Mr. Chairman, I just want to go back to the government's responsibility of addressing the serious issue of dust and the effects on our health. As an Assembly, we recognize that as a real problem in the Northwest Territories. People in communities have been pushing us as their Members to recognize that problem. Two recommendations of the special committee that was created to address issues in the smaller communities, the city accepted that responsibility. Sometimes, Mr. Chairman, I feel that when governments and their departments identify a problem, sometimes it takes too long to identify those problems, but once we do, we approach it as an obligation. The attitude that you should be happy, you should be lucky you are getting these services in your communities, when we should be happy that we have an opportunity to deliver programs and services on behalf of the people of the Northwest Territories, we should be happy to work with the communities so that we involve the community. When we address such a serious issue as dust control that every community has an issue with, it deals with the psyche. It has a negative impact on the human psyche when they have to swallow the dust in their homes.

As an Assembly, we recognize that, but what is our answer? A piecemeal slapped together response to that issue, using equipment rather than the needs and recognition that it is a health issue.

What I see is a Minister that has taken the opportunity and padded his riding, not recognizing the needs of the communities down in Mackenzie and around the Great Slave Lake. There is an opportunity, a political will was demonstrated. A decision to accept that responsibility, to address that issue was not made by this Assembly but the Minister decided we'll use availability of equipment to follow through with our responsibility. Whereas, what he should have done, right off the bat, was acknowledge that every community has this problem, taking our financial resources and applying it evenly right across the territory.

What does it take to set up dust monitoring stations in all our communities? What does it take to make our government departments go to every community and to do an analysis, working with the community to come up with a long-term plan so that they know that this government is responding to their issues?

We have, because of equipment availability, decided to spend an obscene amount of money crushing gravel without doing the leg work in Tuktoyaktuk, without doing an assessment of the amount of crushed gravel that is needed, how the plans are going to be put in place. How are they going to pave the road? Are they just going to slap the chipseal down in communities with the community's participation? Those things have not been considered. No, there is an opportunity for me to get into that community and pave first or chipseal first and I'll use this equipment availability as the reason behind it.

Mr. Chairman, I do not want to see this department finish with the community until that issue is resolved. I will be introducing a motion for consideration by my colleagues to do just that. We have an issue in every community. I think as a government, we have a responsibility to address that issue and then coordinate it in partnership with the communities so they know we are addressing their concerns, and it is a big concern. I argued strong and hard for my communities yesterday. Upon reflection, Mr. Chairman, it is not an issue for my constituency; it is an issue of territorial proportions. One of the very few that they could do as a territorial government to cover the whole Northwest Territories and have an impact on every community. We haven't done that. We took our political will and our acceptance of responsibility and one Minister ran with it and ensured that his riding would benefit first.

There are ways of doing things without financial institutions. If we don't have the money now, we could work with the community's development corporation. Mr. Koe runs our economic development arm of this government. We're always looking for projects in communities, here is a small business opportunity for people in communities to do the chipsealing and maintenance. Why can't we look at the whole issue holistically? Career opportunities. Let's be glad we could do it and let's be happy that we have the privilege of doing it, not approach it as an obligation, not make the communities feel guilty about getting something that they need. It is our responsibility, and this is good. Let's have a territorial impact, let's make people happy in every community. I think we don't have an opportunity to do that as a government too often, and this is one opportunity. Let's not belittle ourselves. Let's use the financial institutions, the political will of the people in the Northwest Territories. Let's see if we can move on this as needed, not based on the equipment availability. That kind of thinking restricts us and it keeps us from moving to the next level of society.

The attitude demonstrated by the Minister is, here is an opportunity for our riding, I'm going to jump on it. It is not good for society as a delivery agent, as a representative of the values that people hold in the democratic system. That is abuse of power as far as I'm concerned. So, I will be introducing a motion that will re-jig this whole chipsealing program so that all Northerners can benefit, all Northerners will know when we will address their dust issue. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.