Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I know that my honourable colleague has expressed concern about the business plans and the fairness and equity of them on a number of occasions in this House and, if I may say, for the public record, a legitimate concern. I believe we are trying to address fairness and equity

as well as effectiveness and efficiency and I hope that we demonstrated that in the last twelve months, however, difficult it has been, I wanted to remind everybody that we had a plan in place to balance the budget and I agree with my honourable colleague's statement the other day, that we need to get beyond balancing the budget and get on to the more productive aspects of governing.

I believe that the balanced budget deficit elimination strategy is on target. That we will meet the requirements of the Deficit Elimination Act and, at the same time, be able to move forward in looking at productive ways in which to service the people we represent. So, in short, Mr. Speaker, I hope that the new business plans for 97/98 will be able to demonstrate to my colleague that there is an effective and fairness to it and I am confident that if it is not, that my colleague, as well as others, will be able to draw that to our attention and any changes and recommendations they wish to make in this consensus committee style government that we are currently working with. Thank you.

Thank you. Oral question supplementary, Mr. Roland.

Mr. Todd.

Well, I would hope so, Mr. Speaker. I guess that would be one way to respond to it. I believe that we have taken a very direct approach in empowering management at the community, regional and headquarters level, that we have pushed out both the fiscal responsibility as well as the managerial responsibility in a genuine effort to improve the efficiency and the delivery of programs and services, and after all, that is what we are here for, to deliver to those in the communities and in large centres like Iqaluit, like Yellowknife, like Fort Smith and Hay River.

I believe in the short twelve months that we have been here that we have accomplished a great deal in being able to do that, I would hope, again, that the business plans that the committees will be looking at shortly next week, will reflect that and, it is certainly not our intent, when we looked at our strategy to run government more efficiently, not to look at it in a caring and sensitive way.

I want to remind members that, nobody is immune from these cuts, nobody. Including the Finance Minister, who I have said on a number of occasions, my own family have lost jobs in this cutting process, and still do not have one. So, I think it is important for everybody to understand that I am very sensitive to the fact that we are laying off people, contrary to what some may think in this House or upstairs, I am very sensitive about the fact that we are laying people off. We have to find a way and a means in which to do it in a compassionate and caring way. But, at the end of the day, we must balance the budget. I have to come back to that, whether my honourable colleague likes it or not.

But I think we have to move on once we go through these business plans, on to new opportunities for our people and the people we represent and I believe, Mr. Kakfwi and other are proceeding with that in terms of some of the strategic plans that are in place in relationship to the mineral accord, in relationship to other aspects, Mr. Dent in relationship to job opportunities, etcetera. The changes that Mr. Ng is making in Health and Social Services and Corrections, these are all positive things as we move forward, and I hope that when my colleague reviews the business plans that will be reflected in them, and he will be assured that we are doing this in a manner, where, we have a plan, we know where we are going, and I certainly know where we want to end up. Thank you.

Thank you. Oral question. Supplementary, Mr. Roland.

Mr. Todd.

My apologies, Mr. Speaker. Now I understand where my colleague is coming from. Operationally, how we are making the government more efficient, reducing the paper flow, etcetera, I think the simple and short answer is, yes. I think we have made some major strides. For example, I remember the days when I was in government, an LPA, I think that is what is was, was $250. It is now under the Department of Public Works, $5,000, that allows the management team to quickly make decisions to expend where it is required in services. Other changes have been made in the FMBS, as the decision making to reducing the paper. The loan applications are down to one, two pages at the most. There are a whole series of...I could go on all day, but I am sure my colleague would prefer I did not. He has heard it before. There is a whole series of initiatives and changes that we are taking. No, we are not going to be perfect. There is no question of that. There are going to be weaknesses and gaps. There are going to be dissidents. There are going to people who are discontent with what we are doing. But we have to believe at the end of the day, that what we are doing is right. We have to believe at the end of the day, that we are trying to make government more efficient, smaller. Six thousand territorial employees for 67,000 people. Nowhere else in the free world does that exist, Mr. Speaker. We must find a way to reduce the size of the civil service, to ensure that there is adequate money left to deliver to those people that need it the most.

Oral questions. Mr. Erasmus.

Thank you Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Minister Responsible for Health and Social Services. It is in relation to his statement today about our most precious resource, children. And the fact that recently children are being taken into care because they need to be protected from harm. Mr. Speaker, when I was going to school in Saskatchewan, just about every week, there were stories in the papers about the fact that the Aboriginal children were being put back into the Aboriginal community. Whereas, they had not been before. So they were actually taking Aboriginal children from non-Aboriginal homes, and putting them back with their Aboriginal people. I would like to

know what is this government's policy, in placing Aboriginal children with Aboriginal foster parents?

The Minister of Health and Social Services, Mr. Ng.

Thank you Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my understanding is that the first priority would be to place an Aboriginal child with an Aboriginal family, if that was available to the individual. Failing that, of course we would try to make sure that they get placed as a priority into a safe home, regardless of where the Aboriginal background of that foster parent family would be, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

Thank you. Oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Erasmus.

Thank you Mr. Speaker. Has there been a drive to recruit Aboriginal foster parents in Yellowknife, and other large centres?

Mr. Ng.

Thank you Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there is and continues to be a recruiting process in trying to expand the number of Foster Parents available for all communities because of the fact that you always to have more available than you need, hopefully, so that you run a situation where you are in dire straits of not having an available Foster parent/family to place a child that might be at risk, Mr. Speaker, Thank you.

Oral questions, supplementary, Mr. Erasmus.

Thank you. Mr. Speaker I have six or seven brothers and sisters who have families, and in speaking to them, and in speaking to them none of them have been approached about being foster parents. What I would like to know is how many foster children in Yellowknife are in Aboriginal and how many are in non-Aboriginal homes?

Thank you Mr. Minister.

Thank you Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, obviously I would not have that detail of information with me so I will take that question as notice and provide the information to the Member. Thank you.

Thank you, the question is taken as notice. Oral question, Mr. Picco.

The Minister responsible for Public Works, Mr. Arlooktoo.