Mr. Speaker I do not have the exact number of the percentage, but the vast majority of the NWTs Housing Corporation's capital budget money is allocated through this House.

Thank you. Oral question supplementary, Mr. Barnabas.

Thank you Mr. Speaker. Can the Minister please tell what efforts this government is making now to get more assistance for the housing in the NWT? Thank you Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Arlooktoo.

Mr. Speaker, I announced last spring that the Government of the NWT would start negotiating with CMHC to transfer the entire housing program from the Federal Government to the NWT. That

effort is ongoing, and we are hopeful that the CMHC held programs will be transferred to the NWT by this spring. At the present time, we continue to make appeals to the Federal Housing Minister for more hosing funding. The Premier has made our position known to the Prime Minister and to the other Premiers, and we have had discussions with our 2 MP's in Ottawa. But the fact of the matter is in the last few years the money for housing from the Federal Government has been reduced by over $45 million, and it is an uphill battle. But we continue to try for more funding.

Oral questions. Supplementary. Mr. Barnabas.

(Translation) Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Can the Minister tell us if the number of houses built has decreased from the previous years? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Arlooktoo?

Mr. Speaker, the NWT Housing Corporation will assist in the building of more houses than we did last year, but all of these houses are home ownership units and the reason why we can build more houses, with in fact, less money, is because we are using a down payment assistance program, where the GNWT helps clients with 25 percent down payment assistance.

Thank you. Oral questions, final supplementary, Mr. Barnabas.

(Translation) Thank you, Mr. Speaker. For the new housing in the coming year. Thank you.

Mr. Arlooktoo.

Mr. Speaker, in the next few weeks the committees will be going through the business plans of the Housing Corporation, which will outline our plans for the coming year. For future housing allocations, the allocations are based on need, and the available funding that is there, so any future houses that we build will be dependent on those 2 factors.

Thank you. Oral questions, Mr. Krutko.

Again, to remind members that community empowerment is on the agenda for today. And I want to remind the Minister too, that anything that is on the Orders for Today for consideration in Committee, does not have to be answered. But you could answer the other questions, too. Minister of Finance, Mr. Todd.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think I understand what my Honourable colleague is saying. I do not want to be offensive by making that comment. We are endeavouring in our business plans and when we make presentations to the Committees to try to explain the Honourable Members and to Cabinet that there has been, wherever possible, a fair distribution of dollars, whether it has been in capital dollars or in some of the reduction programs that we have been working on. I am not quite sure how to answer the question, to be perfectly candid. I think the business plan process will hopefully answer the questions that my colleague wants addressed. I could talk to the staff, I guess, and see if there is some way we can put that in some summary to assure him, and others, that in most cases, we try to be fair and reasonable in terms of whether it is budget restraint or whether it is in capital expenditures. I am not sure whether that satisfies my colleague or not, but that is the best I can do right now. Thank you.

Thank you. Mr. Krutko. Just again to remind the Members that a question must not be asked to seek information about a proceeding in a Committee which has not been reported in the House yet. So just a reminder, okay? Mr. Krutko, oral question.

Mr. Todd.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I understand where my colleague is heading with his questioning, and I would answer this way. The process we have now in place provides a more balanced approach and a fairer approach in the way in which capital monies and dollars are distributed. It may be fair to say that historically, that balance was not there, and I can provide them, if you want, with as much information as possible under this Government and the previous one, if that would be adequate for him. Thank you.

Oral question, supplementary, Mr. Krutko.

Mr. Todd.