Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, I had some concerns with the Personnel Department last year and with some of the hiring policies that have taken place before hand. I understand that in this House, over the last few days some questions have been raised concerning hiring and hiring policies. I understand that the Premier has committed to tabling those. My question on the Personnel is, that now after it is gone, the negative impact of that cut seems to be coming home in the Territories. My question then to the Premier is, as the Premier of the Northwest Territories, has he had much direction or input or comments from his Ministers, from senior staff on the downsizing and closure of the Department of Personnel?

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I have received some requests to look into individual hiring practices by certain departments and we use Personnel for that. Any appeals are handled by FMBS. In general, what the senior management have said basically through their Ministers to myself and through the senior managers I have talked to, is that now they do have the ability to manage the hiring in their departments, but along with that ability of management comes the responsibility, and they fully realize that. So every senior manager when he or she is evaluated at the end of the year, will be evaluated as well on their ability to follow the policies of this government and the hiring practices of this government as well. We pay our senior managements a fairly good dollar, but yet before we operated to take all the responsibility away from them. This is giving them the responsibility of hiring and making them accountable for it. We pay them well, they should earn the dollars they are getting paid. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Morin. Mr. Picco.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Almost a year ago, when we basically eliminated the Department of Personnel, this was one of the points that kept coming up by the Premier was that the managers were paid to be accountable. I would ask the Premier, has he put in place any mechanism that we could look at or any directive or any policy guideline to see in actuality where the effect of this manageability has come into play? Because I understand even in my region, many of the lay offs to date have taken place have been aboriginal people and very few of the new jobs seem to be going to aboriginal people. I see that in my own riding. I am wondering if the Premier has any stats on that. Has he issued any policy directives on that? What is the accountable mechanism that he is talking about? Is that, for example, a regional superintendent does that answer to the deputy minister? The deputy minister answers to the Premier? What is the chain of command here?

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Picco is correct that the regional directors will answer to the deputy ministers and the deputy minister answers to his Minister, and in the end in their evaluation, they will answer to me. The affirmative action data and statistics are provided in the Public Services annual report published by the FMBS. This includes information such as the number of applicants on a specific job, the interviewing job offers accepted. The Personnel Secretariat regularly audits departments which includes the audit of the staff and guidelines and compliance to the affirmative action policy.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. They all were.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I believe it was approximately 37 PYs in that department. I cannot be very specific. It is a year or so ago, and if I have a specific

date, then I could get the information for the Member as well, if he needs it that precise. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Eight PYs.