Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It was agreed that representatives of these organizations would work together and form a steering committee with the overall objective of developing an action plan for the carving industry in the Baffin region. The steering committee met and decided to contract the services of Blandina Tulugarjuk to act as project manager.

The committee is currently developing a workplan that will guide the development of a strategy, and will hire the expertise required to produce the action plan. It is anticipated that the action plan will be presented at a meeting between the carver representatives from the communities, purchasers of Inuit carvings and government officials early in April/May in Iqaluit.

Mr. Speaker, I would to like thank everyone for the hard work and effort. I would also like to specifically acknowledge the efforts of the co-ops for highlighting this important issue. With this kind of cooperation, I believe we will not only solve the current problem but we will also have a stronger economic base for the future of Nunavut. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

--Applause