Thank you, Mr. Chairman. A number of questions there and I have a better understanding of the contribution funding the Member is referring to.
Under the terms of this project, it's been agreed that the federal government would provide participant program funding that's being administered by the Northern Gas Project Secretariat and the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency. That is essentially to allow for review and comment on the draft terms of reference for the EIS, the Environmental Impact Settlement. There have been monies that were released in June 2004 that also enables people to participate in technical conferences, provide technical analysis of the EIS, and in fact to participate in the joint panel review public hearings. There are a number of phases of funding to roll out, but essentially the eligibility is for individuals, non-profits, aboriginal and public governments with an interest in the proposed Mackenzie gas project. A wide range of people would be able to apply for this funding.
I would certainly concur with the Member that I've heard from a number of communities that this funding has been inadequate and not enough to go around. That's a message we're sending to the federal government as well. I would agree with the Member that there certainly is a need to conduct the kind of community dialogue that I believe we started in Inuvik with community leaders, and the social envelope Ministers will follow up with their own forum in a number of communities.
That's where we've chosen to focus our limited resources as opposed to providing individuals with participant funding that's been left to the federal government. I think it's important that we keep in mind pre-devolution and that it will be the federal government, under our current status quo arrangement, that gets the resource revenues from this project. We do believe that the federal government has a strong role to play here and, in fact, a responsibility and a mandate to ensure that people can adequately intervene in the process. We intend to hold them to that support. Thank you.