Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have two statements. I hope I don't take up too much time. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to announce that this week, June 12th to the 18th, is Canadian Occupational Health and Safety Week 1995. The theme of this year's Canadian Occupational Health and Safety Week is "Communication: Open the Channels."

Communication is an essential element in the prevention of injuries in the workplace. Employers must ensure that employees know how to do their jobs safely, but employees must ensure that their employers are made aware of hazardous conditions that develop, so that employers can take steps necessary to rectify the hazardous conditions.

Mr. Speaker, the Department of Safety and Public Services is especially active in providing public education this week and promoting the theme of "Communications: Open the Channels." The department has public information booths in the lobby of the Siniktarvik Hotel in Rankin Inlet, in the Northern Store in Inuvik, in the WG Brown Building in Iqaluit and in the Panda II Mall in Yellowknife. At all these locations, staff are handing out pamphlets and printed materials, stickers and other material promoting safety and performing demonstrations.

The staff involved in our public education efforts this week include safety officers, electrical inspectors, gas and boiler and pressure vessel inspectors, as well as mine safety inspectors and staff of the fire marshal's office.

The department's mining safety division is especially active this week in public education through our participation in Mining Week. Our staff are key participants in the mine rescue competition, which allows the general public to gain an appreciation of the emergency response systems in place in NWT mines. I would like to invite all honourable Members to come out and watch mine rescue teams from across the Northwest Territories to go through their paces this weekend at the firehall and the Yellowknife Community Arena. Our mine rescue teams are the best in Canada, and this weekend they will be judged by some of the toughest mine rescue competition judges in Canada, including Mr. Terry Vaughan

Thomas who was instrumental in developing our new mine safety legislation.

Mr. Speaker, when the department investigates accidents, our staff know that one of the most common causes of workplace injury is poor communication. The Department of Safety and Public Services is using Canadian Occupational Health and Safety Week to focus public attention on the need to keep the channels of communication open in the workplace and to the general public so that we can all learn how to work safety together. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause