Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, following up on Mrs. Groenewegen's questions regarding this contract for the economic strategy for both east and west. My question would be why was this contract or proposal not dealt with by the Minister of ED&T and his capable staff? Why did we have to go outside to do this? Why is not the Minister of ED&T in charge of this project? Thank you.

Mr. Premier. Two questions.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have appointed Mr. Todd in charge of the Economic Development Strategy and that is who is in charge of bringing all aspects of what is happening in the north together, to make it presentable. As far as why it was not done in-house instead of contracted out, there was a decision made to contract it. That is the way it went. Thank you.

Oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. O'Brien.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, if that is the case, what is the role then of the Minister of Economic Development or RWED in this particular contract and others that are related to it? Thank you.

Mr. Morin.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Todd is the lead on Economic Strategy. Mr. Dent is involved in Economic Strategy as Department of Education. Mr. Antoine is involved as the Department of Transportation and Mr. Kakfwi is involved in it as the Minister responsible for RWED. There is involvement from all parts of government and Mr. Todd is coordinating on behalf of government. Thank you.

Oral questions. Final supplementary, Mr. O'Brien.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the cost that we hear bandied about is approximately $500,000 for this particular contract. Whether that is right or wrong, my question is, has this amount been budgeted? Thank you.

Mr. Morin.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. One thing I have learned from this business is never to quote figures unless you know what you are talking about. I do not know what the exact budget is, because it could mislead the public and until I find out, I will find out what the contract was, if it was budgeted and how it fits into the budget. Thank you.

Oral questions. Mr. Henry.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my question is to Mr. Todd, Minister responsible for the Workers' Compensation Board. The Minister today brought us good news about the financial health of the Workers' Compensation Board, and I am quite sure all of the employees and employers welcome the news. There is some information in the Minister's statement that requires some clarification. The Minster talks about in 1997 it achieved an operating surplus of over $20 million and to date the board has accumulated operating reserve of over $35 million.

Mr. Speaker, my question to the Minister is, could he elaborate on that particular statement as to, whether the $35 million is part of the $20 million plus, or is there $35 million generated in this year, or is it $35 million to date from March 1st to the present date? If he could just elaborate on that statement, I think it would be important information for Members of this House and for employees. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Minister of Finance, Mr. Todd.

Yes, Mr. Speaker. I believe I said in my statement an accumulated operating reserve of over $35 million that is what we are sitting with right now. That is the accumulated net operating reserve, if you want to call it surplus. Thank you.

Oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Henry.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I was looking for a little additional information. In the same vein, is that from March or April 1st? Is that April 1st, is there $35 million to date accumulated, and if so, what is the projected accumulated surplus to March 31 of next year. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Todd.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my understanding is $35 million is probably effective the last fiscal year. I do not have the number of what we are projecting what the accumulated reserve might be, but I do know that the initiatives have been taken by the Workers' Compensation Board, are all determined by their actuary and that the fiscal condition of the Workers' Compensation Board is: one, as I said yesterday, darn good management by the board and by the people that run it; and two, because it had three very successful years in terms of its financial portfolio.

The Workers' Compensation Board simply must pass that back and they have done that by these three initiatives of increasing the pensions, reducing the rates, and bringing the YMIR which I will bring into the House as quickly as I can, up to $60,000 which would be the best YMIR in Canada. Thank you.

Oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Henry.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, on the question of the excess revenue, does the Minister have available the actual figures of that $35 million as to how it is made up? How much of it is generated by employers' contributions during this fiscal period and how much was generated by the investment? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Two questions, Mr. Todd.

The money is twofold. One is, employers pay through assessable payroll, x amount of dollars per hundred, which goes into the general fund at the Workers' Compensation Board, they then invest the money in an aggressive investment strategy. I do not have the breakdown. The bottomline is, as I said earlier, they have had three very successful years in their financial portfolio and what they are now doing is passing that back; one, the injured workers; and two, to the widows and widowers; and three; to the private sector employers who fund the WCB. Thank you.

Thank you. Oral questions. Mrs. Groenewegen.