Good afternoon, Members. Before we begin, Members will notice we have hung the large Canadian flag in the Chamber today. This display is usually reserved for Canada Day, however today is both National Flag Day, as well as the 40th anniversary of the Canadian flag.

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The search for the Canadian flag started as early as 1925 but never really got off the ground until 1964 when, out of 2,600 submitted designs, a specially struck Senate and House of Commons committee was left with three possible designs, including a red flag with a single, stylized red maple leaf on a white square with red bars. After much deliberation, the committee eventually decided to recommend the single leaf design submitted by Dr. George Stanley, dean of arts, at the Royal Military College in Kingston. It was approved by resolution of the House of Commons on December 17, 1964, and proclaimed by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, the Queen of Canada, to take effect on February 15, 1965.

I recently heard that the original Canadian flag that flew on the Peace Tower in Ottawa was relocated after having been lost to close to four years. I don't think we will have any difficulty finding this flag that is hanging behind us today any time soon. It's safe to say that this was not the original flag that flew on the Peace Tower.

Please join me in celebrating National Flag Day and this historic 40th anniversary of the Canadian flag.

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Members, before we begin, I would like to draw your attention to the Speaker's Gallery and the presence of former Member and former Speaker of this House, Mr. Tony Whitford.

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Item 2, Ministers' statements. The honourable Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Dent.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Good afternoon. February 14th to the 18th is Aurora College Week, and this year there is a lot to celebrate. Throughout the week, the college will continue to hold events to celebrate its vital role in post-secondary and adult education and training in the Northwest Territories.

This year there are 412 full-time students attending a variety of programs through Aurora College, including adult basic education, trades and technology programs, and career and professional programs. Graduates of these programs have the opportunity to further their studies at universities through partnerships the college has arranged over a number of years. Graduates are also getting jobs across the North. The development of a northern workforce is an important goal of our post-secondary system.

I mentioned in my opening that there is a lot to celebrate and I would like to cite a number of examples of achievements. The college has recently received an award for its Diamond Polishing program, the Yves Landry Award for Educational Innovation. The Yves Landry Foundation provides the opportunity for business, education and government to collectively be part of the solution to advance technological education and skills training in order to resolve the skilled labour shortages facing Canadian industries.

A number of Aurora College students have also been recognized recently for excellence in their fields of study.

The Governor General's Academic Medal was awarded to John McKinnon from Fort Smith. The Governor General's medal is awarded to an Aurora College student with the highest academic achievement. John McKinnon is enrolled in the Natural Resources Technology Program at Thebacha Campus.

Steven Bounds from Norman Wells received the In-course Millennium Excellence Award. This award supports students who are beginning post-secondary studies for the first time and who have demonstrated academic achievements, community involvement, the ability to lead and motivate others and an interest in innovation and academic achievement.

The CN Scholarship for Women, which encourages women to seek careers in trades and technology, was awarded to Brenda Kikoak of Inuvik, currently enrolled in the Natural Resources Technology Program at Aurora Campus.

Finally, the Enbridge Pipeline Scholarship was awarded to two Aurora College students: Ericson Sanguez from Jean Marie River, and Rebecca Jumbo from Trout Lake.

In addition to all of these awards, the college is celebrating the 10th anniversary of the Northern Nursing Program at the Yellowknife Campus. Over 120 nurses have graduated from the program and many of them have found jobs in the NWT. The Diploma in Nursing, which was completely developed and delivered in the NWT, has recently partnered with the University of Victoria and the Collaborative Nursing Project of British Columbia to deliver a Baccalaureate of Science in Nursing; BSN. The

entire degree program is now offered in Yellowknife and will see its first graduates in 2006.

In closing, I invite Members of this House to join the college in celebrating Aurora College Week. Thank you.

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Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, on October 28, 2004, Mrs. Groenewegen asked me to confirm that the NWT Status of Women Council was invited to be a full participant in the preparation of the NWT action plan on family violence. I would like to clarify my answers to Mrs. Groenewegen.

The Coalition Against Family Violence developed the NWT action plan on family violence, 2003-2008, and presented it to the Government of the Northwest Territories in October of 2003. The Status of Women Council is a member of that coalition.

To develop a response, the GNWT brought together representatives from several GNWT departments that had a role in the prevention of family violence. That group prepared the Government of the Northwest Territories response to the coalition's action plan referred to by Mrs. Groenewegen. No non-government agencies were involved in the development of the GNWT's response. I apologize for the confusion caused by my earlier comments about this issue.

The Status of Women Council was not involved in the development of the GNWT response. They were, however, invited to review the public awareness plan related to the implementation of the family violence action plan but did not attend those meetings.

The Status of Women Council does, however, remain actively involved in the monitoring of the GNWT response. I have been in contact with them to discuss a meeting with their board to provide an update on the actions that the GNWT continues to take to meet our commitments to help prevent family violence in the NWT. Prior to the meeting, I will be updating the Coalition Against Family Violence by letter on the status of the GNWT's action. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Dent. Item 2, Ministers' statements. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I rise today because families in Yellowknife are still having trouble getting a family doctor and even simply seeing a doctor.

Mr. Speaker, I believe, a few years ago, the change from switching family doctors to go from fee-for-service to salary has caused a serious gap in service delivery. Mr. Speaker, a few years ago, we had 14 doctors seeing approximately 40 patients a day, but today we have approximately 20 doctors a day seeing 20 patients a day. That is 80 visits a day short, Mr. Speaker, that our constituents and our families are missing out on an opportunity to see a doctor.

Mr. Speaker, how many doctors do we need to make up those levels that we were seeing a few years ago? Mr. Speaker, we would need 35 doctors to see all the patients who needed to be seen at 2000 levels.

Mr. Speaker, there are also other problems at this time that need to be pointed out, problems such as one visit with one issue. Mr. Speaker, in a 15-minute allotment of time to see a doctor, you are allowed to see them on one issue. So if you are there for five minutes, you aren't allowed to say, what about this? The doctor will say make another appointment.

Mr. Speaker, there are no incentives for the doctors to deal with more than one issue. There is no incentive to see these patients and make sure they get the health care that they need. I think switching them to salary has taken a step backwards in our service delivery, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I have even heard rumours that the doctors now want to see 16 patients a day, not 20. I want to make sure that that is not the case because, at 16, we are going to need a lot more doctors to deliver the same services 14 doctors delivered a few years ago.

Mr. Speaker, the question would be, how many doctors will be enough. Later today, I will be asking the Minister responsible, and I hope we will get some clear answers. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Range Lake, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to speak today about the need for a youth shelter in Yellowknife; a place where youth can go, not just during the day and early evenings, but through the night if necessary, a place where they can take shelter from the elements and be safe from the influences of alcohol and drugs and other negative sides of night life.

Mr. Speaker, I know it is hard to accept, but the fact of the matter is that we do have youth in our community, especially on weekends, who have no place to go because, for many of them, their home is not what a home should be. They have to get away from their own families because they often abuse alcohol and drugs and degenerate into fights and arguments, and they don't want to be a part of it. If they are lucky, Mr. Speaker, they are taken in by the families of their friends, but this cannot be counted on on a permanent basis. So they go to the youth centre to get away, but the problem is that the youth centre closes at midnight.

So what do they do? They leave the youth centre and go straight down to the Gold Range street. They go there and watch the adults, many of whom they know, pouring out of the bars until two o'clock in the morning. Otherwise, Mr. Speaker, even in the dead of winter, they literally walk the streets all night long because they have no place to go. I am told that even when the RCMP stops them, they are not able to offer any assistance because they don't really have much option either.

The fact is, Mr. Speaker, there are basic shelters for adult males, adult females, and adults with families, however wanting they may be. For those under the age of 16, the child welfare system moves in where warranted, but for those between 16 and 18, they are caught in a legal limbo, left to fend for themselves.

We, as a society, turn a blind eye on the whole situation, and we wonder why they turn up on the wrong side of the law in no time. Surely, Mr. Speaker, in the affluent society we live in, we can do better by these young people.

I have written to the Minister of Health and Social Services about this, but I have not heard from him. I understand that the SideDoor has proposed a package and will be going to the appropriate agencies for funding. I would like to call upon the government to step up to the plate and work with all of the partners and do the right thing by our precious young people and support the package for an all-night shelter. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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Thank you, Ms. Lee. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Kam Lake, Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My statement today is with regard to the decision the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs made in providing permission to the Yellowknives Dene's business arm, Deton'Cho Corporation, to access a portion of Commissioner's land located within the municipal boundaries of the city of Yellowknife, an area commonly referred to as the sandpits.

First off, I would like to applaud the efforts of the Deton'Cho Corporation and the chiefs of the Yellowknives Dene in embarking on this initiative. However, there are some serious concerns that I have with how this happened and why it happened the way it did. I was a councillor with the City of Yellowknife in 1997 when we applied, through MACA, for the same parcel of land. We had absolutely no response from the department at that time. The city applied again in October of 2004 for the same parcel of land and was told that the consultation process would have to be embarked upon. It came as a complete shock to myself and to the City of Yellowknife that MACA had given permission to access a portion of the sandpits for geotechnical and engineering work to the Deton'Cho Corporation and a southern firm that are planning a residential housing development on that site.

My understanding of the Interim Measures Agreement is that this action by MACA goes against the protocol as set out in the IMA. It sets a very dangerous precedent in going forward. From much of the information I have seen, the future development of the Yellowknife Airport is on the west side of the property, which would abut the area currently under review by the Deton'Cho Corporation. I am not sure the Minister of MACA has ever flown in or out of the city of Fort McMurray, but I would like to tell him that the wheels of the plane almost touch the roofs of the homes in Fort McMurray. By granting access of the sandpits to Deton'Cho, the Minister is saying that his department is condoning residential development in this area, even though he knows this is not in the general plan of the City of Yellowknife, a plan which he agrees with and approves of.

What is happening with the joint survey the Department of MACA is undergoing with the Yellowknife Shooting Club and the City of Yellowknife? What about the seismic array? What about the Department of Transportation concerns? The City of Yellowknife issues, the Kam Lake access road, where do all of these issues fit if the Deton'Cho Corporation proceeds with a housing development at the sandpits?

Mr. Speaker, I am very interested and concerned over the decision and how it was made. At the appropriate time on today's order paper, I will have questions for the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Sahtu, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My Member's statement today has to do with the road conditions of our goat trail in the Sahtu, our winter road. Mr. Speaker, I received numerous complaints from the people in the Sahtu about our winter road conditions, the wear and tear that is on the winter road and the number of trucks that are going up through the Sahtu to haul rigs or bring supplies into our region. Also, for the people who are travelling out of the Sahtu in that short period of time who come to places like Yellowknife, Hay River and Fort Simpson to do their winter shopping and also to do their vacationing. Because the cost is expensive to fly, people take this opportunity to travel down to these other centres to do their holidaying and shopping.

My constituents are very concerned because of the wear and tear of the road and the lack of maintenance. I understand that the department has done additional maintenance there, but there are still lots of bumps and grinds. Instead of us taking extra blankets and battery cables, we would take springs and shocks for us to equip our vehicle with. So they are very concerned about the deterioration of the winter road. This government putting some money into the winter roads would make it less painful for our people to go between communities.

We know industry has put some money into some of the roads, and there is a big difference between industry roads and government roads. They wanted me to bring this up to the Minister to see what could be done in terms of fixing up our goat trail that would make it into suitable winter roads in the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, about a year ago, I brought to the attention of this House a proposal for a regional airline in Fort

Simpson. First Nation communities in my region have recognized an opportunity in the airline sector to capitalize on current economic and tourism development and growth to position themselves for the prospect of the Mackenzie gas project.

Mr. Speaker, this is a very exciting business opportunity for participating communities and the people in the Deh Cho. This business venture will be locally owned and controlled by the people of the region. They have developed a sound proposal and are hoping for the support of this government.

Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, the government has yet to respond and offer their support. Time and time again, Ministers stand up in this House and talk about the importance of a secure economic future, building community capacity and opportunities for northern businesses in various economic sectors. All this sounds great and inspiring, but when there are no resources or funding attached to support locally-owned business to take advantage of any potential opportunities, where do they go when their own government won't support them?

Mr. Speaker, I am deeply concerned with the lack of support by the GNWT. The GNWT needs to recognize their responsibility to encourage northern businesses and aboriginal corporations. The window of opportunity here is large and the request is small. With just a little bit of assistance to get them off the ground, this is a company that really could take flight. Mahsi cho.

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Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I would like to commit to the public record an accounting of what we are losing by the closure of the Dene K'onia Young Offenders Facility in Hay River.

Mr. Speaker, last week in the Legislative Assembly in the visitors' gallery we had present with us many of the laid-off workers from the Dene K'onia and many of you, as you mingled with them, know who they are. This facility opened in 1986, almost 20 years ago; it was the longest-operating young offenders facility in the Northwest Territories. The collective years of services of the 12 full-time and 10 casual employees are over 210 years of experience and service.

Mr. Speaker, this facility provided remand, secure custody and open custody for male and female young offenders over the years. They offered unique programming, a cultural program, which involved hunting and living on the land, including a lands program. Some of their programming was also related to youth achievement; for example, the young people would learn First Aid, CPR, things like small engine repair, and practical life skills. They would do community hours; they earned high school credits through this. Some of the kids that were in the facility did go to the public school and, those who couldn't, received their education through an educational program that was offered in house.

Mr. Speaker, over the years, this facility and these workers affected the lives of many young people and many families; not just in the South Slave region, but from across the Northwest Territories. They received things like drug and alcohol counselling through the trained staff. They received the services of a psychologist for things like anger management, individual and group counselling.

Mr. Speaker, 85 percent of these workers were aboriginal people and more than half of them had spent their entire life in the Northwest Territories. They provide a tremendous benefit to the community. The young people themselves were involved with support for community events; they did work in the summer and the winter for seniors. They had a contract where they picked up garbage on the highway, then they would use that money to put together Christmas shoeboxes for less fortunate children in other countries. They were given work experience opportunities through local businesses in Hay River.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.

The honourable Member is seeking unanimous consent. Are there any nays? There are no nays. You may conclude your statement, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Mr. Speaker, besides the jobs that were created in Hay River from this facility and the community work that the staff was involved in, this facility also formed an integral part of our community. These young people volunteered at Woodland Manor in extended care. You would often see them out pushing wheelchairs for the elderly if they wanted to attend community events or parades. You would see these very young people out there contributing. They grew their own garden; they donated the food that they grew in their garden to the soup kitchen in Hay River.

Mr. Speaker, I want to speak just to the staff for a moment. They helped many young people and I would like to thank them on behalf of the people of Hay River, the South Slave and the Northwest Territories and on behalf of the kids who they helped. Mr. Speaker, what's happened here in terms of the change in government policy does not take away one bit from what they did for those young people and how they influenced their lives for good.

This government can take away their jobs, but they can never undo the value of what's been contributed by these people, and I will be continuing to work with them to ensure that their very valuable experience is put into good service for the people of the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Great Slave, Mr. Braden.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Following World War I, the Canadian government introduced some pretty stiff taxes to help pay for the war effort. Included in these were things like luxury cars, boats, clothes and jewellery,

Mr. Speaker. Over the years, those excise taxes have been removed on everything except jewellery. Now this excise tax costs us 10 percent of retail for any item over $3. It is hard to consider today, Mr. Speaker, that that can be considered a luxury tax. The information I have is that 50 percent of jewellery purchases are actually $100 and they are made by low and middle-income Canadians, Mr. Speaker, so there really doesn't seem to be much use for this tax to be around anymore.

Now, this is a pretty interesting piece of work for us here in the Northwest Territories as we look at growing a cutting and polishing industry, based on Canadian diamonds, Mr. Speaker.

I want to acknowledge today the work of a federal MP, Mr. John Duncan, the Progressive Conservative Member for Vancouver Island North, who has managed to get a private Members' bill through to second reading -- it's now before the Finance committee in Ottawa -- to get rid of this tax. It is something that we really should be getting behind and supporting. I know that the jewellery industry across Canada has been looking for this kind of action for many, many years. The elimination of this tax might result, from what I'm told, in something in the neighbourhood of an $80 million loss for the government. But let's put that up against the $500 million the government is now getting in revenues just from our diamond mining alone, Mr. Speaker, and that means that it's time to axe this tax. Thank you very much.

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Thank you, Mr. Braden. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Nunakput, Mr. Pokiak.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Federal Ministers John Godfrey and Ethel Blondin-Andrew and territorial Minister Michael McLeod jointly announced new federal and territorial funding of $32 million for the municipal rural infrastructure fund and a further $90 million for highway projects, on January 18, 2005.

Mr. Speaker, my understanding of how this will work is that 55 percent of the fund is for non-tax-based communities and 45 percent is for tax-based communities. I applaud the federal and territorial governments on the recent announcement. However, we all know this funding is just the tip of the iceberg. Many communities need infrastructure and resources to address their requirements, especially non-tax-based communities, where we don't have the population to raise taxes or raise our own resource revenue shares.

With regard to the announcements for the funds for new highways, I listened with interest during the Finance Minister's budget address on how this money will be spent.

Mr. Speaker, the allocation of this new funding will, among other projects, include continuation of the completion of Highway No. 3 and the Ingraham Trail, not to mention 10 permanent bridges on the Mackenzie Valley winter road.

Mr. Speaker, I am disappointed that once again the Tuktoyaktuk-Inuvik highway has been left out of the vision of one Canada, that would bring people together from the east coast to the west coast and eventually to the Beaufort coast. Since 2003, a total of $63 million has been allocated to Corridors for Canada, without any funds allocated for the Tuktoyaktuk-Inuvik highway. This government should lobby for the connection of the Tuktoyaktuk-Inuvik highway to the Dempster Highway.

Mr. Speaker, my interpretation for the funding, as announced, is the new Highway Strategy should include the Tuktoyaktuk-Inuvik highway. This is new funding available for roads, et cetera. At the appropriate time I will address the question to the Minister of MACA and also the Minister of Transportation. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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Thank you, Mr. Pokiak. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Tu Nedhe, Mr. Villeneuve.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to talk about some of the recent political developments that have taken place in my constituency; specifically the community of Lutselk'e over the past week. Currently, there is an interim committee put in place to oversee the operations of the Lutselk'e First Nations office and the band elections, which are slated to take place on February 24, 2005. A non-confidence vote brought forward by a majority of the band members last week to have the chief and council removed has been carried out. Now the members have to select a new chief and council.

Mr. Speaker, although actions such as this may seem hostile and retaliatory in nature, I would like to encourage my constituents to embrace this opportunity to learn and make some positive changes that will benefit the people, especially the youth. I hope, Mr. Speaker, that local developments such as this will teach everyone in the community a little about politics and how unpredictable, delicate, precarious and, at times, thankless a job can become for many people involved.