Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Minister responsible for the Department of Health and Social Services, Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it is simplistic in my mind to think that you are going to just put more money on the table and we will not have a shortage of nurses...

Try it.

There is a package being ratified as we speak, Mr. Speaker. I have indicated that we are going to honour that process. Clearly the Member does not think it is acceptable, if she knows what is in the package, but the reality is it was negotiated. It was put on the table for the direction of the Members of the UNW. They will be providing that direction in short order. The nurses are part of that bargaining unit. The decision will be made and we will know what the answer is when the vote is counted. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Minister. Item 6, oral questions. The honourable Member for Yellowknife South, Mr. Bell.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. The honourable Minister responsible for the Department of Health and Social Services, Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it is not clear to me the intent of that question. Are there conditions from the government to the authorities, or from the authorities to the NGOs? I am not quite sure what the question is. Thank you.

Thank you. I am not sure whether that was an answer or a question. Mr. Bell, I will allow you to clarify your question. Just a very quick, short, positive, right-to-the-point question. Mr. Bell.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I was hoping the Minister would start to brag about his accountability framework and I was giving him that chance, but he clearly did not take me up on it. I am wondering if the Minister can tell me, are health boards free to spend the money in any manner they please? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. The honourable Minister responsible for the Department of Health and Social Services, Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we are in the process of firming up and improving our accountability processes. We are also in the process of coming up with a core services document on a service delivery model. Are authorities given carte blanche to do whatever they should choose with the millions of dollars, the $150 million that we are giving authorities? No, they are not. There are funding areas, mandated services, legal requirements, and there are programs deemed necessary to be delivered. There is significant latitude, but not a carte blanche, if that is what the Member is asking. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Minister. Supplementary, Mr. Bell.

Thank you. I am glad to hear that answer. I must say that I do recognize that this is a very difficult business and that, as the Minister has pointed out earlier, people do not choose when to get sick, and obviously we do not choose when to treat them. We treat everybody who comes to our doors. However, I am wondering if the Minister can tell me, what do we do in the event that health boards overspend what we have given them to spend? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. The honourable Minister responsible for the Department of Health and Social Services, Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this is a two-part answer. As the Member knows, in a supplementary appropriation, there is some funding to deal with the accumulated debt of some of the authorities. Up until last year, Mr. Speaker, that was an issue. Last year, there was a significant rebasing done. We are now of the opinion, along with the authorities, barring vibrant forced growth and emergencies, that there is sufficient money in the budgets for the health authorities to be able to live with those particular budgets.

In the past, up until last year, there was approximately a two-year process of protracted negotiation between the boards and the department trying to come to some resolution of the outstanding accumulated debt issue that was not reached. Hence, the decision was made to go to the 60/40 split to move ahead, to clear that item off the books.

The rebasing was done. From here on in, the expectation is that, given our new processes and new accountability working as a system, the authorities and the department will make sure that we live within the fixed budget, still keeping in mind that there are going to be forced growth factors, such as union settlements, our Capital Health Authority contract when it is done, negotiated settlements with doctors, those type of things. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Minister. Supplementary, Mr. Bell.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, I agree. We will still see forced growth, obviously, but it has to be justifiable forced growth. We have been saying this for years, Mr. Speaker, and still I do not think we have a real handle on the problem. What can the Minister do or say to assure us that he actually will recognize that only justifiable forced growth in the future will be bailed out? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. The honourable Minister responsible for the Department of Health and Social Services, Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Department of Health and Social Services and all of the authorities operate by the definition of forced growth set out by this government through FMBS. We are making every attempt, along with our colleagues, to be vigilant, efficient, and economical in how we run our operation. The commitment is to in fact stay within our budgets. We are taking the steps and we will be appearing before committee and this House on a regular basis. The business planning process is starting. We will be accountable all the way through this process to try to contain costs. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Minister. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Bell.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Minister indicated that health boards would be on the hook for 40 percent of their accumulated debts and obviously will have to submit deficit elimination plans. What if they cannot recoup that money? What will the Minister do?

Thank you, Mr. Bell. The honourable Minister responsible for the Department of Health and Social Services, Mr. Miltenberger, your final, short answer.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we are in the process of concluding that deficit reduction plan as we speak. The majority of authorities that had an accumulated debt have come up with satisfactory plans. We are just in the process of finalizing the two outstanding plans with the authorities, where it is just a matter of looking through some of the detail. There has been correspondence on an ongoing basis. I am confident that those two authorities will be able to sign off their agreements in the very near future. Thank you.