Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In comparison to other jurisdictions, the amount of support that is provided to a parent who is staying home to look after children is very good in the Northwest Territories. The feeling is that the program, as it's designed, in fact, does accommodate that desire. For instance, those jurisdictions like Newfoundland which have allowed the straight flow through, even though there is a high cost of living in many of the smaller communities in Newfoundland and Labrador, their level of support is nowhere near what we provide to individuals living in the Northwest Territories.
One of the issues here is how much money is needed in order to get by. The program as it stands right now is one that accommodates people by saying if you come to the table with a certain level of funding in hand and you need twice that amount to get through the month, we'll provide the difference. That's what we look at as what people need. That's how the program has been approached to this point.
Having said that, I agreed that I will review the program with the Members of the Standing Committee on Social Programs and I am prepared to discuss with them what other options we might have. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.