Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Before I get started, I would like to welcome all the MLAs back to Yellowknife. I would like to remind you to feel free to spend lots of money in our fair city. I know you will spend a lot more if you have accommodations here than you would have if you were in Hay River or Fort Smith, as my colleague from Fort Smith reminds me.
During our break from the House, I talked to a lot of my constituents and they raised a lot of issues, about which I will be making statements and asking questions. Obviously, they were very happy when it was announced that the diamond sorting facility would be built in Yellowknife. They also had a lot of problems and issues they would like to see resolved. For instance, the pay equity and contract negotiations issue is something all people would like to see resolved. Many people have mentioned they were displeased with the fact that Yellowknife is being used as a base for the Northern Allowance, while it is not the cheapest community to live in. There was also a lot of discussion about education and people are very displeased with the student/teacher ratio and the fact that we have the highest ratio in Canada. They would like to see this go down. In the area of adult education, people are quite concerned. We have a very poorly educated population and people would like to see that changed for the adults. There is concern about the constitution. They would like to see this happening in the west. Many people mentioned the fact that there are very poor youth treatment facilities and would also like to see this addressed. There are quite a few problems that are arising from the income support and the way it is being implemented.
Finally, Mr. Speaker, in the area of aboriginal and treaty rights, I have attended several meetings where this was brought up and the government is not really recognizing or living up to agreements on treaty and aboriginal rights. As I said, I will be making statements and asking questions in these areas and others, as well, during the course of this session. Thank you.