Thank you. Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Picco.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I said yesterday in the House that I would give some examples of the effect of having the settlement allowance and VTA combined into one allowance. I've also added in the housing allowance, a list of newly-announced reductions.

The first example, Mr. Speaker, is Pond Inlet; an employee with less than five years' service, with a wife and two children under the age of 12. This person's base salary is $30,000. With one VTA, current housing allowance and settlement allowance, this employee's gross income would be $49,615.28. Mr. Speaker, under the announced system, this employee's gross income would now be $41,951.50, or a decrease, Mr. Speaker, of 15.45 per cent.

Mr. Speaker, is this the fair reduction that this government has talked about?

My second example, Mr. Speaker, is an employee in Iqaluit like myself. This employee has a family of five and has worked for the government for five years. Under the current system, if my salary was $50,000, with two VTAs based on the advanced booking fare to Montreal, plus the current housing allowance and settlement allowance, my gross income would be as follows: $50,000 salary, $5,400 housing allowance, $4,484 for the settlement allowance, $11,058.52 for the two VTAs, for a total of $70,942.52. The new package proposed, Mr. Speaker, would see my total salary package shrink by 17 per cent.

Mr. Speaker, is this equity? Is this fair? I will be asking further questions today to the honourable Minister of Finance. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you. Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Ningark.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Good afternoon. The hunters' and trappers' organization in Taloyoak firmly believes in wildlife conservation in and around Taloyoak as well as in the NWT. The organization is aware of the survey that indicates an increase in population of both caribou and muskoxen around Boothia Peninsula. The survey which was

...........

.., done in July 1995, also indicates an increase in muskoxen in Prince of Wales Island and in Somerset Island. The people in that area believe very strongly in conservation of wildlife. They have always been part of conservation. We have never taken anything more than what is required of any wildlife, any game, within our area.

Mr. Speaker, one of the ways to ensure healthy populations of both caribou and muskoxen is to harvest them. Later on, during the appropriate time, Mr. Speaker, I will be asking the appropriate Minister some questions about muskoxen. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Ningark. Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Barnabas.

(Translation) Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Good afternoon. (Translation ends) Today I'd like to share some heartfelt advice I received from a long-term professional working as a government employee in my constituency. This person is originally from the South. Her concern about the recent cuts to wages and benefits is not for herself. She said, "we professionals can find work in other places, but many of the supporting staff depend on their jobs for food, shelter and clothing. There is already so much hurt and distress that people are trying to deal with, that the added stress of losing their livelihood of benefits adds to increased mental health problems." My constituent went on to point out that our small Communities are often already underserviced in these areas. She asked , how can the government expect our hard-pressed front-line staff in the community to deal with all the pressures of their jobs when they are overwhelmed with personal concerns or whether they will have jobs or more rent increases?

Many people are supporting large extended families and already have very little left over after recent increasing rents and decreasing wages will force those people to move into overcrowded conditions, she predicts. Mental and physical health is sure to suffer, my constituent says. It isn't the southern professionals who will be hurt, it is the aboriginal people, many of whom see their community jobs as a stepping stone to participate in the Nunavut government. My constituent tells me that they are now getting angry that no one seems to care about them. It also seems that in the midst of these pressures, now it will be almost impossible for these community workers ... Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.

The Member for High Arctic is seeking unanimous consent to conclude his statement. Do we have any nays? There are no nays. Conclude your statement, Mr. Barnabas.

Qujannamiik. ...especially those with big families, to afford to take vacations. My constituent believes that the chance to travel beyond our isolated communities helps our children to start thinking about making lifestyle choices such as going on to school or working outside their home community. My constituent tells me that the front line workers see the recent changes as being targeted against workers in isolated communities with big families. On top of that, my constituent says the government wants to go ahead with all kinds of community initiatives. Communities want to do more, but it seems to my constituent that the government has just come along and banged each employee hard on the head and said, we're going to make this hard and hurtful for you, so when we give you something, you can then appreciate how good we are. With no wage increases in the last four years and huge housing increases, the government still seems to blame the government workers for their troubles.

We government workers care about one another. My constituent says that she would not leave because of money issues and most are not working just for the pay and benefits. But they are now feeling that their pride and self esteem has been taken away as well. That, she says, is unforgivable. I hope I make some sense, she told me. This is how my constituents are feeling these days, Mr. Speaker. I believe it is part of my job to convey their fears and confusion and anger to all Members of this House. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

--- Applause

Thank you. Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Ootes.

Thank you, Mr. Ootes. Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Erasmus.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As Members of the 13th Assembly, we have all made a strong commitment to community wellness. On establishing our priorities, we stressed the importance of giving communities the tools to improve the quality of life for community residents. As a Member of the Social Programs committee, I have supported the initiatives of the government related to community wellness in the upcoming budget. Mr. Speaker, it is easy to discuss community wellness as a good idea. However, it becomes more difficult to make it work in practice. This was reflected in the reaction to the community action fund available to communities last year as part of the community wellness strategy.

In Yellowknife, the funding was given to the city. Criteria were established. Based on these criteria, funds were given to different groups for specific projects. While these projects were worthwhile and should have a positive impact for some residents, there have been concerns voiced about the use of the community action fund. Some groups were unhappy with the criteria that were used. Others felt that this was a piecemeal approach rather than a plan for addressing the broad social problems within the community.

The people in my riding are very interested in community wellness, the developing of a community justice plan and addressing issues of violence and addressing problems of substance abuse and helping families become healthier. Right now, there are many different agencies and organizations providing services in Yellowknife that relate to community wellness. Some of these groups provide similar or complementary services. They all have good ideas and suggestions for making community wellness a reality. The problem comes in trying to coordinate all these different ideas and agencies. I believe that government funding and support for community wellness is crucial in all our communities, large and small. When the government provides support to a community, it must ensure that community residents gain the maximum benefit from the limited resources that we have.

During question period, I will be asking the Minister responsible for coordinating the community wellness strategy how he plans to address the unique challenges of implementing community wellness in our larger centres. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Erasmus. Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Roland.

Hi!

--- Laughter

Thank you. Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Henry.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I had the opportunity last evening to meet with a number of my constituents. I would like to thank those people who took the time to come out and express their concerns and give me some direction and, in some cases, suggestions of approaches that I should have taken. I will share with the Members of this House some of the issues brought forth. I have little doubt that there are many common threads which each of us hears from our respective constituents.

First, on fees and licences, there was not an objection as much as a concern expressed as to the speed at which some increases to fees and charges are being implemented by this government. Examples are the increase in the rent at the Aven Seniors' Centre and annual increases in licensing fees. Another item that was brought up was school taxes; questions were raised as to why Yellowknife is the only community in the NWT paying school taxes, representing approximately 30 per cent of the total cost. While I was not able to answer that question directly, I gave assurances to my constituents that I would address their concerns later.

On the question of MLA compensation, I gave my constituents assurances that we are in the process of reviewing MLAs' salaries and benefits and that this review will hopefully reflect the government's financial situation. With regard to representation, my comments in the House were noted by constituents regarding suggestions that we put the business incentive program on hold for a year as this would clearly be a cost-saving measure for this government when faced with the deficit proposed. On departmental consultations, it was understood that while deputy ministers meet on a regular basis, it was suggested that a stronger relationship be created between departments to discuss cost-saving measures, which some departments may be undertaking, and share these ideas with the others.

Mr. Speaker, these are just some of the ideas that came forth last night and I wish to, again, express my gratitude to those constituents who came out to the meeting. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Henry. Item 3, Members' statements. Item 4, returns to oral questions. Mr. Todd.

Thank you. Item 4, returns to oral questions. Item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery. Mr. Dent.

Welcome to the Assembly.

Item 5,

recognition of visitors in the gallery. Ms. Groenewegen.