Thank you. I know this is getting specific here and we do have a cost-sharing agreement. Everyone is aware of the agreement and our government is aware it exists. I am wondering if we have assurance that additional monies were spent by the federal government in this area. It would be very easy for the federal government to insist that they are already funding over and above this amount of money and to just say "We are not going to identify specifically their one-third share." How do we verify that additional monies actually came forward for Intergovernmental Forum participation from the federal government? I wonder how we know.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. Mr. Handley.

Mr. Chairman, we do not provide our share of money until the federal government provides their share. The first $1 million that was needed in this exercise was funded one-third by the GNWT, two-thirds by the federal government. That is confirmed in an agreement. I am not clear on the other $580,000 that is required, exactly what the funding ratio was between the federal government and ourselves, but I can assure you we do not commit our money until the federal government has committed theirs. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Mr. Bell.

Thank you. Well, as we pass this supplementary appropriation, we will have committed this money. I would like assurance from the Minister that he will get back to me and indicate that he has verified an additional amount of money was spent by the federal government that matches this, based on whatever the agreement is, if it is one-thirds, two-thirds, whatever. I would just like him to indicate that he has seen this money and is aware that the aboriginal governments received it. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. Mr. Handley.

Yes, Mr. Chairman, it will be, not the amount that is spent, but the amount that is committed. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister Handley. Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I have a question and a comment on the $1 million special warrant under hydroelectric potential, and I wonder if it is okay for me to speak on that. It is not on any page.

The Chair is going to call a short break here.

-- Break

I will call the committee of the whole back to order. We are on Executive, operations expenditures, not previously authorized, Cabinet Secretariat, $1,400,000. Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, I will have to defer until the next item.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Mr. Braden.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. There are a couple of things I would like to explore here. The first item listed under the Executive is a reference to the development of a Social Agenda for the NWT for $250,000. I guess in line with statements that we have heard from Mr. Miltenberger, the newly designated Minister responsible for Health and Social Services, is this in a sense a new study?

The Minister is on record as saying there will be no more new studies within that branch and enough work has been done already to lay the groundwork for where we want to go. I wanted to ask the Minister in that context, is this item, the establishment of a working group tasked with the development of a social agenda, is it in effect a new study or is it actually going to deliver on something that is relevant in this area? Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Handley.

Mr. Chairman, this is not a new study. This is a task that was set up following the Social Agenda Conference in Hay River in June. It is partway through its exercise. It is more than a study. It is more of a consensus building exercise that involves most of the agencies that have a mandate in this area. I would not call it a new study and in fact, it is not really a study. It is more of a consensus building and a follow-up to the conference that was held in June. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Mr. Braden.

Mr. Chairman, could we get a bit more of an explanation of what the outcome will be of their work? What are we going to see that is tangible and that will really make a difference for the people of the NWT on the Social Agenda? What are the deliverables? Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Handley.

Mr. Chairman, the working group is tasked with developing an NWT Social Agenda. It will contain a vision statement, a guiding principle, goals and a set of concrete measurable recommendations for following up on the outcomes from the Hay River conference. That draft NWT Social Agenda, which is broader than just the Department of Health and Social Services, will be presented to the Premier and to the Minister's Committee on Social Agenda in time for it to be considered by the Intergovernmental Forum in February of 2002. They will come up with a very specific Social Agenda document. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Mr. Braden.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, by February of next year -- that is barely four months from now, Mr. Chairman, with the Christmas season in the midst of that. Is it realistic, Mr. Chairman, to anticipate that this group of 20 people with very broad representation can achieve that in such a relatively short period of time? Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Handley.

Mr. Chairman, the Minister responsible for this, the Premier, has certainly felt that it is possible to achieve this task by February. They are also having four meetings between the time when the committee was struck and February. I think it can be done. Thank you.