Thank you, Mr. Speaker. For a cost of $1.5 million, Pangnirtung Fisheries employs 35 to 40 people year-round and about 10 fishermen. By 1998, Pangnirtung Fisheries is projected to contribute $15.7 million in payments to fishermen and related businesses at a cost of $6 million.
Mr. Speaker, I know that in these times of financial restraint it may be tempting to judge government programs by whether they are self-sufficient or not. That may be fine for larger communities which have a developed economy and a strong private sector, but in my constituency where the private sector will not go and where unemployment is very high, the Northwest Territories Development Corporation mandate allows it to create real jobs for a relatively small government contribution.
Mr. Speaker, without the Development Corporation contributions, many more of my constituents would be on welfare or even worse. I salute the NWT Development Corporation for what it's doing in my riding and other smaller communities in the NWT, and ask other honourable Members to recognize even in these difficult financial times that in some cases it is very worthwhile to spend government money to create jobs in communities which have little or no private economy. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
---Applause