The House will come back to order after a short break. We ended on item 12. Item 13, tabling of documents. The Chair recognizes the honourable Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Krutko.

Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to go back to item 6.

The honourable Member is seeking unanimous consent to return to item 6, oral questions. Are there any nays? There are no nays. Item 6, oral questions. The honourable Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. The honourable Minister responsible for the Department of Finance, Mr. Handley.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This government is very aware of our obligations under section 10 of the land claim agreement. This has been an issue that has been ongoing for some time. Last week, I did meet with one of the vice-presidents and discussed it and have tentatively come up with a proposal that, if there is support both by government and from the president, we would move forward as a better way of managing our responsibilities there. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Supplementary, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I think it is important as a government that we educate the departments and the people who run these departments, especially the deputy ministers and senior bureaucrats within the department, on exactly what the land claim agreements are. I would like to ask the Minister exactly what is the government doing to ensure that we are educating the civil servants and bureaucrats within the system to understand what our obligations are in these land claim agreements?

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. The honourable Minister responsible for the Department of Finance, Mr. Handley.

Mr. Speaker, all of the deputies are familiar with the Gwich'in land claim and all the provisions that are in it. Until now, if there have been any questions about it, then those have been referred to the Ministry of Aboriginal Affairs for interpretation. There is also the question of what is the spirit and intent of some of the sections and those, I believe, we have been making efforts to adhere to them.

I did meet last week, as I mentioned, with the vice-president. I have yet to talk to my colleagues here on my proposal, but it would essentially be one where we would have deputy ministers exercise more responsibility as a group over projects in the Gwich'in and Sahtu areas. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister Handley. Supplementary, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I for one believe that this is long overdue. The claim was signed in 1992. It has been over eight years. I think it is important that this government starts living up to the obligations in the agreement. I would like to ask the Minister, what is the government doing to ensure that there is a group or committee to evaluate the responsibilities? Are we really living up to those obligations with regard to how government is doing business in those claims areas where land claims have been settled?

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. The honourable Minister responsible for the Department of Finance, Mr. Handley.

Mr. Speaker, last week when I met with the vice-president, I did agree with him that we would not publicly discuss details about what we are proposing until our government is aware of what it is and has a chance to have input into it, and also that the president, when he returns from holidays, is not surprised by some agreement that happened while he was away. I said that I would basically work on it. I think the president is back some time at the end of July. We will follow up with him immediately at that time. I do not think it would be appropriate to get into details right now. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister Handley. Final supplementary, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would just like to read a quote in the agreement, which is section 10.13. It says:

"The government shall meet with the Gwich'in Tribal Council not less than once every three years to review the effect of programs in relation to the objectives under 10.11, where it says the government's economic development programs in settlement regions shall take into account certain objectives to maintain and strengthen the economic self-sufficiency of the Gwich'in."

I would like to ask the Minister, can he ensure us that this obligation will be adhered to? That they will do a thorough review to see the effectiveness of economic development programs, negotiated contracts, sole-sourced contracts, and policies that this government has in place, and is it working in the context of the agreements?

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. The honourable Minister responsible for the Department of Finance, Mr. Handley.

Mr. Speaker, yes. I am sure there will be a lot of meetings between various departments, deputies, Ministers and so on, and the Gwich'in Tribal Council on this matter. My intention is that we need to formalize that process a bit more to ensure that we are living up to it and we are meeting at least the minimum number of times as outlined in the land claim agreement. Exactly how we propose to do that is something I would like to deal with the president on when he is back and, of course, with the MLA. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister Handley. Item 6, oral questions. Item 13, tabling of documents. The honourable Member for Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Mr. Speaker, thank you. I wish to table the following document entitled It's Time to Act: A Report on Health and Social Services System of the Northwest Territories Executive Summary. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Madam Minister. Item 13, tabling of documents. The honourable Member for Weledeh, Mr. Handley.

Mr. Speaker, further to my Return to Written Question 4-14(4), I wish to table the following document entitled Departmental Funding to Non-Government Organizations. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Item 13, tabling of documents. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Antoine.