Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Just perhaps I could suggest that before we go to general comments on Bill 19, Department of Transportation, that we consider Bill 15 and see if we can't conclude that and then resume with the Department of Transportation.

Okay. Is committee agreed?

Thank you, Mr. Dent. I'd like to ask if the Minister responsible for Bill 15, Tlicho Community Services Agency Act, wishes to introduce the bill.

Yes, Mr. Chairman. I'm pleased to speak to Bill 15, Tlicho Community Services Agency Act. This bill was developed in consultation with the Tlicho Treaty 11 Council team and is the final piece of territorial legislation required to ratify the Tlicho agreement. It follows the Settlement Act passed by the 14th Assembly in October 2003 and the Tlicho Community Government Act passed by our government in June 2004.

I want to acknowledge the hard work and dedication of the Tlicho, GNWT and federal negotiating teams that have enabled us to arrive at this final stage of the legislative process.

Before I speak to this bill specifically, I would like to share a few comments on the Tlicho Land Claims and Self-Government Agreement as a whole.

The Tlicho agreement is the first agreement in the Northwest Territories to combine land, resources and self-government in a single agreement. It materializes the vision held by Chief Monfwi at the signing of Treaty 11 in 1921 and has set a new standard for land and self-government agreements across the country.

The Tlicho agreement provides certainty for all levels of government and industry with respect to lands, resources, governance and jurisdiction. It also leaves room for self-government to evolve over time. The implementation of this agreement will increase the political and economic stability of our territory and mark the beginning of a strong economic future for the Tlicho region, the Northwest Territories and all Canadians.

The Tlicho people have invested over a decade of hard work and millions of dollars to get to where we are today. Their commitment came one step closer to fruition in December when the federal Tlicho bill received third reading. I was happy to hear that Grand Chief Joe Rabesca and a large delegation of elders and chiefs were able to be in the House of Commons when the Tlicho bill received third reading. It was indeed an historic moment -- and one that was celebrated, not only by those on Parliament Hill, but by Tlicho people back home in their communities -- as they watched and cheered the vote from their homes, their work and their schools.

Most recently, the federal bill received third reading in the Senate and was given Royal Assent. I was honoured to appear before both the House of Commons and Senate standing committees to express the GNWT's support for the rapid passage of the Tlicho bill. The Tlicho Community Services Agency Act, which is before you now, is our final step. The act provides for the establishment of an agency to deliver education, health and social services to all residents living in Tlicho communities or on Tlicho lands.

In accordance with the Tlicho Intergovernmental Services Agreement, the agency will continue to perform the functions of the existing Dogrib Community Services Board. This includes the duties of the Dogrib Divisional Education Council under the Education Act, which is to deliver the K to 12 education program consistent with the standards established by the GNWT. The new agency will also perform the functions of a board of management under the Hospital Insurance and Health and Social Services Administration Act. In summary, the model will continue to build upon the integrated delivery of health, education and social services.

In addition, the agency may, with the consent of the GNWT, perform a variety of additional roles assigned or delegated to it by the Tlicho government or by the Government of Canada. The GNWT may assign additional responsibilities to the agency in consultation with the other parties.

The model that has been incorporated in the Tlicho Community Services Agency recognizes the advantages of using one system to deliver core programs to all people living in Tlicho communities or on Tlicho lands. The agency will be composed of five members. Four members will be selected by the Tlicho community governments, which will be elected by all community residents. The Government of the Northwest Territories will appoint the fifth member, who will also be the chairperson. The Minister of Aboriginal Affairs will be the political point of contact between the Tlicho government and the GNWT for matters related to the new agency. The departments of Health and Social Services and Education, Culture and Employment will continue to have the primary role in working with staff on day-to-day operational matters.

Already, the Tlicho have been active in creating social and education programs to better meet their needs. This includes a scholarship program to assist students who will become the future professionals and leaders in the Tlicho government. The Dogrib Treaty 11 Council funded an Addictions Strategy that has already produced 20 trained addictions counsellors to serve residents in Tlicho.

The establishment of the Tlicho Community Services Agency is a testimony to how public and aboriginal governments can, and will, work in collaboration to ensure the interests and rights of all people are protected. It provides that practical arrangements can be made within the context of self-government to meet the interests of all residents of the Northwest Territories. It is an example of true partnership.

I urge all of you to approve the Tlicho Community Services Agency Act as soon as possible and in doing so embark on a new era for the Tlicho nation, residents of the Northwest Territories and Canada. At this time I would be happy to answer any questions you may have. Thank you. Mahsi cho.

---Applause

Thank you, Mr. Premier. I will now call on Ms. Lee, the chairperson for the standing committee that oversaw the bill. Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, the Standing Committee on Social Programs conducted its public review of Bill 15, Tlicho Community Services Agency Act, on December 10th, 2004. The committee would like to thank the Minister and his staff for presenting the bill. Bill 15 is the last of three pieces of NWT legislation needed to implement the Tlicho agreement. The bill will create a new agency which will replace the Dogrib Community Services Board and assume the responsibility for delivering education, health and social services to residents of the Tlicho region. Bill 15 is based on both the Tlicho agreement itself and the 10-year Intergovernmental Services Agreement entered into by the GNWT, the Tlicho and Canada in August 2003.

Mr. Chairman, committee members asked the Minister several questions about what, if any, changes to operations and accountability would come about as a result of this arrangement. The Minister advised that it is unlikely that residents will notice changes immediately, apart from the board members themselves who, with the exception of the chair, will be appointed by the four community governments. As the Minister put it, "I don't think we will see any immediate change if we were to go into the classroom or into the hospital or into the community. I think the kind of change we're going to see is probably a new sense of self-esteem, of pride, and so on, that people are delivering their own services, that they have self-government."

The committee understands that changes to program and service delivery may happen gradually, as over time the agency has an opportunity to build its capacity to take on additional responsibilities, and as the Tlicho government considers its own legislation. GNWT legislation and standards will continue to apply, and the GNWT will continue to be accountable for reporting on results and statistics, as it is currently for other health boards and education authorities. The Minister of Aboriginal Affairs will have the lead responsibility for the agency; however, the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment and the Minister of Health and Social Services will have responsibilities and authorities similar to those under existing legislation and will continue to be the contacts on day-to-day matters. The first recourse for a resident with concerns about the agency would be to the board, and then if the issues could not be worked out at that level, to the Minister.

Members also questioned the Minister on whether the new agency will cost the GNWT any more than the existing board. The Minister advised that the only additional cost will be the GNWT's share of the expense for the cultural coordinator, which amounts to $60,000. The cultural coordinator is a new position with the responsibility of advising the three parties to the Tlicho agreement on how to use their respective powers in ways that respect and promote Tlicho language, culture and way of life. It was agreed that the GNWT, Tlicho government and Canada would share equally in the cost of this position, which will be jointly appointed by the parties. The committee noted that the Intergovernmental Services Agreement provides that the Tlicho Community Services Agency will be funded at levels comparable to other GNWT agencies delivering similar programs and services.

Members also asked several questions about the transition process. The committee was generally satisfied, from the Minister's responses, that reasonable steps have been take to ensure the transition from the Dogrib Community Services Board to the new agency will be as soon as possible, with minimal or no disruptions to programs and services.

Mr. Chair, the committee's review of Bill 15 provided an opportunity for Members to discuss and reflect on the significance of the new relationships we are embarking on with the Tlicho agreement and what the future may look like 10, 20 or 100 years from now. As can only be expected with the first self-government agreement in the NWT, there are many unknowns. How will it work when the Tlicho government begins making its own laws in areas of shared jurisdiction with this Legislative Assembly? What will happen if the parties decide not to

renew the intergovernmental services agreement when it expires in 10 years? Will other NWT aboriginal groups negotiate similar arrangements, or will we see different models in each region? What will this mean for the role of the GNWT in the future?

The reality that there are many questions that today do not have answers cannot prevent us from going forward. After all, this is not the first time as a territory that we have ventured into the unknown. We need only recall the division of Nunavut and the NWT less than five years ago as an example.

The committee is satisfied that the parties have made all possible efforts to provide clarity about their respective obligations, to set out processes to resolve issues and conflicts that may arise in the future and, most importantly, to ensure that Tlicho residents continue to receive programs and services without disruption. The agreement is filled with review, consultation and dispute resolution provisions to this end. We must all recognize, however, that not everything can be foreseen, and that ultimately it is not clauses in an agreement, but rather the ongoing good faith of the parties and their determination to make self-government a success that will make or break this new relationship. In the committee's view, the hard work of the parties in arriving at the Intergovernmental Services Agreement and this bill demonstrates that we are off to a good start.

Mr. Chair, the committee would like to take the opportunity to wish the first board members and employees of the Tlicho Community Services Agency a smooth start-up, and success in fulfilling their responsibilities to Tlicho residents.

This concludes the committee's opening comments on Bill 15. Individual Members may have additional questions or comments as we proceed. Following the committee's review, a motion was carried to report Bill 15, Tlicho Community Agency Services Act, to the Assembly as ready for Committee of the Whole. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. I would now like to open it up for general comments on Bill 15. General comments. Mr. Zoe.

Thank you, Mr. Zoe. My apologies, Mr. Zoe. I was going to ask the Premier if he would like to bring in some witnesses. It must be Friday afternoon, or thank God it's Friday afternoon. Mr. Premier, please, your witnesses.

Yes, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Mr. Premier. Your witnesses. Sergeant-at-Arms could you please escort in the witnesses.

Thank you, Sergeant-at-Arms. Thank you, Mr. Minister. Please, for the record, if you could introduce your witnesses. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. With me are Bob McLeod, the deputy minister for Aboriginal Affairs; Sharla Carroll, the director of policy, legislation and communications; and our legal counsel, Martin Goldney, from the Department of Justice. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Minister. General comments. Any further general comments? Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Just a general comment. I will first start off by saying that I am in support of this and I will be voting in favour of this bill.

Just for the sake of the public of course, there are concerns. Of course, we are establishing a new education board and health board. Maybe if the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs could outline how the agreement would work. For example, if there is incompatibility in the sense of a standard, the GNWT would like to move forward with a different standard, if the Minister could give us an example on how that type of relationship in those standards would work.

There are questions out there on the street as to how that works. It would be good to hear from our Premier to give a simple, yet clear-cut example on the compatibility of those things. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Mr. Minister.

Mr. Chairman, the new agency being created through this legislation basically takes on the same services and programs that are offered through the Dogrib Community Services Board.

Mr. Chairman, as an agency it has, through the Tlicho government, the authority to be able to make changes to any laws with regard to the mandate of the agency. Before they would make those changes, they would have to consult with the GNWT. They would also have to assume responsibility for any incremental costs. If for some reason GNWT considered that the proposed law would make it difficult for us to operate, we would consult with the agency and the Tlicho government to determine what course of action would have to be taken. This could result in either the GNWT or the Tlicho amending their laws to ensure that the laws could operate side by side. A specific example might be around the number of days of instruction in a year in a school system. That is stipulated in our Education Act. If the Tlicho government were to want to change it, either make it less or more, they would have to consult with us and we would then have to determine whether it was possible to do that given the reasons, and any incremental costs from it would be borne by the Tlicho government. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Mr. Minister. Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you, Mr. Minister. In that regard, picking up on the small example again, to help drive forward an ultimate clarity on this. If the Tlicho people wanted to, for example, change the days of school or the number of hours the students had to attend school, does that change once it's acknowledged, whether it's agreed upon in the long run, once it's established in that area? Does that force the territorial side to adopt that rule, or just formally acknowledge that they have agreed? For example, the Tlicho people go to school less, again receiving the same quality of education, that's not the question, we would acknowledge that difference, but we don't have to implement it territory-wide. Could you clarify that just for that sense? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Mr. Minister.

Mr. Chairman, Tlicho laws apply only to Tlicho citizens. At a practical level, we don't want to operate two different systems in a small community. I would hope that we would be able to come to an arrangement where we would have one arrangement for all of the people who live in that particular community. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Minister. Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, just one last question. It has been raised at committee level, the question of being able to teach in the Tlicho language as the primary language. If the Minister could provide clarity on their ability to provide teachings or instruction; again, not questioning the quality of education that they are teaching, but in the context and the delivery vehicle of how they are teaching. If the Minister could comment in that regard. If the Tlicho people would want to proceed with teaching it in their language, do they have that ability? Are there any restrictions? Do they have to consult with us and to what grade levels would that affect? Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Mr. Minister.