Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I believe the saying is, our reach has to exceed our grasp, for what is heaven for. We are faced with very many daunting challenges that seem irresolvable. We have set some very tough goals for ourselves as a territory, keeping in mind that this is 100 percent preventable. It is a personal choice issue. It is an education issue. It is a very simple one of not having unprotected sex and how do we deal with the individuals and the families in the communities to make the point that, like many of the other issues we talked about in this House, it is preventable. It is a personal choice, and we have to make the case on that basis. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Item 6, oral questions. The honourable Member for North Slave, Mr. Zoe.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. I would like to ask the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs why the establishment of the Sport and Recreation Council has been delayed. The council was supposed to be established in February as he mentioned in his Ministerial statement in October. Now the nominations for this council won't even close until March. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Zoe. The honourable Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, Mr. McLeod.

Mr. Speaker, I apologize for that. Mr. Speaker, we have developed an implementation plan. We have had all the partners in the NWT Sports Council nominate a member to our interim implementation steering committee. They have had a number of meetings over the last while. Our targets are to set up a founding AGM for April of this year. We are now going through the council selections. We have made that information available to all of the Members and sports organizations in communities. We are looking for nominations to the Sports Council, and our founding AGM is scheduled for April of this year, 2005.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Supplementary, Mr. Zoe.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to ask the Minister how he foresees the council's meeting their objectives with this late start. Will the council be able to meet their first meeting in April? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Zoe. Mr. McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, our implementation team has been meeting very regularly. They have done a lot of work. We are very confident that we are going to meet all of our target dates. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Supplementary, Mr. Zoe.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The council plans on creating a resource management plan which includes support through the lottery authority to maximize revenue flow. Could the Minister expand on what this means exactly? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Zoe. Mr. McLeod.

Mr. Speaker, the Member is asking some very specific questions on this initiative. I will have to provide that detail and take it as notice. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The Minister has taken the question as notice. Item 6, oral questions. The honourable Member for Sahtu, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The honourable Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, Mr. McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs, we are at the negotiating tables with a number of different aboriginal governments, but our role is to provide technical support and technical information to the Department of Aboriginal Affairs. Following the discussions with aboriginal groups -- the negotiations -- interim measures agreements have been signed in a number of areas where there are unsettled claims. We are bound in the area of land applications to follow this process. That is the extent of our role to provide mostly support and also to carry out the terms of the interim measures agreement. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Supplementary, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, land within the municipalities such as the....We settled in the Sahtu. There was a lot of land within the hamlet boundaries that had a lot of interest and was claimed by our own people. These lands were distributed among the GNWT, the federal government and the aboriginal people. I would like to ask the Minister if he states that this interim measures agreement will stay in place until the settlement within the areas that haven't yet been settled by the aboriginal people. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, that is correct; the interim measures agreements are in place until the land claims are settled or unless there is a requirement for an amendment. It would require agreement from all parties to make any changes, but where we are failing any requirements for change, the agreements are there until the negotiations are concluded. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Supplementary, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I want to allude to the question on the access granted to the Yellowknives Dene in the municipality of the city of Yellowknife and that clarification. I would ask the Minister. This is only access to a certain parcel of land within the city. Is that correct? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. McLeod.