Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, a number of highways require surface overlay, and the department has been attempting to respond as best they can. We have to realize that we are working with a limited budget. We were fortunate this year to receive approval for some funding from the federal government. We have two revenue sources: a partnership arrangement with the federal government, and also through our corporate capital planning system. Highways 5 and 6 were submitted under the corporate capital planning system this year. They were assessed and did not receive any funding. I am not in a position to force the review committee to decide what projects are going to be brought forward or not. What we can do is resubmit them again next year. The capital planning process allows for review every year, and we will certainly submit it on the community's behalf. Thank you.

Supplementary, Mr. Villeneuve.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Just a question on the review committee's criteria for the allocation and review of the highway system, and the basis on which they prioritize the Transportation department's commitments to highway improvements. I want to know how much weight the review committee puts on the ratio of collisions to highway volume in their evaluations.

Minister of Transportation, Mr. McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we do put a lot of emphasis on the safety factor, but there are other criteria used; the condition of the road. As I indicated, it is something that has to be approved through the corporate capital planning system, and unfortunately this highway did not make the grade for any major improvement. Thank you.

Final supplementary, Mr. Villeneuve.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want to ask the Minister if he can provide me with some of the terms of reference for the review committee and their basis of how much weight they put on each factor that they take into consideration, and if the Minister will commit to re-evaluating the importance of this section of highway for the residents of Deninu Kue so that when they come and ask me as to why there will be no improvements on that section of the highway that I will be able to provide them with some legitimate reasons and explanations as to why the department disregarded or just didn't consider this highway for improvements in the foreseeable future. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Minister of Transportation. Mr. McLeod.

Thank you. Mr. Speaker, we would be glad to provide that information in terms of where it ranked throughout the process. We have to recognize though that we are not able to accommodate all of the capital projects in the North. I think we are doing roughly 60 or 70 percent of what comes forward. It is difficult when we can't access the funding for certain projects. However, the road, we feel, is still in fairly good condition. We will take another look at what was being raised as safety concerns by the Member, and we will provide back in writing where the status of this road is, and what we are presenting to the corporate Capital Planning Review Committee for consideration. Thank you.

Item 6, oral questions. Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes, Mr. Allen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Regrettably the Minister is so ideologically married to the old doctrines of this government that he is not willing to consider a change from a rent geared to income to a more levelized kind of rent scale that we so advocate here to help the people adjust to the changes in social economies. Mr. Speaker, that brings me to the point I want to ask the Minister. Has he decided to suddenly introduce new policy changes that would now charge seniors rent, contrary to the old policy? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Minister responsible for the Housing Corporation, Mr. McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, if I understand the question correctly, the Member has asked if I am introducing rent to seniors. If that is the question, no, we haven't made that decision. We have deferred the review of the harmonization initiative until the fall. That will come up for consideration at that time, but as of today, no. Thank you.

Supplementary, Mr. Allen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Under legislative rules to last administer a fee, in his statement back to me he says significant change that seniors' households will now be assessed rent, thus the question is raised again to the Minister, is he willing to or is he planning on introducing policy changes to that effect on charging seniors rent, based on his statement in his reply to my oral question? Thank you.

Minister responsible for the Housing Corporation, Mr. McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In my reply to the Member with regard to the oral question, the letter indicates that a flat rent scale if implemented

would cause and place a burden on our seniors and our singles, because a flat rent scale does not take into consideration seniors, or singles, or low income families. It is across the board based on the number of bedrooms, or the number of rooms in a house, and it applies with no discretion. So in the letter I have indicated that it causes us concern to introduce or look at that concept, because it would mean charging rent to seniors. I did not indicate in the letter that we will be bringing to the House a rent scale for seniors. I want to clarify that. Thank you.

Supplementary, Mr. Allen.

Minister responsible for the Housing Corporation, Mr. McLeod.

Mr. Speaker, I thought I had answered that very question in my previous answer, but again...

You can answer the question, you can take the question as notice, or don't answer the question, but it is a question.

Mr. Speaker, again I will answer the question by stating that the flat rent scale would apply undue hardship to our seniors and our single people, and the people on our low rent scale. That is what I indicated in the letter, and that is the reason we haven't moved forward with this whole concept. To us it is, of course, a very attractive concept. It is a way for us to look at bringing more revenue because it would increase the rent scales and it would bring more revenue to the Housing Corporation, but at this point we are not moving forward on it. We have put that on the back burner for the time being. It is an option that we can look at some time in the near future, but at this point we are not. Thank you.

Final supplementary, Mr. Allen.