Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The debate that we are having right now really defines a classic conundrum in what I anticipated political life might be about. Here we are, literally at the eleventh minute or the eleventh hour, facing a situation that the government says is intractable, cannot be remedied or addressed. Yet, I reflect back on the day in this Assembly, about ten weeks ago, when we elected the Cabinet and asked them to go forward with confidence to be a good government. They had our vote. The expectation, Mr. Chairman, knowing that we were facing a big money problem, was that the new Cabinet would go ahead with confidence but also with care and prudent action in how they were going to set the tone. The expenditures and the programs in the interim budget all have merit. The programs, likewise, for this supplementary appropriation, on their own, have merit.
On the whole, Mr. Chairman, they do not reflect the spirit of recognizing our situation, of really and truly going that extra mile and demonstrating that leadership that could have been there and should have been there. It could have sent a signal, not just to the Members on the other side, but to all of the people in the Northwest Territories, that we are paying attention. The signal we are sending, I do not think, is one of prudent management, even in this relatively small amount, and I do respect the Minister's comment about micro-management. But in the light of the program, the capital and the service reductions that we have recognized and that the government has incorporated in the coming four months of expenditures, we were, indeed, looking for more care and more prudence in how things were going to be managed in the last few weeks of this fiscal year. The challenge was to look within and manage existing resources. This is where we have this conundrum.
The Department of the Executive seems to have been singled out here. This is not by accident. I would reflect on an aspect of the department, where the opening budget, when it started out for the fiscal year 1999-2000, was for $30.3 million. Mr. Chairman, if we pass this fourth supplementary, the budget for the Executive will be $38 million. Mr. Chairman, this is an increase of $8 million within one fiscal year. I know that this government cannot and should not take full responsibility for that very substantial increase but it is a reflection on the Department of the Executive. Mr. Chairman, this is one that, indeed, has the biggest scope, the biggest opportunity to do things and stretch great new initiatives, do good things. But with that opportunity is a responsibility to manage prudently and carefully.
I do not know, Mr. Chairman, if I have really contributed anything new to the argument or the discussion, but I wanted to state my position on the committee's difficulty with this expenditure. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.