Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This is definitely one of the ways that our committee has decided to bring to the forefront the huge issue of rising costs in general, Mr. Speaker, due to the pressures of the fuel prices, of all the natural disasters, and unnatural disasters, that are driving up the fuel prices, as a result, to the cost of living everywhere. In fact, I think the recent announcement in the press was 3.5 percent is what the growth is throughout Canada today. That's huge, especially when we weren't facing many pressures over the past many years. Talking together as Regular Members, my honourable colleague, Mr. Dave Ramsay, and I were talking about striking up a huge general committee of Regular Members and Cabinet Members to look at the energy cost scenario. But, there again, we were faced with a dilemma. Any special committee raised by this House, they're saying, is a minimum of $1 million, and that's not another cost we wanted to pass on to the taxpayers, Mr. Speaker.
So we thought the best way to do it is to tell government that the people of the North are crying for a viable, comprehensive strategy to address the energy costs through the North. In fact, Cabinet pretty well had a theme at the beginning of our session where each and every Minister got up and stated to us, and the NWT, what they were going to do about the rising energy costs and all the forced-growth issues that we're faced with as residents of the Northwest Territories. That goes a long way, too, Mr. Speaker.
What we're asking in this motion is, can we package that? Can we come up with a comprehensive strategy that we can give throughout the NWT and say we've heard you? Our committee has travelled throughout the North and our Ministers, indeed, have done their share of travelling throughout the North, and attending the mini-meetings, and the people coming up to them saying that they're not too sure what they want to do with their business this year with the fuel costs. Indeed, running the private homes as well, Mr. Speaker.
So that's all we're saying. Come and meet with the Accountability and Oversight committee. Let's start a discussion on this comprehensive strategy. I, for one, will state, for the record, that our next meeting is November 21st and for government to have a comprehensive strategy by then, I can admit, is unrealistic. But at least we can start the debate and get our government direction set, so that the people's needs are heard and what exactly we're going to do about it. We're going to have to lay that out front, and in a public meeting. I believe that's where the demand comes from, from the public, so we have to address it in the public, as well.
So I'm very much in favour of that, Mr. Speaker, of the motion of getting the discussion started in November. The next possible meeting we're calling in January, and I think that's a good time because our next sitting of the House is February, and by then I'm sure Cabinet, and our government, will have a comprehensive plan to deliver to the people of the NWT to say we've heard you, we understand the cost of living in the North, and this is how we're going to deliver your needs.
With that, Mr. Speaker, I stand in favour of this motion and I seek to have it pass through this House with the full
support of all the Regular MLAs and all of us, as MLAs, for our people, Mr. Speaker. Mahsi cho.