Thank you, Madam Chairperson. Madam Chairperson, I certainly think so or I wouldn't be doing it.

It has been something that has been really frustrating for communities across the North for many, many years. They really had no flexibility when it came to decision-making. We set the government's capital plan, we decide their budget, and we decide how they are going to spend it. It is a really paternal attitude that we have had for a number of years. It hasn't allowed the communities to grow. It hasn't allowed the communities to take on more responsibility and it hasn't really required the communities to be all that accountable, because we continue to go and move in and bale them out if they get into trouble.

We want to respond to the communities' requests to start making their own decisions and deciding what their projects are and the governance issues that they have to deal with. There certainly is a realization that not all the communities are ready for that. The Member is correct that some communities are really going to be having a tough time, but we have to start working towards that. We have committed that we will work with those communities to develop capacity.

We have already started talking. Our people from the School of Community Government are looking at the situation and starting to look at the programs that might be required to help enhance their skills. There are a lot of different things that we are going to have to do and we are probably going to have to do it for many more years. At the same time, we have a lot of communities that are moving towards self-government and planning and will be in the situation very shortly and we have to start moving towards that.

There are other communities that, although they are not in the self-government process of negotiations, have desired, have requested that we do this. That is why we are moving forward. It is something that the communities have been asking for. We realize that in a lot of cases, the capacity is not there, but we have committed to working with them and we will be working with them.