Thank you, Mr. Braden. The honourable Minister of Justice, Mr. Dent.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I believe I was going to do a Minister's statement on this issue on Monday, but the answer is we will be launching the consultation process very soon, with advertisements in the newspapers and we will have a web site available for people. As well, we will go out and do focus group consultations and there will also be some direct mail-out, to people that we know are stakeholders, to solicit their input. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Dent. Supplementary, Mr. Braden.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I will still look forward to the Minister's statement on Monday, by the way. I am wondering in the criteria for this, are there going to be any limitations or anything that is not going to be considered in this, Mr. Speaker. Are there any criteria at all of what will or will not be considered in the review of this act? Thank you very much.

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Dent.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We are planning to solicit specific comment in certain areas where we have had recommendations for change, particularly from the rentals officer. We are also going to open the door on comments on any area that landlords and tenants care to comment on. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Dent. Supplementary, Mr. Braden.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am pleased to hear that there is going to be an open door on it. There is one particular area that has touched a lot of nerves, and that is those two words used in one sentence that can be very dangerous: "rent control." It is a situation that we have had exposure to here in Yellowknife, and very recently one of our other larger communities has a situation that was brought to the attention of this Legislature. Is that something that this government will consider if there is strong public support and interest in pursuing that kind of a policy? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Dent.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Now that I have just about said everything that I was going to say in the Minister's statement, I doubt that I will bother to say one. Members will see in the response to the petition that will be tabled tomorrow, there is encouragement for landlords and tenants to submit their comments to this government on rent control. We are interested in hearing the comments from the public on both sides and then we will assess where we go, once we have had the opportunity for that input. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Dent. Final Supplementary, Mr. Braden. Thank you, Mr. Braden. Item 7, oral questions. The honourable Member for Kam Lake, Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask the Minister of Resources, Wildlife and Economic Development a couple of questions with regard to some comments that were made at a recent press conference, in which the Governor of Alaska, Mr. Frank Murkowski, was seen as saying that the Mackenzie Valley gas project was stalled. Even the Premier of the Yukon,

Mr. Fentie, who was also present at the press conference, didn't dispute the fact that this was stalled. I am just wondering if the Minister can answer a question. The first question is what is his opinion? Is our gas project stalled, or is it not? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Member is asking for the Minister's opinion on something. I will allow the Minister to answer, but basically it is an opinion. The Minister of Resources, Wildlife and Economic Development, Mr. Bell.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, let me be clear; I think it is, quite simply, a fact that the Mackenzie gas project is not stalled. It is well into the regulatory process now; the Joint Review Panel environmental assessment is well underway. There has been so much interest in that process and so many information requests of Imperial, that the JRP has asked that Imperial be given more time in order to submit to those information requests.

I know there has been a lot of discussion in the media, back and forth, about the federal government meeting with the Deh Cho First Nations to resolve outstanding issues. I think that is positive and that negotiation continues. I wouldn't be surprised, Mr. Speaker, to see some access agreements in the North, with the Inuvialuit settlement region and the Gwich'in settlement region, to be concluded soon. I think that will send a real clear message to everybody, that this project is well underway. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. Supplementary, Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will rephrase this question. I will ask the Minister of Resources, Wildlife and Economic Development, will the Mackenzie Valley gas project go ahead of the Alaska Highway project? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Mr. Bell.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I believe it will. I think that is the general consensus. Let me say that we believe that both Alaskan American gas and Canadian gas needs to get to market. We do need to find a continental energy solution. But our project is so much further down the regulatory process, in terms of the Alaska Highway project, I don't think a route has been determined. This decision about whether the NPA or NEB will prevail, is still one that is largely up in the air. I am sure that there are discussions to come with Akaska and Treaty 8 First Nations in the Yukon. There are many hurdles for that project. It is a very good project and it will happen, but clearly it is not as advanced as the Mackenzie gas project. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. Supplementary, Mr. Ramsay. Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Item 7, oral questions. The honourable Member for Range Lake, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Seeing as I gave away my last question by not asking a question, I want to re-ask the Minister of RWED about the implementation and application of the BIP. I would like to know if he can answer how he can justify saying that there is no value added in services that local businesses do provide. They bring in mobile homes, they set up land spaces and they do all sorts of work that puts down mobile homes in the North. How could he say that there is no value-added work in that? Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Minister of Resources, Wildlife and Economic Development, Mr. Bell.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. For local businesses that would be installing mobile homes in communities, there is value added. There is employment created and that money will stay in communities and that is why we insisted that the BIP had to apply for the installation of these mobile homes. Those contracts were awarded, I believe, largely to northern companies, doing work in northern communities.

In terms of the actual phone call to purchase a trailer from a company in Sherwood Park, we know these can't be currently constructed in the Northwest Territories -- I hope someday they will be -- but we didn't see a lot of value added in that phone call and the potential that that would result in a 15 percent price increase.

Install in communities and the work that that would generate is very important, very important for our local economies. That is why the BIP applied to that portion of the contract. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. Supplementary, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, on what basis does he suggest that there are no businesses in the Territories who could provide homes? There is no manufacturing mobile home factory, but there are lots of businesses in the North that could provide housing to the North. Is it not his responsibility to look for business opportunities and promote growth and promote opportunities? On what basis does he conclude that?