Thank you, Mr. Roland. Mr. Braden.

Okay. Good to hear on the nursing side. Although, on the one above that, Madam Chair, $230,000 for review of physician services in the NWT and patient care services, we already have before us -- and I speak with a little bit of familiarity on this from Social Programs -- a very good piece of work. The integrated service delivery model for our delivery system has just recently been circulated and it's out there. Now here we go with another almost quarter of a million dollars worth of reviews and more studies. One of the refrains that we've had here is to try to reduce, as much as possible, this sort of constant cycle of studies, and reviews, and surveys, and strategies and things, especially in the health care field, Madam Chair. Are these really essential? Do we need to put out yet another quarter of a million dollars for surveys and, it says here in the bill, undertaking reviews, Madam Chair?

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, in fact, this work flows out of a recommendation in the integrated service delivery model where it was identified as we look at changing the staffing mix, redefining acute care beds, community care beds, adding nurse practitioners, the role of general practitioners, the surgery capacity, and those types of things, that we have to take the time to carefully assess. For example, the doctors, Dr. Peachey is doing work looking at the GP requirements in Yellowknife, in Inuvik, in the communities that have GPs and specialty doctors, because there's an overlap. It's a very complex issue; the issue of sustaining surgical services in Inuvik, the issue with the nurses of the mix. We are now proposing with nurse practitioners and GPs, for example, a population of 1,400 for a GP and nurse practitioner. These are areas where no other jurisdiction has yet gone; and we're trying to do the work flowing out of the integrated service delivery model, which told us to do the extra work to get that type of technical detail so that you can finalize and be able to come back and speak with some certainty as to the accuracy of the staffing mix and the benchmarks that we're going to be eventually bringing forward for approval to this body, to Cabinet and to FMB. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Mr. Braden.

Well, it's a well-informed response, Madam Chair. Even in our world here, $230,000 to sort of study and coordinate the work of -- not to diminish their importance -- but a few dozen specialists and professionals, a quarter of a million dollars? It seems excessive, but I have no other basis other than just a sense of what the ratios are here. I don't see the value in this, given the quantity of information that we already have to deal with. I like to take the expertise that's available wisely in our own workforce so we can help sort this out. I don't know. I'll see whether any other Members, anybody else from Social Programs or somebody has a view on that one.

The third topic that I wanted to raise here, Madam Chair, was on the area of the $1 million for the planning and design work of a dementia facility. I'm amply on record as being a supporter of this, and really pleased to see us moving to this degree of sort of certainty and commitment. The question that I have, Madam Chair, and if you will permit me to skip ahead a few pages in the supp to page 25, actually, where there is an almost identical set of projects identified, funded by federal health care dollars, for planning and design work for upgrades to long-term care facilities. Essentially, what is the difference between those long-term care facilities, which, I understand, are in many other communities and apply to seniors and those with perhaps more cognitive health issues, what is the difference between planning for those, funded by the federal government, and the territorial dementia facility in Yellowknife, funded out of our coffers? Is there any chance we could get the feds to pay for that, too?

Okay. Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Madam Chair. In doing further research on this, it has come to our attention that the $1 million identified for the dementia is, as well, part of the federal dollars. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. If you don't have anything further, Mr. Braden, next I have Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Madam Chair. My question is to the Minister, in terms of the dementia facility. It's a territorial one, I believe, and I want to ask what type of plans will be put in place to ask for regional involvement in regard to this territorial facility? Right now it's being driven by the hard-working people of YACCS. So I just wanted to ask about this planning process and the involvement of regional people. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, it has been recognized by all the parties that this is a territorial facility for basically any stage clients with dementia, and the intent has been to ensure that as we move this process forward into the planning stage with these funds, to consult through the joint Senior Management Committee that we have, as well as the board chairs that work with myself on the Joint Leadership Council, and we are keeping involved in monitoring this process. But as they get information ready to move out, it will be circulated so that there is that kind of involvement. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Minister, I'm not too sure of the definition and involvement of the senior management and the board chairs. I'm thinking more of the involvement of the region to have a say on this facility that they possibly one day could be using. So I'm going to leave it at that for the Minister to think about.

I want to ask he Minister another question in terms of the nursing resources in the small communities. There are some new guidelines coming out. I want to thank the Minister for his support of the nursing program now in the Northwest Territories. I understand they are working as part of the practicum in the Stanton Hospital. I hear nothing but good things from the patients that I have visited so far, about these nurses, in the hospital here. It is good to see our own people, and our own nurses in the hospital here. I would like to see how they could now come into our smaller communities that require nurses, not just at the hospital level. I want to ask that question to the Minister.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, we are, very actively, aware of the need to encourage and train northern nurses to move out of the larger centres to the smaller communities. We are working with them and encouraging them. We are trying to build a component into their training so they are more experienced with the unique issues facing community health nurses. Also, if you look through this, there is reference to we want to add two nurse practitioners to each of the regions as well as in Inuvik, Sahtu, Deh Cho and Tlicho so that they have more capacity to be able to go to the smaller communities to provide more support. We have funding in here to allow experienced nurses to access prior learning, and to challenge for a nurse practitioner. We still have, on the table with the UNW, a request to...We have put in some suggestions of how we can better recognize some of the challenges of small communities, and better remunerate nurses in those areas. But that particular issue has never stalled out. That was one of the intents we had at one time, as well. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, there are actually two last issues. I am trying to roll them into one issue, Madam Chair.

The contract for the financial consultant to complete a cost analysis of the measures needed to mitigate the health and social impacts of the Mackenzie gas project, again, I like one of the comments taken from the Premier in terms of saying that, if the pipeline is a no go, then this will no longer be needed. I just wanted to ask the Minister in that type of a comment that the Premier has given. I will have some other questions some other day on this.

The last issue that I want to talk about, Madam Chair, is the allocation of funding criteria for these emergencies, and transition shelters in the North here. I see the Turning Point Shelter is $35,000, and the SideDoor Youth Centre is $100,000. As Mr. Villeneuve alluded to, the other communities, we have to decide how we are going to use the $150,000. I feel that this is very unfair. I am not too sure how the funding is allocated, or what type of criteria is needed. The SideDoor Youth Centre is maybe doing some good work, but it is $100,000 and you are giving the Turning Point Shelter in Inuvik, the whole community, $35,000, and then you have given the rest of the other communities $150,000 which we have to establish an allocation to draw on. It just doesn't seem fair. That is my bone of contention in terms of how this money is being distributed amongst the people of the Northwest Territories.

We have a lot of homeless people on the weekends. We have a hard time getting a place for them, so I don't understand how the SideDoor could get $100,000, and Inuvik gets $35,000. It just doesn't make sense. The rest of the communities have to fight over $150,000. I don't understand the logic behind the funding criteria. I want to leave it at that. Those are my comments, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Just as a point of clarification first, between the SideDoor and Turning Point; Health and Social Services is contributing $35,000; Education, Culture and Employment is contributing $65,000 to Turning Point. The Member is correct about SideDoor. We are looking at $100,000. The numbers, and information, we have is that the SideDoor provides a well-used service, especially on weekends and evenings, to street kids. The government contribution in Turning Point is $100,000, as well. The $150,000, as I indicated previously, is not targeted by community. It is targeted by need, on a case-by-case

basis, recognizing that communities outside of the really large centres that have a very visible homeless issue and have facilities already like the YWCA, the Salvation Army, and the Turning Point, may have some homeless issues and need capacity to access funds on a case-by-case basis, which is why we set up the $150,000. As I indicated last year, it wasn't subscribed to this year. We are going to do a better job of communicating the availability of that fund. If that fund is drawn down because there is an upsurge in need across the communities, then, very clearly, the social program Ministers will be monitoring that, and especially Health and Social Services that is going to be administering the fund. If there is a need, then we will be coming back to Cabinet. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, the issue I had is with the SideDoor Youth Centre. There are lots of youth centres in the small communities that really need a lot of good money, similar to the youth centre here in Yellowknife. Even though it is a larger population, it can do good work, et cetera, the youth centres in the small communities do not receive this type of treatment in terms of the SideDoor in Yellowknife. That is what my bone of contention is. These youth centres, every time they ask the government, there is no money. The kids are sometimes homeless on the weekends because of the situation in the small communities. It is more visible. Kids are wandering around all night looking for places to sleep.

You have funding to open up these youth centres in the communities for the evenings for them. They do it here in Yellowknife, because they asked for, and got, $100,000. We have to look after $150,000 in the communities. I just don't see the fairness in this budget here. I am not saying that the youth centre here in Yellowknife doesn't do the job. It is doing its job, but I am saying, how do we get this funding allocated properly to show that it is being fair across the Northwest Territories? Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. I take that as a comment. The Minister has already, in great detail, explained what the allocation is about. Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I move that $50,000 be deleted from the Department of Health and Social Services, directorate activity, in Supplementary Appropriation, No. 2, 2005-2006.