I will not be able to give the Member a time frame on the completion of the strategy. We will perhaps give an update in December as to where we are in the development of the strategy, plus provide a more

detailed update on the commitments Canada is making, and how the provinces and territories are working with the federal government in meeting the international commitments. We will be working to help meet those commitments and specifically, the status report on where we are in the Northwest Territories, in regard to those two other areas of work. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the issue of the greenhouse gas emissions, of course, is tied intrinsically to the broader issue of energy planning and the whole issue of energy use in the Northwest Territories, both east and west. That issue has been brought up in the House in previous sessions and, in fact, if my memory serves me correctly, the Minister indicated that as well, work was being done on a broader energy strategy that would incorporate not only answers and substrategies, if you would, to deal with northern greenhouse gas emissions, but also that the broader issue of energy planning since the provision of energy is one of the single largest costs that this government bares. Is that work still being undertaken? Thank you.

Thank you. We have ongoing discussions, again, with various stakeholders like the Power Corporation, municipalities, representatives from the private sector, on the whole issue of energy consumption and looking at ways of dealing with the need and demands in that area. As well, how we can look for cheaper, more efficient use of our energy and tied in with that, of course, as the Member pointed out, is cleaner, more efficient use of existing energy and alternate sources of energy to find ways to reduce the consumption we have presently. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to ask the Minister then, can he indicate with any more certainty than he could on the Northern Greenhouse Gas Emission Strategy, as to where that broader strategy is, in its developmental process and does he have an anticipated end in sight, in terms of when a final product would be put forward on the table, so we can look at this very critical initiative? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I cannot be more definitive in that area either. It is work that is being done in coordination with other stakeholders and it would require to ask for a status report on that. I will commit to providing a comprehensive report on the status on that initiative at the December session for all Members. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, the government had made arrangements to provide support for companies that meet certain requirements and that we would support certain companies to set up cutting and polishing operations here in the north. Those were provided to all the different companies and individuals that met with us on our recent business trip to Antwerp. There were a lot of questions asked by the interested parties ranging from possible discounts, financial incentives, injections, taxation, subsidies, training, infrastructure like buildings, equipment acquisition to type of services available in the Northwest Territories, and questions about the climate. A lot of questions were asked. There was some interest in knowing if any financial assistance would be provided by the government and we gave a general indication of what we were prepared to do under the guidelines we had recently approved. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Government of the Northwest Territories is prepared to provide training bodies to companies that are interested in setting up cutting and polishing operations in the Northwest Territories. The companies would be first required, of course, to acquire an agreement with BHP or another diamond mine in the north to access diamonds of the quality they require over an extended period of time. That would ensure that they have something to work with.

The company should show a sufficient commitment to set up operations, that is, they make some sort of a financial commitment, business commitment to set up shop here in the north and a commitment that would show a benefit to the north in terms of training, employment and an establishment of a business here in the north. Then, as we have said, we would help by doing a number of things. One, we would help with training monies plus providing of support for the training through Mr. Dent's office. We would in cases, help with some sort of a contribution to ensure that a business gets established here. It may take the form of a contribution to acquire equipment which is very expensive in this type of business.

We would also assist in helping these companies get the necessary information together, so they can make realistic business proposals and cost projections. It would also be possible for us to provide to them information on the type of land and facilities, office space, for instance, that are available in the north, whether it be in Yellowknife, Hay River, Fort Smith or other communities where they may be interested in possibly setting up operations. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, the turn around can be very quick if the proposal meets the expectations of our government. We laid out the criteria and guidelines we would like the proposals to meet and those are shared with interested parties. In the first instance, any interested party is required to first get some access agreement with BHP. That is the first requirement and then, they would bring a proposal to us to finalize. In many of the cases, there are proposals flying around. Some have been submitted and in some cases resubmitted with advice and some suggestions from us on what is required before we can more realistically deal with them. It is not a question of how long it takes for us to deal with these, because you can deal with them fairly quickly. It is more a matter of getting realistic proposals submitted. Certainly, they would have access to some of the diamonds that are now being produced by BHP diamonds.