Item 7, oral questions. The Member for Range Lake, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I want to continue on with my lobbying on my dough of budget that refuses to be a box. Seeing as I have been told a flat no by the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, I have to knock on the door of the Minister of Finance. So my question is to ask the Minister of Finance to help me get my dough shaped into a cake. Mr. Speaker, as I have mentioned, we have had a little break from the federal government, and I am not asking for a spending spree, I do believe that he is very disciplined and regimented in the way he wants to shape his fiscal agenda. But the thing is, Mr. Speaker, I have not heard of any other program or ideas in this Assembly that has been brought up by as many Members as this early childhood development program. It is something that we should really work to save. The Minister of Education suggested that he doesn't have $1 million. I am not asking for $1 million; perhaps we could work on a quarterly basis. Could we not find $250,000 to extend this program for another quarter out of the $50 million minus getting rid of a deficit of $47 and what is left of $3 million? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause

Minister of Finance, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as the Minister stated earlier, when we stepped into the picture, the dough was already rising and it is a matter of putting it in the oven and delivering a budget. What I have been putting together are the ingredients for the long-term for the next stage that we are going to be working in. The $50 million break that we have just received, that will only be good for one year. It is only a short-term fix. What the Members are requesting here would take more than one year, and we would be back into the same situation of starting to spend money that we don't have long term. If we are going to fund programs of that nature, we have got to find funding that is going to be in the base that is going to be long term. What I can commit to do is, as we go through this process, start looking internally to see what other areas we can save money on to reallocate if we can't find any new revenues in that area. I am very concerned that though we have a bit of relief here, we are going to be moving into the area of making long-term commitments on short-term funding, and that is not a good practice. Thank you.

---Applause

Ms. Lee, I would just like to recognize that time has run out, but I will allow you to conclude your supplementaries. Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Maybe we should hire somebody named Belinda to come and bake a bigger pie.

Mr. Speaker, I am asking the Minister for some passion and compassion here. Honestly, Mr. Speaker, we are dealing with a $1 billion budget, and we just got $50 million extra. This is not just a numbers game and a numbers exercise. Nobody is out there saying that if you don't keep that $50 million the day will end. We are talking about a project that has real impact on the children's lives every day, and we are going to walk out here next week and that will be done with. You can say oh, well, our books are nice and clean. What good does that do? Mr. Speaker, we are talking $250,000, I am begging for $250,000. Could the Minister give it to us? Thank you.

Minister of Finance, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we are in our process of coming up with the dollars in expenditure amounts for the 2004-05 year, and we have not even completed that process, but last night I heard in this House the Minister of Education already talking about a supplementary of $2.8 million for the PTR ratio. So before we even pass this one, I have my ministerial colleagues knocking at the door for more money in different areas.

We are in a difficult position. Mr. Speaker, the $50 million is not extra money, let's get that clear right away; it is not extra money. If we did not have that we would be carrying a $46 million deficit, which would add to our problem. We have got a break here, let's use it wisely and let's look along the way. I am not saying there will be no money, what I am saying is depending on what we come out with at the end of this process, we can look internally to see if we can find some reallocations in there.

The Member is right, there is $1 billion, but I have elders in my community looking forward to see if they will continue with their seniors' program on fuel subsidies, or youth in school, and the kindergarten for full-day courses and education classes. So there is a whole mix of things that we have to come together with. I think we can do the work. Let's get through this process, let's see what we can find internally that is base funding. This is the exercise we talked about: program review. We have to see what programs are critical and that are worthwhile finding the dollars for, and then taking off program areas that are lower in priority. That is the unfortunate situation we find ourselves in, and we are going to have to move around along those lines. Thank you.

Supplementary, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just want to go back to the point that I believe there is not another issue that has been brought up in this House that has shown as much consensus and that has built as much support. I do believe that. Many Members have indicated the number of letters they have received, and I really think that we should think more carefully and ignore the good evidence of positive results of a program. This is a really crucial time. It is the three-year mark when something has just taken flight; once it is dead it is not going to be revived. Mr. Speaker, may I ask the Minister of Finance to go back to the Cabinet and see if he can find in his heart and compassion out of the $1 billion budget and $50 million extra, to find some money? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Minister of Finance, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, once again, there is no extra money. The $50 million is not extra that we have. It is not new money to spend on long-term commitments. We have to find this money internally. I will commit to going back to my Cabinet colleagues to find from within to try to fund this program. It is critical, it is important, I have heard it from the Members, but at the same time we have a fiscal strategy in place and if we are going to meet that, we are going to have to hold a tight ship here so we are going to have to find something else in our budget that is being presented that is not as important as this one and try to reallocate that funding. Right now, we are already getting pressures to spend more and at the same time try to look at our revenue situation. So we have to come up with a balance to hold the line and try to go forward from there. Thank you.

Final supplementary, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I stated in my Member's statement, I refuse to accept this changing propaganda from the government. Mr. Speaker, two days ago, we were in a situation of a $47 million deficit. Yesterday, we got $50 million that we did not have, or $50 million that we thought we had to pay to the federal government but we don't have to. I don't care how you read it, we have 50 million extra dollars. You take $47 million out of $50 million, we have $3 million extra. I am told by the Minister of Education that this early childhood program was on top of the agenda, the top of the list as one that would be reinstated should we get any extra money. So I am challenging the Cabinet, the Minister of Finance and Minister of Education, this is worth saving, they can do it, and I don't care about this $47 million. You can't go from a $47 million deficit to a $3 million surplus and cut the money out of the kids. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Minister of Finance, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Once again, as I say, we have not even completed this process on the budget we have before this Assembly, and last night again, I heard the Minister of Education say that he is going to come forward with a supplementary item for $2.8 million just to deal with the PTR ratio in schools, because he has the information now that can substantiate that and we will have to meet that for the upcoming fiscal year for our students in the schools. So we have issues on the table. We are going to have to find money to deal with those issues. We can't, because of a one-time offer on the table that is going to be put to the deficit, that may give us a little bit of one-time money, soon to be taken by a number of requests. I am going to hold the line as much as I can, but I am also committing to work with my Cabinet colleagues to look from within for the dollars that we have and will be approved by this Assembly to try to keep some of these urgent programs. That is what we have to work with. It is not like we have an ongoing commitment for millions of dollars that we can find. We have many important programs that we would like to proceed with, but we are not able to at this time. So, Mr. Speaker, we are going to hold the line. I will work with my Cabinet colleagues to try to find something that we can reallocate internally. That is the position I can take and move forward on. Thank you.

---Applause

Item 8, written questions, Mr. Allen.

Item 8, written questions. Item 9, returns to written questions. Mr. Handley. Mr. Clerk.

Item 9, returns to written questions. Item 10, replies to opening address. Item 11, replies to budget address. Just a reminder, this is the last day. Item 12, petitions. Item 13, reports of committees on the review of bills. Item 14, tabling of documents. Mr. Handley.