(Translation) Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This is a supplementary to my question. How are you going to respond to the letter you say that you have received regarding the concerns that are being raised in Nanisivik? Will you just pass it on to the Baffin Divisional Board of Education, or are you going to give a response directly to the local education council in Nanisivik. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Nerysoo.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. What I will do is respond advising the CEC of the present responsibilities the department holds in terms of me, as Minister; and, secondly, the responsibilities that are held by the board. This Assembly and previous Minister, including myself, have tried to move away from the day-to-day business operational affairs of schools and have tried to put it in the hands of the communities. I think the debate that the honourable Member is raising is one that should occur within the divisional board and the arguments put forward because, in my view, it's the responsibility of the board to make the final determinations.

Thank you. Item 6, oral questions. Mr. Ballantyne.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is to the Minister of Renewable Resources. Mr. Speaker, it wasn't that long ago that the whole issue of waters flowing into the Northwest Territories from Alberta was a big environmental issue facing us all. We spent a lot of time and a lot of effort worrying about Daishowa and worrying about pulp mills being built in Alberta and the effect that that would have on our water basin here in the Northwest Territories. It seems that that environmental issue is no longer on the front pages. People seem to be concerned about diamonds today and they don't really have time to deal with more than one issue, perhaps.

What has actually happened with the trans-boundary water agreements? I'll ask that first. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you. Minister of Renewable Resources, Mr. Arngna'naaq.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Mackenzie River Basin master agreement, which I believe the Member is referring to, came to my office as an agreement which would be signed by all jurisdictions affected by the Mackenzie River. I had passed on the agreement to some of the Members who had raised concerns about it, and asked for their opinion. I received positive remarks on the agreement. I also wrote to the chief of the Dene national office, Mr. Erasmus. And on August 11, 1994, I signed the master agreement and passed it on back to the Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs.

I haven't heard anything more recently from the Minister, but I'm willing to find out exactly where that stands. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you. When the Minister receives that information, I'm sure Members in this House would like to hear the ultimate disposition of this matter.

My supplementary question to the Minister; as part and parcel of the issue of effluents in the Mackenzie River system, there was a commitment by the federal government, I believe that our government was involved, to have a fairly comprehensive monitoring system put into place. I wonder if the Minister could inform this House as to what are the results of that monitoring.

Mr. Arngna'naaq.

Thank you. Item 6, oral questions. Mr. Dent.

Madam Premier.

Mr. Speaker, I believe that as the limited financial resources are available, many of the programs and services that we would like to take part in, we may not be able to do. However, to the best of our ability, with the resources that we have from the language agreement as well as other resources that we put toward language development and enhancement, what we are attempting to do is to make sure that those dollars work in a way so as not to erode the principles that we ascribe to. Thank you.

Thank you. Supplementary, Mr. Dent.

Madam Premier.

Mr. Speaker, most definitely.

Thank you. Supplementary, Mr. Dent.

Madam Premier.

Mr. Speaker, I was listening to the reply of the honourable Member yesterday. Maybe because we are more closely involved in discussions on how we can carry out the responsibilities of this government...I didn't take it to mean as definitively that we would be eroding the principles. But at the same time, I can understand that while we are trying to assess what is possible to be done, there are limitations on some of the areas. We may not be able to meet those requests in terms of the legal requirements; but we are compelled to meet the legal requirements. And what we are trying to do is to try to be as fair as possible with the funds that are available under the new agreement and also to set some priorities collectively so that we can make sure what we do have, works in the best interest of priorities that are set by this Legislative Assembly. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you. Final supplementary, Mr. Dent.