Thank you, Mr. Speaker, honourable Members. As I was saying, Mr. Speaker, in order to plan programs, services and facilities, we need to have good statistical information. Unfortunately, there is a glaring omission in our budget. Residents of the Northwest Territories are concerned that the incidence of FAS and FAE in the Northwest Territories may be increasing, but it is impossible to identify the present magnitude of FAS and FAE in the Northwest Territories and our present budget does not address this issue.

Mr. Speaker, there are many government departments that feel the impacts of FAE and FAS in one way or another. However, this government does not have a government-wide action plan for FAE/FAS. Each department appears to be dealing with this problem independently. There is no coordinated approach, Mr. Speaker. Given the magnitude of the problem, there is a real need for the development of a government-wide action plan on FAE and FAS. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

-- Applause