Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this weekend I will be joining the students of the Western Arctic Leadership Program for an awards dinner in Fort Smith and I want to make some comments on this program.

Mr. Speaker, this government, in cooperation with the education boards, extended grades into the communities. This has meant that a basic high school education is now available to students in their home communities. However, Mr. Speaker, this basic education does not meet the needs of all of the students in the communities.

Those who decide to pursue a post-secondary education soon come to realize that the basic education received in their home communities does not provide a sufficient academic foundation for success. Mr. Speaker, many of these grade 12 graduates find that they have to take academic upgrading to be successful in post-secondary education. The above-average students from the communities without an academic stream curriculum can apply to live in a residential setting offered by the Western Arctic Leadership Program and attend high school in Fort Smith.

Mr. Speaker, as you are aware, Fort Smith, as a larger regional centre, can offer students an education complete with access to labs, libraries and specialized academic teachers. The Western Arctic Leadership Program provides extra tutoring and leadership training that encourages students' success.

In short, Mr. Speaker, over the past ten years, the Western Arctic Leadership Program has provided students from up and down the Mackenzie Valley the necessary tools to succeed in post-secondary school or in the work force.

Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, over the past five years or so, it has become a constant struggle for the program to raise enough funding to continue. It seems that every year, they must wait for this government to decide at the last minute whether or not they will receive core funding for the upcoming year.

This lack of support leads to uncertainty and does not provide the students with a sense of stability. This government is going to spend $11 million on the various components of the Maximizing Northern Employment Strategy and yet cannot provide core funding for a program that prepares young Northerners to take advantage of the opportunities that are available to them.

I strongly encourage all the DEAs and concerned parents to contact the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, the Premier and their MLAs to demand that the Western Arctic Leadership Program receive stable long-term funding to ensure its continued...