Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. The honourable Member for Weledeh, Mr. Handley.

Mr. Speaker, the Cabinet is not picking and choosing what they want. We do have the Robertson report that makes a number of recommendations. Certainly those have to be considered. It was Cabinet's decision to wait until after the energy strategy was completed. So that is where we are at. We are waiting until that strategy is completed. We will see what recommendations they come up with. In the meantime, Mr. Speaker, we do have a system with the Power Corporation where the power corporation makes rate applications to the Public Utilities Board. They can apply for community-by-community rates, they can apply for a one-rate zone. They could apply for whatever they want, but in this case they were directed to apply for community-rate zones by Cabinet and that is what they have done. Certainly this does not prevent anyone from intervening and saying I don't agree with that approach, I would recommend that we do it this way instead. So people can intervene and there will be public hearings held. I don't know if it's too late to put their name on the list with the Public Utilities Board for interventions, but there is opportunity for all communities, all clients, to make interventions. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Supplementary, Mr. Lafferty.

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. The honourable Member for Weledeh, Mr. Handley.

Mr. Speaker, I am, sure there are a lot of different views on which one is the fairest to individuals in one community or another community. I am sure we could have a lot of debate over one-zone versus community-by-community rate zones. The decision of Cabinet was to not change the present system we have now, which is community-rate zones until after we have this other document, the energy strategy, completed and before Cabinet. Cabinet said stay with the status quo and directed the Power Corporation to apply for community rate zones through the Public Utilities Board until we get that document. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Item 7, oral questions. The honourable Member for Great Slave, Mr. Braden.

Mr. Speaker, in the federal budget of a couple of days ago, there were changes announced to the National Child Benefit and I would like to ask the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment some questions related to this. The news from Ottawa tells us that the National Child Benefit supplement will increase $150 per child in July of this year and $185 in July of 2006, if I have my information correct. The question I would like to ask, Mr. Speaker, is will the Government of the Northwest Territories allow recipients to keep this cash directly or are we going to continue to scoop it and put it into other less focused child programs? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Braden. The honourable Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Ootes.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it was a good announcement that was made in the budget and it provided money for the NCB with additional money in the NCBS, as Mr. Braden has stated of some $150 additional in the first year and eventually to increase it to a total of $3,243 for the first child. On the matter of the process of funding usage of that money, Mr. Speaker, it will go to the low income and working families. Right in the statement made by Mr. Handley...Manley, pardon me...

---Laughter

I had stated that it's for children to break through the welfare wall and take control of their future. So it says in the statement that it's for working families, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Ootes. Supplementary, Mr. Braden.

The twin brother Finance Ministers here. Yes, it seems they have given some good news to Canadians and indeed Northerners. Perhaps I need some clarification, Mr. Speaker. It's my understanding that the program up to now is made available to individuals by the federal government, but the discretion is given to provinces and territories to take that money if they wish and redirect it to other child programs. That's what we do. Will this supplement be gathered up again to go into programs of our choice or will the cash stay with those families? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Braden. The honourable Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Ootes.

Mr. Speaker, the budget came out on Tuesday. We didn't know what the conditions of the budget would be and we still have to look at the implications of that particular part of the announcement, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Ootes. Supplementary, Mr. Braden.

Perhaps on a related aspect then, when this income is directed to income support clients, if they are going to be allowed to keep some of this, is it going to continue to be counted as income and, therefore, perhaps be deflected to other programs? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Braden. The honourable Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. Mr. Ootes.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. That is what I meant. But to the honourable Member, we still have to analyze that and see how it will impact on us, how it will impact on the territory and how we can treat this particular money. It states right in the federal document, "to help working families," so I need clarification on that from our part as well.

Thank you, Mr. Ootes. Final supplementary, Mr. Braden.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Fine. There is a lot of detail to this and I am certainly prepared to see some good analysis done. Just given that the increase is scheduled to take effect as of July of this year, that's not very much time. Would

the Minister be able to perhaps give us that information some time during this session? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Braden. The honourable Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Ootes.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We are somewhat dependent on the federal government supplying the information to us, so I can't guarantee what it will be, but we will certainly do our best to get as much information as we can and to resolve this particular question, Mr. Speaker. However, we are dependent on federal information to be provided to us. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Ootes. Item 7, oral questions. The honourable Member for Yellowknife South, Mr. Bell.