The Minister of Finance, Mr. Todd.

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. I do not have the fine details with me, with respect to the changes under the CPP, but I can give my colleague a general comment on the discussions that took place over the last eight to ten months. There was an overall effort on the part of the Finance Minister to make sure that the CPP is funded appropriately, so we can continue with pensions for generations to come. I think it would be fair to say that, what we call the baby boomers, have put a tremendous strain on the Canada Pension Plan. There were a number of suggestions brought forward by the federal Minister as to how we could determine some fiscal stability to this long term plan. Suggestions such as: moving up the contributions, increasing the years of eligibility, reducing the company pensions that we have, and a variety of other measures that I do not have at my finger tips at this time. It is my understanding that the consensus has been reached by a number of provincial jurisdictions, and as my colleague pointed out, the federal Minister of Finance made an announcement on Thursday that he was going to proceed with those changes. I apologize, I am not able to provide as detailed a response as my colleague would like. I can provide him with a full briefing on that issue later on next week. Thank you.

Oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Picco.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the fact that the Minister does not have the full details. I do have a supplementary question though. I do understand that a couple of provinces have actually opted out of buying into the new restructure of the CPP. Has the Northwest Territories bought in? If so, what is the impact then for us on buying into the program?

Mr. Todd.

Yes, I thank you, Mr. Speaker. We have supported the federal Finance Minister in the changes that he recommended that were necessary to sustain the Canadian Pension Plan for now and for generations to come. Thank you.

Oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Picco.

My final supplementary, Mr. Speaker. Will the Minister commit next week to providing a briefing to this House and people of the Northwest Territories in this forum so that we can be updated on this situation. There are some Members in this House who are reaching pensionable age, who would be very interested in knowing what is going to happen with the CPP over the next 10 to 12 years, the honourable Minister included. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Todd.

I am assuming Mr. Picco is talking about himself. Anyway, Mr. Speaker, I do have a full briefing on this and I inadvertently left it in my office. I will provide the undercovering letter to all Members so they understand the ramifications and the changes that will be put into place to sustain the Canada Pension Plan for generations to come, including Mr. Picco's generation. Thank you.

Thank you. Oral questions, Mr. Roland.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would say that there would be a limited amount of work that had been done since that report came out. That is one of the reasons that we have undergone a major reform of the alcohol and drug treatment programs, and funding throughout the Northwest Territories that was initiated late last year and is coming to a conclusion early this year. Mr. Speaker, thank you.

Thank you. Oral questions. Mr. Roland, supplementary.

Mr. Ng.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in the area of detox services it is an issue. There is not the accessibility throughout the Northwest Territories on a consistent basis. I think it is one of the areas that require some more work on trying to level off or equalize some of the accessibility factors for detox services, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

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

Mr. Ng.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would be hesitant to commit to that at this time, because of the fact that, similar to alcohol and drug treatment dollars, the detox dollars for the Northwest Territories is a flat amount. If we were to offer those services outside of the current programs that we fund for detox, it would create a ripple effect throughout the system. Again, it would have to be taken in the overall context of the alcohol and drug reform throughout the Northwest Territories, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

Thank you. Oral questions. Final supplementary, Mr. Roland.