Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Nerysoo.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There is no plan at this particular juncture to transfer the responsibility to Arctic College -- we should say Aurora College and Nunavut Arctic College -- mainly because the assessment that is being done is to determine who and how we will deliver the matter of training. Presently there are five agencies involved in training: Aurora College; Nunavut Arctic College; the Department of Health and Social Services; the Department of Justice; and, the Department of Education, Culture and Employment.

The problem that we have is that we need to determine and rationalize the delivery of training for interpreters/translators, whether they are in the field of health, justice, or interpreter/translation services for the Assembly. Our task now is to rationalize that and we are making every effort. Once that is done, we will be able to deliver the program in a more rational and better fashion.

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

Mr. Speaker, I understood from the Premier, who is responsible for official languages, in her responses to my questions last week, that this program would be transferred to Arctic College. Now the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment is telling me there is no particular plan to transfer this program to Arctic College. Is this program now deceased, dead, gone, Mr. Speaker? Thank you.

Mr. Nerysoo.

Supplementary, Mr. Patterson.

I understand from the Minister's answer, Mr. Speaker, that there is no particular plan, however, there is "an indication." Mr. Speaker, the Minister may know that many of the important vital functions of the legal interpreters program is to refine, define and improve the translation of legal terminology in aboriginal languages. The Minister, in his response, is talking about training legal interpreters. Will the Arctic College also be responsible for the refining, defining and developing of legal terminology? Thank you.

Mr. Nerysoo.

Mr. Speaker, I want to advise the honourable Member that we are as concerned on this side of the House as the honourable Member is with regard to the delivery of programs in aboriginal languages. What we are trying to address in one component of the work that has been done by Avery Cooper Management Consultants of Yellowknife is the issue of training. The honourable Member raises one other component and that is language development. Irrespective of who, in the end, is responsible, the fact is with the modernization of our aboriginal languages, whether it is Inuktitut, Gwich'in Dogrib or whatever, there is a need for those people who are involved in the languages area to be involved in the development of the language, whether they are educators, interpreter/translators or whether they are involved in the Inuit Cultural Institute, the Dene Cultural Institute, the Gwich'in Social and Culture Institute, et cetera. The development of the language has to be based on a holistic approach. It can't be integrated simply into categories. The issue is language development has to be approached in the context of those people who are using the language and those who speak it.

We are concerned about the issue. I appreciate the concern the Member has raised. The review and work we are doing collectively is not intended in any way to reduce the commitment to program delivery or service delivery, but rather to rationalize and improve the services that are offered. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Final supplementary, Mr. Patterson.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, when I talked about this very important program well used by the courts, which is receiving growing demands, I mentioned that there is a 1-800 number that is available to legal interpreters to call if they are having difficulty, while they are interpreting in court, with legal terminology. I have just heard the Minister say there is no intention to reduce the commitment, the service delivery -- and I have heard the same thing from the Minister of Justice -- and I would like to ask the Minister if he will assure this House that the 1-800 number, which I am told is very valuable to interpreters who are working in court, that they can call for assistance if they are interpreting in court in another community, will be preserved when this program is transferred to Arctic College, which is what the Minister indicated would happen. Thank you.

Mr. Nerysoo.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Personally, I can't make that commitment to the honourable Member because that responsibility still rests with the Minister of Justice. But I will take seriously the suggestion the Member has made and look at the value of the service that we are providing and ensure, in our discussions with our envelope group, that we recognize the value of the service and look at it in the context the Member has raised in this Assembly.

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