Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my Member's statement today is about the Nunavut capital vote held on Monday in Nunavut. I was very impressed by the high 79 per cent turnout of the people of Nunavut for this important vote, even though the weather was cold and windy in many places.

I was to congratulate the Iqaluit for Capital Committee and the people of Iqaluit for their clear victory. I wish to make special mention of the people who worked on this campaign in the communities. Those community workers deserve credit for the high turnout in Baffin communities and in my riding.

I also wish to congratulate the people of Rankin Inlet and their campaign committee for their hard work and for making this an exciting contest. I know that the community of Rankin Inlet will make an important contribution to Nunavut.

I wish to make it clear to the Nunavut Implementation Commission, Nunavut Tunngavik and the governments of the Northwest Territories and Canada that my constituents were very much aware of the Iqaluit for capital model when they voted in this plebiscite. With Iqaluit as capital, the NIC model of a decentralized government distributes more jobs in the Baffin region to communities like Pangnirtung, in my riding, than the Rankin Inlet as a capital model did. I feel that it is therefore very important that the decentralized model proposed by the NIC be very much kept in mind as we move to design and implement Nunavut.

After all, the new capital of Nunavut is for all the people of Nunavut. It should not be seen as a win for only one community or even one region. Now that this important step has been taken, we must all work together. The people of Nunavut must unite to ensure that Nunavut is implemented in a manner which is fair to all.

Mr. Speaker, I request unanimous consent to conclude my statement.