Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak about a critical issue in a lot of our small communities. There is a high increase in prices in everything from power to land taxes to gasoline. Yet, Mr. Speaker, we are going to be reviewing the 2001 budget shortly. There are areas we have to take into account the cost of living that is associated with accumulated tax increases, increase in fees and different programs like driver's licences.

The big problem in a lot of our small communities is adjusting to our landed price increases in a lot of the small non-tax-based communities. Yet, Mr. Speaker, we have a budget in front of us where we have come out with new initiatives, new ways of doing things, but in the communities I cannot really say how that will affect to improve the conditions a lot of our communities are finding themselves in, with the increased power rates and the fuel adjustment rate rider that is in place now where people's power rates have increased drastically.

For some communities, they are paying over $1.00 a litre for gas. Yet, Mr. Speaker, we continue to see these increases but we do not feel the impacts until you get right down living in these communities where you own your own home. You try to heat and pay for the power to maintain these units in isolated communities and continue to see these increases.

Mr. Speaker, I think it is appropriate that we seriously consider people in the small isolated communities when we review the budgets and business plans in front of us, knowing that there has been impacts on communities, especially in areas related to the Northwest Territories Power Corporation and the fuel adjustment rate rider. There has to be a review to see exactly what can be done to offset the cost of these small communities who are off highways, who are not going to see the benefit in regard to the Highway Strategy, who may not feel the benefit of where the economics are coming from in regard to oil and gas, diamonds, where it seems to serve a lot of the larger centres. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like unanimous consent to conclude.