Oh God, may your spirit and guidance be in us as we work for the benefit of all our people, for justice in our land and for constant recognition of the dignity and aspirations of those whom we serve. Amen.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Good afternoon, Members of the Assembly. Before beginning the business of the House this afternoon, I would like to take a few minutes to speak to Members about a group of young people I had the pleasure of spending most of yesterday with. The young adults are part of the Racism: Stop it! Action 2000 youth tour and come from Australia, the United States and other parts of Canada.

The young people arrived in Yellowknife on Saturday evening. I was fortunate enough to be asked to give them a tour of the Assembly building and spent some time with them yesterday. I must say I came away from my meetings with the youths feeling proud, and also very reassured that if these young people are an example of the young people in the world today, then the future is in good hands.

This morning, the group spent time in schools around the city promoting the creation of a society that is understanding, accepting, and free of racism and prejudice. This is just one of 10 youth teams who are touring different cities in Canada as part of this international campaign aimed at stopping racism.

I would like to publicly commend these young people, one as young as 12 years old, for their efforts and for taking a stand on an issue they obviously feel strongly about. In the Northwest Territories, where we have people of such diverse cultures, it is crucial we build a society that is free of racism and one that accepts people for who they are.

As leaders, we often talk about young people being the future. If the vision of these young people is an indication of what we can expect to see in the future, we will have a more accepting society, with vibrant communities that work together towards a racism-free world.

Members will have the opportunity to meet with the young people tonight at a dinner being hosted at the Assembly. I urge each and every one of you to attend and hear firsthand what these young people are saying. That will be set up in the Great Hall at 6:00 p.m.

Orders of the day. Item 2, Ministers' statements. The Deputy Premier, the Honourable Jane Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I wish to advise Members that the Honourable Stephen Kakfwi, the Honourable Joe Handley and the Honourable Jim Antoine will be absent from the House today to attend a meeting with aboriginal leaders. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Item 2, Ministers' statements. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Range Lake, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to take this opportunity to reiterate my support for the amendment to the Education Act, which was given second reading in this House last Friday. Mr. Speaker, as the Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment stated in this House, this bill deals with additional funding to the Northwest Territories' school system, to address the needs to reduce the teacher to student ratio and increase the special needs spending. Further, this bill presents in legislation the agreement reached between the NWTTA and the Government of the Northwest Territories, following the teachers' job action last month.

Once enacted, Mr. Speaker, this will mean $14 million more to the Northwest Territories' education system over the next four years. More money into the system will result in reduced teacher to student ratios and increased funding to student support services for the beginning of the next school year.

While this amendment arises from the settlement between the Government of the Northwest Territories and teachers outside of Yellowknife, putting it into legislation means the same provisions would apply to all schools within the Northwest Territories. This will mean additional funding for the Yellowknife schools as well. Mr. Speaker, I can tell you the feedback I have received from the school boards in Yellowknife has been quite favourable. I believe this is an important move by the Government of the Northwest Territories, in light of the fact that recruiting and retaining teachers poses an increasing challenge in the North, especially in small communities.

Mr. Speaker, I respect that some Members of the House have concerns with some aspects of this bill. I trust those concerns will be addressed during the committee review process as a normal procedure. In spite of these gaps, Mr. Speaker, I believe this is a step in the right direction with respect to our commitment to education. I applaud the Minister and the Government of the Northwest Territories for making this item a priority agenda for the House. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Frame Lake, Mr. Dent.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Northwest Territories has one of the lowest rates of literacy in Canada. That means an incredible loss of human potential is taking place. It means many people have trouble finding and keeping jobs. It means many people may not be able to access information about protecting their health, safety or rights.

Perhaps most importantly, it also means many people cannot read to their children or help them with their homework. Those children will probably have more difficulty learning to read and write, and will be less likely to finish school.

Mr. Speaker, the Northwest Territories Literacy Council is a volunteer organization that promotes and supports literacy activities in all official languages of the Northwest Territories. They work with community groups to build the skills necessary to plan, deliver and manage local projects designed to provide literacy training.

The biggest fundraiser of the year for the Northwest Territories Literacy Council is the Peter Gzowski Invitational Golf Tournament for Literacy. Since 1990, the tournaments have raised over $300,000 for the council. This year, the PGI will be held in Yellowknife on a non-regulation, and I emphasize non-regulation, nine-hole golf course that will be created on the ice of Frame Lake on March 29, 2000.

The Northwest Territories Literacy Council is well on the way to building a successful PGI this year, but they can always use more support. Mr. Speaker, I would like to urge Northwest Territories businesses to be genuine with their backing of the Peter Gzowski Invitational this year. Businesses can really benefit with enhanced literary levels in the workforce. Studies have shown an improved bottom line for employers when literacy levels are improved. Employees with higher literacy skills are more likely to understand, accept and conform to health and safety regulations. Improved employee safety is not only better for the employees, but it also contributes to an improved bottom line.

Mr. Speaker, supporting the Peter Gzowski Invitational Golf Tournament is good for business. Becoming a sponsor might help good businesses get a chance to golf in the tournament, a chance to golf with Mr. Dressup, otherwise known as Mr. Ernie Coombs, if you can find your ball in the constant crowd of kids and adults that always surrounds Mr. Coombs during one of these tournaments. Mr. Speaker, I have participated in a few PGIs, and I must tell you that seeing Mr. Dressup has an amazing effect on young people. Everyone loves him and wants to be close.

I am looking forward to being part of the crowd following the action on the ice of Frame Lake near the end of March. I hope Northerners will join me in supporting the Peter Gzowski Invitational Golf Tournament, as this important event raises funds for the Northwest Territories Literacy Council. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

-- Applause

Thank you, Mr. Dent. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Deh Cho, Mr. McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Thebacha, Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to speak briefly about concerns I have with the government's capital planning process and the contracts which are let out in this area. Last week, I asked a written question to the Minister responsible for Public Works and Services requesting information as to how they do estimates, cost overriding and final costs for projects. Today, I will be asking the Minister responsible for Transportation a similar question.

My concern, Mr. Speaker, is it seems to me, with my experience with budgets over the last few years, that there is a tendency for significant cost overruns. There is a significant difference between what is initially estimated and what the final project costs are. I know that from projects in my own riding, where a school came in $1.6 million over budget. The same happened with the school in Aklavik. I know there was a project in the supplementary appropriation in Inuvik that was over budget. I know the capital project on Highway No. 4 on highway wear was significantly over budget.

This raises serious concerns at a time when we are struggling to find every dollar, to make the best use of every cent we have, to put it into programs for the people we serve. I would like to know from the government if there is a problem. If there is a problem, how do we collectively work to fix it?

We were told that market conditions are a factor. We have to allow for that. We cannot come in after the fact and say it is over budget due to market conditions we did not anticipate. We are paid to anticipate. Our staff are paid to anticipate.

I believe we have to get the facts. I believe asking it in the House in a written form to the Minister will supply me with those facts, which I can then share with my colleagues. Then we can sit down together to look at how this process is working, to see how we can avoid cost overruns and ensure our estimating is within a small percentage of what is initially budgeted for. Mr. Speaker, I will be raising this written question at the appropriate time today. I look forward to working with my colleagues to see if we can save money by preventing cost overruns that can be put to programs or other capital projects. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In recent days, we had an announcement of two major issues relating to languages. We have heard of the signing of the Government of the Northwest Territories' Candid Cooperation Agreement for French and aboriginal languages in the Northwest Territories, and the official opening of a French school in Yellowknife.

These two events have helped bring attention to the crisis situation in our aboriginal communities regarding aboriginal languages. Mr. Speaker, it is no secret that aboriginal languages appear to be suffering a slow, painful death. Also, there is recognition the self-esteem and confidence in aboriginal people are slowly deteriorating because of their language and culture.

Mr. Speaker, I feel this government has to do more to ensure aboriginal languages are preserved and protected, as well as the culture and well-being of the Inuvialuit, the Gwich'in, the Sahtu, the Slavey, North Slavey, South Slavey, Cree, and the Metis, who were the first people of this land. We have to ensure these cultures and languages are preserved and protected, just like the French.

Mr. Speaker, with the amount of money this government spends on developing our institutions, we cannot forget we have to preserve the history and culture of our people. We have to make people aware of the importance of these aboriginal cultures and languages that have existed for thousands of years.

Yet, Mr. Speaker, I have noticed one thing in this government. When it comes to practicing what we preach, there is very little money put into the area of practice. But we sure do speak a lot in this House.

Mr. Speaker, I feel it is critical this government, no offence to the French, take just as much time and effort to ensure that aboriginal communities have the same rights and ability to establish culturally based schools regarding Slavey, Cree, Gwich'in and Inuvialuit. They should also have the ability to establish schools in their ridings. With that, Mr. Speaker, I will be asking the Minister responsible for Education, Culture, and Employment questions regarding this matter during question period. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mahsi, Mr. Krutko. Item 3, Members' statements. The Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes, Mr. Allen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. On behalf of Floyd Roland, Member for Inuvik Boot Lake and myself, I wish to congratulate and extend good luck to the following athletes, coaches and mission staff who will be representing the town of Inuvik at the Arctic Winter Games in Whitehorse: Shaylene Allen for cross country skiing; Thomas Anthony, pee wee hockey; Jason Baxter, dog mushing, Yvonne Carpenter, mission staff; Shane Gordon, cross country skiing; Tamara Hansen, figure skating; Borg Ho, badminton; Patrisha Kaglik, arctic sports; Lloyd Lamouelle, Dene games; Billie Lennie, arctic sports coach; Mike Muller, badminton coach; Theresa Ross, mission staff; Katy Smith, arctic sports; Rachelle St. Amand, badminton; Glen Tingmiak, badminton; Pat Tingmiak, snowshoeing; Liz Wright, snowshoeing coach; Ben Wright, cross country skiing; and Christine Wright for snowshoeing.

I am confident these representatives from the town of Inuvik will make the town and the Northwest Territories proud. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Allen. I am sure the good wishes of the Members of the Legislative Assembly goes with those young athletes as they go to represent us. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for North Slave, Mr. Lafferty.

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Yellowknife South, Mr. Bell.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to talk about the Minister's Forum on Health and Social Services. First, I would like to say it is nice to see some young people here today with some interest in the proceedings. I think it helps remind us all what we are doing here. Thank you for coming out.

Today, I will have some questions for the Minister responsible for Health and Social Services on the Minister's Forum, specifically in the area of addictions. The forum recommended increased spending on addictions treatment. I think this is a very worthwhile recommendation and it must become a priority for this government. I think it is also important to remember that one of our goals should be to have people treated in their home communities. We have heard Mr. Lafferty lobby time and again for a wellness centre in his community, which would be an envelope for drug and alcohol and social service responsibilities and treatments.

This is a very important request for a couple of reasons. I think we all know it is very disruptive for patients to be moved out of their home communities for treatment in larger centres. The incidents of relapse after taking a person out of their community for treatment is much higher than if they were treated in their home communities.

I am very familiar with the tax on the situation in Yellowknife. I think our dollars are stretched to the limit. As a magnet community, we deal with an influx of patients from smaller communities. It is very difficult for us. For these two reasons, especially the benefit of our citizens to be treated in their home communities, it is important this government make this a priority. Today, I will have questions for the Minister responsible for Health and Social Services specifically on the issue of addictions. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. Item 3, Members' statements. Item 4, returns to oral questions. Item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery. The honourable Member for Range Lake, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In honour of the young people that have joined us in the gallery, and in honour of the pages we have here, I would like to recognize the pages that are working in this gallery right now. They are from Range Lake North School, and I understand it is their last day. I know from my conversations with them that they have enjoyed their time here. They love seeing what we do. If I may, I would like to list the names of pages we have from Range Lake North School: Derrick Cleaver; Josh Swan; Keith Dargo; Maigan Lefrancois; Ryan Chenkie; Steven Klakowich; Tanya Lemieux; and Andrew Wittlinger. If I may, Mr. Speaker, I would also like to recognize Chris and Heather Chenkie, who are prominent business people in the city of Yellowknife, and my constituents in the Range Lake riding. I would also like to note that Heather Chenkie is a fellow graduate of mine from the Sir John Franklin class of 1982. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

-- Applause

Thank you, Ms. Lee. I just want to remind Members that when we recognize people in the gallery, they should really be in the gallery. We would all like to welcome you to the Legislative Assembly, and I am sure we would all like to recognize the pages for the good jobs they are doing with us. Item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery.

I would like to take this opportunity to recognize Angel and Florid Curry, prominent members of our Filipino community, now retired and having time to enjoy the Legislative Assembly. Welcome.

-- Applause

Item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery. The honourable Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize all of the other people in the gallery who have not yet been recognized.

-- Applause

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. I am sure that includes Ms. Thomas.

The students in the gallery today are the students from the Grade Six French Immersion class from the William McDonald School, accompanied by their teacher, Yvonne Carine. Welcome to the Legislative Assembly.

Item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery. Item 6, oral questions. The Member for Thebacha, Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my question is addressed to the Minister responsible for Health and Social Services, regarding the tabled report entitled Our Communities, Our Decision: Let's Get On With It!. I had the opportunity of talking with a board member about this to flesh out some of the comments that were made, since they were fairly vague in some areas and open to significant clarification.

My first question to the Minister is: given the fact that since 1994, I estimate Health and Social Services has spent $2 million on studies and strategic planning. It seems like the department of perpetual study. What are the plans to actually do some of these things? To do exactly what the report says, "let's get on with it"?

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. The honourable Minister responsible for Health and Social Services, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I could not agree with the Member for Thebacha more. I agree there has been a tremendous amount of studying done of the problems. I am certainly outspoken and on record with the previous government as undertaking that motto of "let's get on with it." We have asked so many questions. Let us start finding the answers.

Mr. Speaker, after the many reports that have been produced, which we will use, such as Shaping our Future: A Strategic Plan for Health and Wellness, the Med-Emerg Report, and now the Minister's Forum on Health and Social Services, we have enough documentation that we can use these as worthwhile tools in aiding us in getting on with it. Thank you.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Item 6, oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, when I read this report, and after having talked with people as indicated, the department is targeted as a major part of the problem.

One of the concerns I have is that, since 1997, when we did all of the deficit reduction cuts, until today, based on the figures I have received from the Financial Management Board Secretariat, there has been an 11 percent increase to the headquarters for Health and Social Services in Yellowknife, in programs and frontline staff in Yellowknife. All other communities have shrunk back, yet there seems to be an inflation of the headquarters people in Yellowknife. Would the Minister indicate if, as part of this report, she will look to see whether or not that is the case? How does she intend to get the services and staff out to the people?

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. The honourable Minister responsible for Health and Social Services, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, since being assigned the responsibility for Health and Social Services, I have had the opportunity to walk through the headquarters and look at some of the functions that are undertaken there.

Many of the functions I see being performed here are in support of things that are going on at the board level and the community level. For example, there is a group of people that is solely dedicated to board support. There are other functions, such as a recruitment and retention unit, which looks at helping boards find the workers they need and address those situations.

Another key function of the headquarters is tracking information so we may have a long-term, effective plan as to how we are going to address the problems. It is difficult to operate without that kind of information. It would be difficult to address the target areas. With respect to Mr. Miltenberger's claim that there has been an 11 percent increase in the cost of operating the headquarters, I would have to check into that. It is the first I have heard of that. I would also then want to compare it with the increases that may have occurred as well in the front-line programs at the community and regional level. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Item 6, oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am glad to hear that the Minister is going to check. You will find that there has been an 11 percent increase to the Health and Social Services staff at headquarters and about a 16 percent cut to all line staff across government, including Health and Social Services, that we have seen brought on by unfortunate inflation.

My supplementary question to the Minister is regarding governance. This report touches briefly on that, but is the Minister open to looking at supporting and encouraging communities and regions to look at alternate forms of governance, as opposed to just trying to strengthen or prop up the existing health boards? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. The honourable Minister responsible for Health and Social Services, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, yes indeed, I am willing to look at alternate forms of governance. Right now, we do have nine health and social services boards in the Northwest Territories. They are quite different from each other. Some of them represent one community. Some of them represent an entire region. There is quite a variety of governance structures, and we would be looking at that.

Also, with a mind to the future, it may be worthwhile to look at governance structures where, like the Inuvik and the Dogrib structures, there is a combined board which deals with more than just health and social services. Where you have community services boards that in fact take on a broader array of responsibilities within that region. Some of those boards may also be a precursor to claimant and self-government structures that will be in place in the future. We want to make the board and governance structures as efficient and as standardized as possible so that they will be most effective. Thank you.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Item 6, oral questions. Final supplementary, Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would just like confirmation from the Minister that while she wants to have a standardized board structure, that a community or a region is not going to be forced or jammed with a possible system of board structure that does not fit their particular needs because it is deemed to be appropriate by some people. Keeping in mind the unique characteristics that we have talked about between the South Slave as opposed to the Dogribs. It cannot be the same for all people or all regions. I would like the Minister to commit that we will not be jammed. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. The honourable Minister responsible for Health and Social Services, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Mr. Speaker, let me just clarify my commitment. My commitment is to look at board governance structures and arrangements that are in existence now to see if things can be made more effective. This will come from the regions. The operative word in my answer was that there may be a direction taken toward standardizing boards. I did not say that would be the case. It will not be done without considerable input from the people who will be governed by those boards. Thank you.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Item 6, oral questions. The Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my question is in relation to my Member's statement on the crisis that aboriginal languages are facing, in light of the opening of the French school in Yellowknife. Mr. Speaker, I would like to direct my question to the Minister responsible for Education, Culture, and Employment.

I would like to know: can the Minister tell this Assembly what funding arrangements were in place for the construction of the French school in Yellowknife? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. The honourable Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Ootes.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, the arrangements were that the federal government would pay $3.5 million for the construction of the school, and the Government of the Northwest Territories contributed $500,000 for capital funding on this school. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Merci beaucoup. Thank you, Mr. Ootes. Item 6, oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in light of the statement by the Minister, I believe a precedence has been set by this great offer by the government in regards to the francophone school in Yellowknife.

Mr. Speaker, can the Minister inform the House how other communities, such as the Inuvialuit cultural communities, the Gwich'in, the Dogrib or Slavey communities, could access a similar type of funding or arrangement so they could build schools with a cultural base to protect aboriginal languages in those ridings?

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. The Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Ootes.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Some of the funding that is provided for operations is provided through a Canada-Northwest Territories Cooperation Agreement. It provides approximately $17.5 million over a five-year period, with $1.9 million being provided for aboriginal languages and $1.6 million for French language. This agreement is based on formulas used nationally, Mr. Speaker.

I should point out, Mr. Speaker, that in the Northwest Territories, many communities are governed by aboriginal people elected by the community to the district education council and the district education authorities. In many cases, the schools are culture-based, and schools have the option of implementing aboriginal language programming from kindergarten to grade three.

We do have two specific programs that have been developed to support aboriginal culture and language - the Dene Kede and Innuuqatigiit Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Ootes. Item 6, oral questions. Second supplementary, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Minister did not exactly answer my question. I would like to ask the Minister, especially in regard to the $500,000 that was used to construct the school in Yellowknife. Can the Minister tell us if other cultural communities can get block funding such as what was done in Yellowknife to build a cultural classroom facility to attach to existing school facilities? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. The honourable Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Ootes.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We also have additional funding of $1.9 million that is used in school cultural development. In addition, we have $800,000 that goes to aboriginal language communities to administer and to develop. We do have an aboriginal language strategy that is in the process of being developed in conjunction with the aboriginal communities. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Ootes. Item 6, oral questions. Final supplementary, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister tell me exactly how a community can get funding similar to the construction of the French school built in Yellowknife, so that communities can access block funding of a similar nature so they can also construct cultural-based classrooms? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. The honourable Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Ootes.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have to go back to my remarks earlier that we provide approximately $4.5 million in the promotion of language in the Territories, and it is done through various means. Some of it is through the schools; some of it goes directly to the language communities. That is the availability that we have to look at. Much of this funding for the Ecole Allain St. Cyr was provided by the federal government. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Ootes. Item 6, oral questions. The honourable Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as the Minister responsible for Health and Social Services stated, she has been very outspoken about the government getting on with it. I must say I agree that she has been. Interestingly, the Minister will make a formal reply to the Minister's Forum on Health and Social Services in June. My question is why wait until June to make a reply when budget planning is underway at this time? Should that report not be used now in the budget planning cycle to make the necessary changes? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. The honourable Minister responsible for Health and Social Services, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the report was only put out in print a very short while ago. I think I have the press release, and we released the first printed copy of it within the last two weeks. Since then, I have written a covering letter to many stakeholders. We have not yet had an opportunity to see this document and have sent it out to them as well, because whatever we do as a department, we are going to have to do in conjunction with stakeholders and also with MLAs.

I think we need the time to analyze not just the recommendations in here, but many others that have been made before that. It is part of our strategic planning and setting priorities of this government. I will be meeting with the Social Programs Committee later on this week. We have met already in Fort Providence with the Members. We do need time to set those directions and priorities, and we do want input from key stakeholders, not the least of which are my fellow MLAs. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Item 6, oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Minister said that she sent a covering letter to the stakeholders. In fact, we are taking the report that came from stakeholders, the people of the Territories and, once again, going back out there to say if in fact the report is something that they have either said or agree with before any action is taken. Is that the case? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. The honourable Minister responsible for Health and Social Services, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, l do not believe there will be any formal process per se for receiving feedback, but of course our department is always interested in the feedback of stakeholders. I think everyone agrees that there is a fair amount of concern in the communities about moving the program and the answers and solutions closer to the communities. We always welcome feedback. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Item 6, oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. With the budget planning to be brought into this House in June, will the Minister inform us if there will be any changes as a result of this report that will come in as part of that budget, or will that happen in preparation for the budget following that? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. The honourable Minister for Health and Social Services, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I believe that my previous indication was that I would be tabling a formal response to the Minister's Forum on Health and Social Services in April. An interesting dynamic of the forum report that Members may not be aware of, an interesting part of the forum's mandate was to make recommendations to sustain and improve the Northwest Territories' health and social services system without increasing expenditures.

In response to the Member's question about the timing of this so that increased or additional or different spending could be included in the budget process, at this point I am not certain there will be increased spending. It will be more looking at which areas we plan to focus on and focus our resources in. Thank you.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Item 6, oral questions. Final supplementary, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am glad the Minister clarified that because spring, while it might be April here, is usually June back in Inuvik. Can the Minister inform me if there will be potential changes because the former response to the report is separate from planning for the budget cycle? Will there be possible changes in this upcoming budget cycle? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. The honourable Minister responsible for Health and Social Services, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the timing issue with respect to the budget planning is something that I have not given a lot of thought to yet. I would hope that there is a certain amount of time there that would allow us some flexibility to reallocate and reprofile. A lot of the money from the department does go to the boards, and certainly there would be opportunity for the boards to redirect funding that they receive from this government. I would not say that there would be a need for us to be too strict about what would happen once the money gets to the board level. Thank you.

Merci beaucoup, Madame Groenewegen. Thank you very much, Mrs. Groenewegen. Item 6, oral questions. The honourable Member for Deh Cho, Mr. McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In my Member's statement today, I outlined some concerns I have with the ice crossing in Fort Providence. The Minister responsible for Transportation has taken steps to ensure that the highway is not damaged by heavy truck traffic by reducing the speed limit for transport trucks between Yellowknife and Fort Rae. I assume that the study that recommended the speed reduction also recommended extra highway patrol to ensure compliance. My question for the Minister, Mr. Speaker, is has the Department of Transportation undertaken any studies on the anticipated increase in heavy truck traffic as a result of further mining development? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The honourable Minister responsible for Transportation, Mr. Steen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, at this time, I am not aware of any other studies or steps that the department is considering taking. However, I will pass this question on to the department and get back to the Member. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister Steen. Item 6, oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Can the Minister inform the House whether he would consider a highway patrol office presence in Fort Providence when the ice bridge is in operation?

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The honourable Minister for Transportation, Mr. Steen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, again I will pass the suggestion on to the department, but I am sure the department has been considering steps such as the Member suggested, to prevent heavier trucks than what is actually allowed for weight limits. Those types of things are being considered by the department, but I will pass the question on to the department. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Steen. Item 6, oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I said in my Member's statement, the ice roads to the north are useless without the ice crossing in Fort Providence. Can the Minister assure the House that the engineering study presently being used to construct ice crossings at Fort Providence will be sufficient to meet the demands of an anticipated increase heavy truck traffic will bring?

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The honourable Minister responsible for Transportation, Mr. Steen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I will take that question as notice.

Thank you, Minister Steen. The question has been taken as notice. Item 6, oral questions. The honourable Member for North Slave, Mr. Lafferty.

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. The honourable Minister responsible for Health and Social Services, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as Members of this House may know, hospital and physician services for status Indians and Inuit is a separate agreement in contract with the federal government, which is administered by this government on behalf of those individuals who qualify for services under that program.

Mr. Speaker, this is an approximately $20 million component in the money that is received by Health and Social Services from Indian and Northern Affairs Canada. Mr. Speaker, this particular agreement has been under some dispute with the federal government over the past year. The crux of the disagreement relates to the fact that the costs are increasing for these services, and as the Government of the Northwest Territories is responsible for delivering those services, Mr. Speaker, the issue is the demand on those resources.

With the demand for services, the cost of those services is escalating at about five percent per year and the federal government, up until our most recent talks with them, have refused to have an escalator in there any greater than two percent. They have capped it at two percent, and so this is an ongoing concern. It does represent almost $20 million a year. We are coming up to a March 31, 2000 deadline, Mr. Speaker, so this is why this is a very important issue to this government. Thank you.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Item 6, oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Lafferty.

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. The honourable Minister for Health and Social Services, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, senior officials of both Indian and Northern Affairs and Health and Social Services have been working on this issue for quite some time without resolve. On February 2, 2000, Premier Kakfwi wrote a letter to the Honourable Robert Nault outlining this concern. Subsequent to that, the Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs has responded, holding the line on the position of the federal government with response to this cap on the escalation clause in this contract.

So far, this issue remains unresolved. However, I want to assure Members and Mr. Lafferty that the government is continuing to pursue this. Unfortunately, we may be forced to resign... let me be get the right phrase in here... forced to sign this document under protest with the hope of resolving it at some time in the future. The threat is that this funding, the $16 million that is outstanding right now, will lapse if we do not sign this agreement by March 31, 2000. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. You caused a few hearts to skip a beat there. Item 6, oral questions. The honourable Member for Range Lake, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is directed to the Minister responsible for Transportation. I do not know if he is aware, but there has been another accident on the roads surrounding the City of Yellowknife. This time it was on the Ingraham Trail involving another tractor trailer.

I wonder, Mr. Speaker, if the Minister could inform the House about what he knows about the accident and confirm whether or not dangerous road conditions had anything to do with it? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Minister responsible for Transportation, Mr. Steen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I received a briefing on the accident this morning. This was a single-truck accident on Highway No. 4, Kilometre 57, at approximately 4:00 a.m. on February 28, 2000, involving a driver and one passenger.

The truck was northbound and carrying a rock truck chassis. The driver pulled over too far on the side of the road, rolled over on the truck's side and lost a load. It is believed that the load shifted on the truck. The result was the driver had a cut forehead, and the passenger hurt his back. Both were taken to hospital in an ambulance.

Road conditions were slippery, and there was a curve sign that read 50 kilometres. That is all the information I have at this time, though we had our sanding equipment out, and we were sanding at 10:00 p.m. the night before on February 27, 2000. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister Steen. Item 6, oral questions. Supplementary, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I really appreciate that the Minister was well prepared to answer this question. You would have thought that I advised him in the first place, but I did not. I wonder, Mr. Speaker, if the Minister could tell me anything he knows about the other accident that I have not yet heard anything about, which happened on Highway No. 3?

Sorry, Ms. Lee, but we have to stick to the one accident. It is a different subject, so I rule the question out of order. Item 6, oral questions. The Member for Yellowknife South, Mr. Bell.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question today is for the Minister responsible for Health and Social Services. I would like to thank her for opening the forum report and reading the mandate and letting us know that possibly no new money was being considered.

One of the recommendations in the report is that we increase spending on addictions treatment, and this seems to be in direct contradiction to what she had stated. I would argue that if she is not prepared to lobby for new money for health and social services, she essentially will be dusting furniture in Pompeii.

If this government continually makes addictions treatment a priority but turns around and shuts treatment centres in Inuvik and shuts treatment centres in Yellowknife, I am concerned. I wonder if the Minister can give us the status of addictions treatment in the Northwest Territories? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. The honourable Minister responsible for Health and Social Services, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in the Member's preface, just because no more money would be under the mandate of this report, that no more money would be added to Department of Health and Social Services does not necessarily translate to the fact that no new money would be spent on addictions services. There is certainly room for the potential of reprofiling or reallocating funds within existing budgets, and I think that is something that we should keep in mind.

Mr. Speaker, at the present time in the Northwest Territories, there are various programs and services available relating to addictions services. For example, the Nats' Ejee K'eh facility on the Hay River Reserve is a 30-bed residential treatment facility for addictions. It is a 35-day alcohol and drug program consisting of Dene culture, lecture, the AA 12-step program, and one-on-one counselling.

Mr. Speaker, there are also two treatment centres for youth, which deal with addictions in the Northwest Territories. One is the eight-bed Trailcross facility in Fort Smith, and the other is the eight-bed Territorial Treatment Centre here in Yellowknife. In addition to this, there are also 40 beds available for inmates who are on their way back to their communities. At the Salvation Army here in Yellowknife, they receive counselling on addictions on their way back to their communities through the Early Release Program.

There are also programs within the correction facilities that offer addictions counselling to inmates while they are incarcerated. As we have talked about in this House, there certainly are also referrals to other institutions in the south where specialized treatment is required. Mr. Speaker, I do not represent this little overview to be the entire comprehensive explanation of all services that are available, but hopefully this would give the Member somewhat of an indication of what is available at the present time. Thank you.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Item 6, oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Bell.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate that the Minister suggests that we are going to reprofile budgets, but I do not think the kind of money that we need is going to be found within the current budget. I mean, I think that with reprofiling, there are some possibilities there, but it is almost sketchy at best. I am wondering if the Minister might tell us where she is intending to take the money from? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. The Minister responsible for Health and Social Services, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Mr. Speaker, during this sitting of the Legislature, the repeated message for many of the MLAs has been that we must deal with addictions. Mr. Speaker, I believe that I can say, as the Minister responsible for Health and Social Services, that this is a problem that not only has a very high human cost, it also has a large cost in terms of government dollars.

Mr. Speaker, the question of where funding would be taken from to reprofile for addictions I think, at this point, may be somewhat premature. We need to sit down with Members and other people in the communities and look at the different things that could be put in place that have to do with addictions.

Mr. Speaker, I think Members would agree with me that programs need to be delivered in a way that deals with the root causes of much of the pain in the North that causes addictions in the first place. Models of addiction treatment that treat addiction as a symptom of underlying issues must begin to surface here in the North. Because I do not think that any amount of money could solve the addictions problems in the Northwest Territories.

I think it is going to take an effort on the part of this government and other community and aboriginal leaders, to recognize the magnitude of the problem, then begin to look at ways we might address it. The addictions issue is usually a manifestation of underlying causes. When you identify the underlying causes and people are ready to start talking about them and dealing with them, I think we will have something to begin with. Thank you.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Supplementary, Mr. Bell.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I agree with the Minister. I do not think any amount of money could entirely fix our problem. I think it is about life choices. The Minister mentioned she thought it a little premature to start making some decisions on where this money might come from. She suggested we might have to go out and do some research on the matter. I am wondering if the Minister can tell us if she is proposing to study or do a study on where money might come from? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. The honourable Minister responsible for Health and Social Services, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I do not believe that any more formal studies into the issue are required. I think we already have much of the information we need to start addressing this problem. It is a matter of looking at what has worked in the past. I think I would be correct in saying that many Northerners have been treated for addictions and have had a relapse.

We need to look at the effectiveness of the programs. Are we spending money on treatment, then when the resident returns to the communities, and there is no community support or network there for them, they fall back into the same pattern. We need to look at all of those issues and spend our money in the most effective way possible to see results. Thank you.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Final supplementary, Mr. Bell. Item 6, oral questions. The Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister responsible for Health and Social Services. It is regarding the questions I asked last week of the Minister responsible for Municipal and Community Affairs. I am speaking of the large numbers of THMs, or trihalomethanes, which are known to have an effect, especially when consumed over an extended period of time, on public and private health.

There are federal standards in place that allow for 100 parts per billion. Those are the federal guidelines. Yet the tests that have been taken on the water in Fort McPherson have exceeded the national standards.

Mr. Speaker, last week, large amounts of THMs found in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland have set off alarms. They are a group of chemicals suspected of causing bladder cancer, colon cancer and the possibility of still-births. THMs are in that group. I would like to ask the Minister, how seriously is her department taking this issue? What is her department doing to ensure something is done on this matter? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. The honourable Minister responsible for Health and Social Services, Mrs. Groenewegen.