Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there is no contradiction, and I'll do my best to satisfy the Member, as difficult as that sometimes may be. The reality is, as I've indicated, Mr. Speaker -- and this is not just a case of putting a roof over somebody's head -- we're talking about clients, many of them with complex, multiple needs that are very specialized. So I think it's an overgeneralization to say let's just round them all up and stick them into every available space we may have up here willy-nilly, regardless of what their needs may be. So, yes, we're looking at this and we're going to do it in a careful, measured way. We're looking at some short-term possibilities; as well, we're going to look at the long term. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Supplementary, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Surely that's not what I'm suggesting, for the Minister to do anything willy-nilly. I don't mind breaking out into a song, "I Can't Get No Satisfaction,"...

---Laughter

---Applause

...as long as I'm doing that on behalf of my constituents and people of the North. Mr. Speaker, he has not answered the question about whether or not, first of all, he knows about these four facilities. Have any of the hundreds of staff that he has under his supervision looked at these buildings? Has that come onto his radar screen? Could the Minister commit to look at these buildings and see if they are at all usable? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the level of the Member's satisfaction is the level of detail I don't think I really need as the Minister. However, I will attempt to respond once again. These are very specialized placements, they're not necessarily institutions, they're supported living, there are multiple needs, some of them very complex that require specialized care. Are we looking at this? Yes, we are.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Your final supplementary, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'm not asking any of the Ministers to satisfy me...

---Laughter

...I'm asking the Ministers to do their jobs and use the money wisely. Mr. Speaker, I want to say that I'm not looking for all these 25 or 35 adults to be put together. I understand that they all have different needs. But we know for a fact that it was enough, it was satisfactory to put 10 people together in a facility in Edmonton. If it's good enough for them, it's good enough for us. Would the Minister consider putting them together into any of these facilities we have? Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this is not a facility with one huge roof like Wal-Mart. We're talking about individual living accommodations and supports for people with complex needs. I have indicated to the Members involved that I would be happy to look towards arranging a tour down to Capital Health in Edmonton to look at all our health services...

---Applause

...and all our social services that we contract with them. We did it in the last assembly and it was a very informative tour for myself and the Members who went along, and I would be willing to look at arranging that again. We are looking at the individual needs, the individual clients. The intent is to put them into as home-like supportive living as possible, as opposed to any kind of major institution where they are just housed with dozens of other people. That's not the intent here. We are trying to respond to individual clients, many of whom are very complex. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Item 6, oral questions. The honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today in my Member's statement I spoke about the need for the telephone to be an allowable expense under the act. I spoke about the fact that many government services, such as the Department of Health and Social Services' new Tele-Care line, are not accessible to people without a phone. It's hard for people to get a job if a potential employer can't get hold of them in a timely fashion. My question for the Minister is whether his department is considering, under the income support program, including basic telephone as an allowable expense. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Dent.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there is no intent within the department to review the program right now to include the cost of telephone as one of the basic expenses. The expectation is that the amount that's in the program is one that allows people to make choices as to what they will spend their money on. I recognize that there are some who feel the program is not adequate, but I have started the process of discussing with the standing committee the adequacy of the program and we have had some initial discussions and are planning to carry that on through the month of June. I am prepared to work with the Standing Committee on Social Programs to discuss the program, make sure that everyone is aware of how it functions, and then see if we can agree on whether there should be any changes made. But I am not going to launch off and make any commitments to any changes at this point. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Dent. Supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I thank the Minister for his answer. Could the Minister reply with some further clarity as to whether he would be willing to consider a telephone expense as an allowable expense under the income support program? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Mr. Dent.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I said, I have already begun the process of reviewing the program with the standing committee and listen to the committee and work with them as we work through this. Stipulated expenses like rent, for instance, we pay the actual cost. The overall allowance that comes out, we expect people will make choices as to what they spend the money on. Therefore, at this point, it's up to clients whether they believe the telephone is an essential expense. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Dent. Supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, would the Minister provide any comment in relation to timeline for issues to be discussed like making the telephone an allowable expense under income support, and will he be allowing public input on that type of expense? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Mr. Dent.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. No, I am not planning any public process. There have been enough reviews of the income support program over the course of the last nine years and I don't think we need to do that again. I hear from advocates quite regularly. I have committed that I will work with the standing committee. The Member is on that committee, so he knows we have had an initial briefing and there is another briefing planned for later this month, at which we will see if we can move things along. As is the process here, if any changes are to be made to a program which will impact it fiscally, that has to be worked through the business planning process and the business plans will be presented to committees in September. That is the timetable for any changes to be seen by Members of this House for proposal. That would mean they would be implemented then in the course of the next budget, which is April 1, 2005. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Dent. Your final supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. If the Minister could comment specifically what is holding up the telephone being considered an allowable expense? Basic telephone service is no longer a luxury of the modern day. I would quantify it as just as important as rent and food. So can the Minister explain that, please? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Mr. Dent.