update on the western Constitutional Development Steering Committee process. The committee is moving rapidly forward into the next stage in the western constitutional process. This week, the committee has started a tour of western communities and they are now in the Sahtu region meeting with community councils, the public and starting a process of giving information about the work done by all member groups of the western Constitutional Development Steering Committee.

The purpose of these meetings is to tell people about the themes and issues which will be discussed at the constitutional conference scheduled for mid-January in 1995. People hear information about what work has been done by the member groups and have opportunities to ask questions about that work and about the upcoming conference. Members will also be passing out information on how the participants will be selected who will attend the conference. There is an application process. There is a formula worked out to try to balance the participants who come to this first conference. We're looking at a balance between political and quasi-political people and public representation. We want to get as much public information from as many areas as possible.

Today also, the Constitutional Development Steering Committee released two important background documents. One is a summary of the member group research reports, a summary of each of the reports produced by the founding members of the western constitutional process and there's a document called, "The Themes and Issues in the Constitutional Process for a New Western Territory."

Madam Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.

Thank you. The honourable Member is seeking unanimous consent to continue. Are there any nays? There are no nays. Please proceed, Mr. Koe.

Mahsi, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, later on today, I will be tabling copies of these documents in the House. The message I'm giving today is that the process is under way. We have commitments now from almost all the groups in the western territory. We've had interest from Treaty 8 groups, Deh Cho groups and they are participating in the conference. Hopefully, by the end of this week, we'll have some favourable announcements to make about their participation.

We are moving rapidly forward. January 18th is not far away, so I urge all Members who are involved in the western constitutional process to assist in these meetings. I urge the public to come out and hear what the constitutional process is about, and hopefully participate in the conference. Mahsi.

Thank you. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Lewis.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. On November 8th, I received a letter from Peggy Witte, chief executive officer of Royal Oak, in response to a Member's statement I made in the Legislative Assembly on October 24th. It is very clear that what we do and say in this Assembly is noted and, when appropriate, reacted to, even from such far away places as Vancouver.

She has pointed out in the press that her move of the Royal Oak head office from Vancouver to a suburb of Seattle will save her company $1 million. This has been reported in the press, Madam Speaker.

The major concern though about what we do here is the rate increases by northern agencies, which dramatically affect her company. In her letter, she refers to the proposed 22 per cent low-water surcharge increase and the two per cent general rate increase for electricity.

In addition, she points out that the industry faces a 10 per cent increase in Workers' Compensation Board premiums. She also notes that there is an anticipated increase in municipal taxes by the city of Yellowknife. Although these rate increases are not under the control of our government, Ms. Witte points to a genuine problem, Madam Speaker. One increase in rates in one area may not appear significant. The accumulated affect of several rate increases in different areas, however, can be very significant. This point was raised in the recent discussions on proposed recovery costs to the Public Utilities Board from consumers. There was quite a bit of debate on that.

The tone of Ms. Witte's letter, Madam Speaker, I believe, is that she would like to see more support for the mining industry from myself and, I assume from the tone of her letter, other Members of our Assembly. I sent her a copy of parts of my reply to the Commissioner's address, which deals with mining development and my whole-hearted support for it. Thank you.

Thank you. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Keewatin Central, Mr. Todd.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Yesterday, Madam Speaker, my honourable friend from Yellowknife Centre spoke about the opening of an office in Rankin Inlet by News/North. Madam Speaker, the reporter who has been assigned to the Keewatin beat is well-known to Members of this House. She has covered the Legislative Assembly for the News/North for the past several years and sits just above us in the press gallery during these sessions. Although I am sure

she will enjoy her new assignment in the Keewatin, I am sure she will be missed by all of us here at the Assembly.

Madam Speaker, Mr. Lewis spoke about how he was sure that a good investigative reporter -- which certainly describes our friend in the press gallery -- would have a great deal of news to report in Keewatin. However, as Mr. Lewis I am sure is aware, the news being created comes from the dynamic, aggressive and oppressive...

---Laughter

...I mean progressive...

---Laughter

...Keewatin. Politicians in the Keewatin take their marching orders from the people who elect them. If they don't, then we all know what happens at election time.

Madam Speaker, because I have lived in Nunavut and Keewatin for the past 30 years and knowing the nature of the people there, I can assure you that the News/North will have no dearth of good stories to report on.

Madam Speaker, I cannot stress how important it is for newspapers to take a more proactive approach and cover more of our communities and regions. It is long overdue. I would like to commend the publishers of News/North for taking this bold initiative.

Finally, Madam Speaker, it is my understanding that the News/North will be publishing their Keewatin paper in both English and Inuktitut. I would like to congratulate them for recognizing the importance of language in the north and by publishing both languages, thereby ensuring that this service is available to all people in the Keewatin and eastern Arctic. Thank you.

---Applause

Thank you. Item 3, Members' statements. Item 4, returns to oral questions. The honourable Member for Hay River, Mr. Pollard.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I have a reply to a question asked by Mr. Lewis of Mr. Kakfwi on November 4, 1994. It concerned community standards for rating TV programs.

However, under the terms of the Motion Pictures Act, all films shown in the NWT must receive an audience classification by a provincial censor board. The classifications indicate the appropriate audience for a film, and no one under 18 years of age may attend a film classified as "restricted."

Thank you. Item 4, returns to oral questions. The honourable Member for Hay River, Mr. Pollard.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. This is a response to a question asked by Mr. Koe on October 31, 1994 of Mr. Kakfwi. It concerns the enforcement of land claims legislation by RCMP.

Madam Speaker, the answer to the general question of whether RCMP officers can enforce land claims is that they cannot.

Generally speaking, federal statutes that recognize and give effect to land claims do not create prohibitions nor do they contain any enforcement provisions. Thus, it is essential to recognize the limitations of the ratification legislation and the difference between such legislation and the land claims agreement.

Madam Speaker, land claims agreements identify the rights of the participants, provide for compensation as well as for the establishment of various administrative boards, including arbitration boards for dispute resolution, and prescribe the procedures that these various boards and the government are to follow in order to protect the rights of the beneficiaries. Thus, Madam Speaker, the enforcement of the collective and individual rights enshrined through claims requires actions of a primarily civil nature. As I indicated earlier in this House, recourse to arbitration boards is often mandatory when disputes over the enforcement of a land claim arise. It is, therefore, unlikely that the RCMP would be involved in any civil action to enforce the rights of land claims beneficiaries.

With regard to the honourable Member's supplementary question relating to trespass to private lands created through the settlement of claims, I again advise that RCMP would not be involved. There is no legislation in the Northwest Territories such as the Petty Trespass Acts found in other jurisdictions. In the absence of such legislation, there is therefore no offence created for trespassing on private land. It would then appear that a landowner's only remedy against a trespasser would be a civil action. The access and entry provisions of the various claims do apply to such situations but there are no enforceable provisions or offenses created through these land claims clauses which the RCMP would be called upon to enforce. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Thank you. Item 4, returns to oral questions. The honourable Member for Keewatin Central, Mr. Todd.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, I have worked extremely hard to avoid taking questions as notice. Unfortunately, yesterday Mr. Lewis stumped me with respect to status of interpretive centre, Prelude Lake.

Madam Speaker, based upon the 1990 master plan, a significant amount of work has been done at the Prelude Lake Park. The 1995-96 season is the fifth year of a seven-year upgrading program. It should be noted that the park has not had a major renovation since it was established.

The park land is bisected by many cottages. To work effectively, the park needs to have its system of roads altered in order to separate the cottages from tourists. Doing this will allow for a larger campground which will take some of the pressure off facilities in the Fred Henne Park. In addition, safety will be improved as the campground will no longer be the main traffic route through the park.

To date, interpretive signs have been placed along the nature trail, walking trails established, a parking lot for trailers created for those using the boat launch, the playground has been refurbished, new signs put up, new conveniences established, new campsites created, fencing installed and a new picnic area built. Environmental restoration has also been undertaken.

In the remaining years of the program, we will see the expansion of the campground, a new day use area established and the road system realigned. The plan to redevelop the park does not include, nor has it ever included, the establishment of an interpretive centre, only interpretive signage.

Prelude Lake Park is the second most heavily used park in the North Slave region. Park use increased by 10 per cent between 1992 and 1993. The 1994 season shows a similar increase. Residents and tourists have had to be turned away. Expanded facilities are required.

Madam Speaker, it should be noted that 90 per cent to 100 per cent of the construction contracts have been awarded to NWT companies and most of the design work has been done by northern firms. All design and construction work in the future will go to Northwest Territories companies. Thank you.

---Applause

Thank you. Item 4, returns to oral questions. The honourable Member for Baffin Central, Ms. Mike.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I have a return to an oral question asked by Mr. Ballantyne on November 2, 1994, concerning taxation system.

There is no loophole in current government legislation regarding provision for the recovery of outstanding property taxes; provision is contained in sections 95 and 96 of the Property Assessment and Taxation Act (PATA).

The court case being referred to is, I believe, the one heard in July 1989 dealing with a tax sale that occurred in Inuvik in August 1986. The previous legislation, the municipal ordinance, was in force at the time of the tax sale, but had already been repealed and replaced by the Property Assessment and Taxation Act in January 1988, prior to this case coming to court.

In his decision on the above case, the judge did not "strike down" the municipal ordinance. Although the judge found fault in the municipal ordinance in his decision, he did acknowledge it had already been repealed and replaced.

It is true that PATA provides for the recovery of outstanding taxes through the courts, whereas the old municipal ordinance allowed for sale of land by a municipality for tax arrears.

The department is aware of Yellowknife's concern with the current Property Assessment and Taxation Act provisions in this area and is reviewing with all the tax-based municipalities the effectiveness of these provisions for collection of property tax arrears. Thank you.

Thank you. Item 4, returns to oral questions. Item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery. Item 6, oral questions. The honourable Member for North Slave, Mr. Zoe.

Thank you. Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, Ms. Mike.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Yes, it is.

Supplementary, Mr. Zoe.

Thank you. Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, Ms. Mike.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. As the Member is already aware, the municipalities were informed by letter from my deputy minister that reorganization was occurring in the department, and also the regional offices and the superintendents were actively involved in the final consultation of the reorganization of the department. Thank you.

Thank you. Supplementary, Mr. Zoe.

Thank you. Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, Ms. Mike.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. As I have already stated prior to the questions that were posed to me concerning the reorganization, if we were to be making policy changes that would affect the municipalities directly, they would have active participation in the way the policy should be changed. However, because this reorganization did not involve any policy changes, it only involved the restructuring of headquarters, the communities were not consulted. Thank you.

Thank you. I just wanted to remind honourable Members that when you refer to a document, ensure that document has been tabled in the House before discussion is continued. Final supplementary, Mr. Zoe.

Thank you. I just want to remind honourable Members, once a document is tabled during a session and once a session is completed, the document does not belong to the House. It dies on the order paper like everything else. Therefore, when you are going to refer to a document within a particular session, please ensure that the document has been tabled. Thank you. The honourable Member for Baffin Central, Ms. Mike.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I don't believe my department contradicted the mission statement in this document. However, if we were changing the programs and our policies that affect the municipalities across the NWT, we would certainly have consulted with them. Thank you.

Thank you. Item 6, oral questions. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Antoine.

Mahsi, Madam Speaker. My question is for the Minister responsible for the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs. Can the Minister tell us whether the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs has examined the effects of its recent reorganization on the relationship between the department and the NWT municipalities? Thank you.

Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, Ms. Mike.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I am sure that our department is continually monitoring this. But because we have not had any feedback from the communities, I cannot inform this House what the status of that is to date.

Supplementary, Mr. Antoine.

Mahsi, Madam Speaker. I understand that there is some confusion among the NWT municipalities. They are not sure who in the department is responsible for liaison with the NWT Association of Municipalities, especially with regard to resolutions made by the association. Can the Minister tell us who in the department has this responsibility? Mahsi.

Thank you. Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, Ms. Mike.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Can the Member clarify the last sentence in his question, please?

Honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Antoine.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. The question I would like the Minister to answer is, can the Minister tell us who, in the department, has the responsibility to liaise with the NWT Association of Municipalities, especially with regard to resolutions that this association has made? Thank you.

Thank you. Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, Ms. Mike.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. My understanding is that it is my deputy minister.

Thank you. Supplementary, Mr. Antoine.

Thank you. Can the Minister commit to this House that the department will specify who has the responsibility to be the liaison with the NWT Association of Municipalities and inform this House immediately, once this has been done? Mahsi.

Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, Ms. Mike.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Yes.

Thank you. Item 6, oral questions. The honourable Member for Yellowknife South, Mr. Whitford.

Thank you. Minister responsible for the Workers' Compensation Board, Mr. Todd.

Madam Speaker, I appreciate the honourable Member's concern and he has, on a number of occasions, tried to address the issue of injured workers who feel they are being neglected by the WCB. Contrary to what they might think, I have a great deal of empathy for this group and I understand they are organized as the injured and disabled workers group. The concerns raised by these groups are important, but I think it is important to understand, for everyone's benefit -- for the House's benefit anyway -- that I met with these injured workers several months ago.

Once and for all, I would like to say to this House, and assure this House and the honourable Member, that every effort is being made by the board, by the chairman and by myself to have this group specifically spell out their concerns to the board. To date, they have refused to do it. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Thank you. Supplementary, Mr. Whitford.

Thank you. Minister responsible for the Workers' Compensation Board, Mr. Todd.

Let me say, hopefully for the last time -- and I do appreciate the honourable Member's concern -- that the board, the chairman and this Minister have said to this group of people on a consistent basis to please meet with the board, spell out your specific concerns and we will try to address them. But, I think it is important also to say that 3,600 claims went through the WCB last year and there are bound to be people who are less satisfied than others. Every effort is being made to address their concerns, but some responsibility lies with the injured workers, besides protesting outside -- which is a legitimate right -- but they have to take some initiative to move forward and discuss it with the board.

So, in summary, Madam Speaker, we're ready. Are they ready? Thank you.

Thank you. Item 6, oral questions. The honourable Member for Inuvik, Mr. Koe.

Mahsi, Madam Speaker, I have a question for the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs. During the current reorganization of the department, I understand that a number of directors' positions were eliminated. Naturally, that meant that a number of these people, ex-directors, would be competing for a reduced number of directors' positions. My question is, can the Minister tell this House how this reduced number of directors' positions were filled; specifically what competition process took place?

Thank you. Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, Ms. Mike.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. As the Member knows already, the effected workers, as a result of the reorganization, underwent internal competition so as to avoid lay-offs and surpluses. Thank you.

Thank you. Supplementary, Mr. Koe.

Mahsi, Madam Speaker. To clarify a statement made by the Minister, I don't know what the situation is, or I wouldn't be asking the question. My supplementary to the Minister is, can the Minister tell this House how many staff members have left the department since the reorganization began?

Thank you. Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, Ms. Mike.

Madam Speaker, to my understanding, approximately three have taken up jobs elsewhere. One went to NTI and another went to the Nunavut Caucus. I'm sorry, two. Thank you.

Thank you. Supplementary, Mr. Koe.

Mahsi. I also understand that one former director was not given an opportunity to compete for a new director's

position, despite this individual having 14 years of senior management experience. This former director has since left the department. Can the Minister explain why this former employee was not given the opportunity to compete, as the Minister said, through the internal competition process?

Thank you. Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, Ms. Mike.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. As everyone is aware, when a department is undergoing reorganization, it usually means the reduction of positions. I don't have any knowledge about who this director is and whether or not he was able to compete through internal competitions. Since I do not know the answer at hand, I will take his question as notice and get back to the Member. Thank you.

Thank you. Item 6, oral questions. The honourable Member for Amittuq, Mr. Allooloo.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. My question is directed to the Minister of Economic Development. The government has always emphasized the importance of the renewable resource sector of the economy. As most of us said before, the north is capable, with the right facilities, of producing significant quantities of wild meat for sale in the NWT and outside markets. An important part of this is determining what facilities are needed and what locations to have the most efficient production. Is it part of the Development Corporation's mandate to support communities in looking at these options? Thank you.

Thank you. Minister of Economic Development and Tourism, Mr. Todd.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. No, the responsibility for looking at these options lies clearly with the Department of Economic Development and Tourism. The responsibility, once these issues have been identified in conjunction with Renewable Resources, is then to do the value-added, packaging, et cetera. But the responsibility for identifying the species and a business plan to develop the enhancement of renewable resources lies with the department. Thank you.

Thank you. Supplementary, Mr. Allooloo.

Thank you. Since the responsibility to assist these people to come up with the facilities lies with Economic Development, would the Minister tell me which communities in the NWT currently have meat processing plants? Thank you.

Minister of Economic Development and Tourism, Mr. Todd.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. If I can just clarify, what I was saying to the honourable Member was that the Department of Economic Development is responsible for the identification of the business venture or the need for this. The actual development of plants after the plan has been in place with Economic Development and Renewable Resources, is the responsibility of the NWT Development Corporation. It's clear what the two responsibilities are.

At the current time, there is a fish and meat plant out of Iqaluktuutiat, Cambridge Bay. I understand there's going to be an enhancement of that project this coming summer. The other area, of course, is in Keewatin, in Rankin Inlet. Thank you.

Thank you. Item 6, oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Allooloo.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. The key to operating meat processing plants is a high quality consistent supply of meat. Can the Minister identify where there are abattoirs in the NWT?

Minister of Economic Development and Tourism, Mr. Todd.

If my memory serves me correctly, at one time there was an abattoir in the Banks Island, Sachs Harbour area, that was done by the Inuvialuit and the harvesting of the muskox. I believe last year there was an experimental abattoir in Coral Harbour. At this time, I think those are the two places, if my memory serves me correctly. Thank you.

Thank you. Final supplementary, Mr. Allooloo.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. How many of these abattoirs and meat processing plants in the NWT are funded in whole, or in part, by Economic Development and Tourism? Thank you.

Minister of Economic Development and Tourism, Mr. Todd.

Was that in whole or was that in part? Both? Is that what the honourable Member said? The NWT

Development Corporation, I believe, is now the proud owner of the Iqaluktuutiat Meat and Fish Plant; an arrangement that they made with the cooperative there last year. The current one in Rankin Inlet is owned by the NWT Development Corporation. Thank you.

Thank you. Item 6, oral questions. The honourable Member for Aivilik, Mr. Arvaluk.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I would like to ask the Minister of Economic Development and Tourism, as he said there is currently a meat processing process plant in Iqaluktuutiat and plant operations also in Rankin Inlet. Is this plant supported right now...Madam Speaker, I'm not talking about capital, how it was built. But is it being supported right now by this government?

Minister of Economic Development and Tourism, Mr. Todd.

I believe that both plants, as well as every other project of the NWT Development Corporation, are provided, in accordance with policy, with some subsidization in relationship to employees and jobs. Thank you.

Thank you. Supplementary, Mr. Arvaluk.