Obviously, Mr. Speaker, some are more notable than others, but there has been a lot of important legislation that we have considered and passed in this House. One that I think was particularly important was the Deficit Elimination Act. Mr. Speaker, knowing that the revenue from Canada, coming to the Northwest Territories, is being cut -- the figures we have heard so far are at least $58 million next year and perhaps more and we are still not sure how much more in future years -- the fiscal pressures are mounting. The future is certainly less certain. I think it is important that we try to conclude the formula financing deal with the federal government. So I urge the current government to work diligently towards resolving that. I would like to see the Minister of Finance be able to announce before the election that he has, in fact, concluded a deal with Canada, which will provide some certainty. We are so dependent on that grant from Canada that we can't have any fiscal certainty without having an idea of what we can expect in future years.
Also, Mr. Speaker, it is important that we plan for cuts. We don't have much flexibility because the huge majority of our funding does come from the federal government. So we must be prepared to avoid massive and sudden program cuts, staff cuts or, especially because of the Deficit Elimination Act, deficits. The government should continue the budget process; don't hold back as was done before the last election.
Mr. Speaker, a new government coming in will undoubtedly have different priorities, but there just isn't time after the election to start fresh on a process. It is essential that our fiscal plan be on track for dealing with the expected and even unexpected reduction in financing next year.
It is also important that the groundwork is being done in case, in subsequent years, we require further cuts. The new government may very quickly need to be able to consider options and set priorities for future years. Without having that information on hand, they won't be able to get into it.
I think, Mr. Speaker, we have been lucky this far to be able to avoid the huge cuts to both programs and staff that other jurisdictions have faced. However, without good information well ahead of time, the next government may not be so lucky. It is important that we start preparing information, so that political decisions can be based on good information and not just gut feeling.
Mr. Speaker, I think it is also important that we start planning now on how to deal with job security concerns of our staff. Even if we can avoid fiscally-driven program cuts, which result in staff cuts, we face the reality of division which has to mean fewer jobs in the west. It is time now to start planning to look after our employees through retraining, reallocation of jobs and so on. We have to make sure that we are providing for the private sector, so they can develop more jobs. That includes the mining sector. Mr. Speaker, I don't need to repeat the comments from my Member's statement of June 19th, but I think it is important to remember that we can respect the environment while encouraging mining, so we get the jobs for northerners. It is important to also state that getting a northern accord would mean, for sure, that benefits could accrue to northerners. So it is important we keep working towards that.
As I said yesterday in my Member's statement, we must be supportive of small business as well. We need small businesses to create jobs. But as the Standing Committee on Finance has said, Mr. Speaker, we need a balance. We need a balance between economic development and dealing with social concerns. One can be supportive of business and still have a social conscience.
Another area, Mr. Speaker, that we need to ensure that we are dealing with is concerns about job security and the affirmative action policy. Mr. Speaker, the review which is under way right now is much needed. I hope that the current review really looks for models that work.