Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to recognize Major Karen Hoeft from the Yellowknife Salvation Army. She is a constituent of mine and I am very proud of the promotion she made this year from captain to major.

-- Applause

Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize several people, but first of all I would like to recognize my wife Margaret who is in the gallery today.

-- Applause

A constituent, Ed Jeske, a well-known Yellowknifer.

-- Applause

Margaret Wilke, who is a member of the YK No. 1 school board.

-- Applause

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, as Premier, I have a duty to act on the direction of Cabinet, so it is not necessarily my sole prerogative and decision to take action on certain occasions. If the Member is asking about the particular issue regarding the Power Corporation, it was simply clarifying and following a direction set out by Cabinet. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, the Cabinet had made a decision in August, a month before the Power Corporation filed an application that we thought was clear, that said the direction was given to defer any further consultation specifically on the one-rate zone. When that was undertaken by the Power Corporation, Cabinet met just recently to reiterate its position and ask for the Power Corporation, through the Minister, to comply with that decision. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, it was my understanding in talking to a number of MLAs that there was not enough discussion at our level to warrant such a massive shift in approach to providing safe, reliable and affordable electrical services, power, and electrical power to the people of the Northwest Territories, and that we needed to have a fundamental discussion about it before a single-rate application could be made to the Power Corporation.

The Public Utilities Board will still require an application to be made to it and it will still require to have hearings and accept presentations. The Power Corporation, we expect, will re-file an application along the lines of what it has been providing up until now, which is a community-based rate.

That will allow individuals, groups and communities to present their case as to how power should be provided to them in the communities and they can talk about the different ways in which that can be provided and seek clarification on issues they wish to have clarified. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, the Public Utilities Board is an independent body that conducts hearings in the public interest. The board of the Power Corporation has nothing to do with that at all. The board of the Power Corporation is simply set up to manage the business of the Power Corporation, its assets in the interest of the public as directed by the Government of the Northwest Territories as its owner and single shareholder.

The hearings will resume as soon as the application is resubmitted and consultation will resume with the public as to their views regarding the application of the Power Corporation in the way that the Power Corporation provides service through most of the Northwest Territories to the communities and people.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my question is also for the Premier, and it is regarding my Member's statement. I for one totally disagree with the community base rates. I believe that we have to have a system that ensures socio-economic viability of our communities to take on the opportunities of expanding our wealth, but not being in the position right now of having a competitive rate right across the board for everyone. For one, it is not fair. The other reason, it is not economic to pay $2.20 for a kilowatt of power in Colville Lake and pay 10 cents a kilowatt for power in Fort Smith. There is definitely a difference and we have to look at it.

I would like to ask the Premier, what is he going to do to ensure public confidence in the system, ensuring that we do have a public process, that we allow public hearings to take place without political interference by this government?