Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as Minister responsible for the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation, I have committed to keeping Members informed of this government's efforts in increasing our housing stock in the NWT. Therefore, Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to be able to update this Assembly, once again, on the progress of the NWT Housing Corporation's Plan 2000 initiative.
As you will recall, I introduced this initiative earlier this year to improve the housing conditions for up to 2000 families by the year 2000. The initiative has indeed expanded the delivery of housing assistance from the range of 300 to 400 families a year to 648 families this year. Under Plan 2000, the corporation is helping more families become home owners as well as upgrading or replacing homes in the social housing portfolio.
Mr. Speaker, while Plan 2000 represents a significant increase in the corporation's program delivery, it by no means represents all of the projects which the corporation is funding this year. In total, the corporation will be undertaking over 1,000 projects of all types in 1997-98. In addition to directly improving the living conditions for our residents, Plan 2000 also has a positive impact upon our economy. By expanding the number of projects undertaken this year, Plan 2000 is creating additional construction jobs in communities. I am extremely pleased and proud of the fact that Plan 2000 is on target. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
--Applause