Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. To the point of order. The Chair is going to take the point of order under advisement and we will return with a ruling at a later date. We have used up approximately five minutes of time on the clock with this point of order, so we're going to turn the clock back five minutes.

---Applause

Oral questions. The honourable Member for Great Slave, Mr. Braden.

Okay, we're in question period, right?

Thank you, Mr. Braden. The honourable Minister of Finance, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, yes, I'll have to say part of it is due to the fact in management of our budget as a government, Regular Members' advice, our own work as we looked at the fiscal environment we operate under and the numbers that have come in. We also end up dealing with some of the adjustments that come after the fact from the federal government on some of our corporate tax revenues, and that also has an impact on those numbers too. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Supplementary, Mr. Braden.

Okay. So to some extent it was a revision of federal transfers or payments or contributions, then, Mr. Speaker. Is any of this subject to clawback in future years, Mr. Speaker? This is an aspect of our formula financing deal with Ottawa that has caused us considerable disruption, so are we going to have to look at having any of this amount clawed back in future years, Mr. Speaker?

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Under the existing system that we are now under until the next agreement is signed -- and we expect we should have an agreement in place by the time the new federal budget comes around -- the interim formula financing arrangement we are operating under, we get to keep 100 percent of the revenues; or, if it slides the other way, we lose 100 percent. So in this case, there's no further adjustments to those numbers. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Supplementary, Mr. Braden.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. How, then, does this $18 million surplus translate? What does it really mean for us here in the Assembly and for our communities and for the programs and the people that we serve, Mr. Speaker? Does this mean we will be able to look at some other options or some new options in initiatives or spending, Mr. Speaker?

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this reference that we highlight the estimated surplus that we were targeting in the last budget reflects the previous fiscal year operations. So it doesn't have an impact on today's fiscal environment. It shows that through our final accounting and the measures taken and adjustments with the federal government, and those adjustments are not directly related to the formula, they're related more to the CRA, or Canada Revenue Agency, and how corporations file their tax and when those final adjustments happen there. So that's the impact. But the surplus we've identified for this year is something we're still working on. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Final supplementary, Mr. Braden.

Mr. Speaker, does this mean we have $18 million in new funding that we can find some programs or some additional things to spend it on, Mr. Speaker?

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, because it refers to our operating surplus of our last budget, there is some impact in the sense that we book previous year's earnings or revenue into the fiscal year. As well, throughout the year we do adjust our numbers based on revenue indications we get from the federal government. In this case, this money is again for previous year's surplus situation. Our fiscal responsibility policy, for example in this fiscal year, requires us to hold a $30 million surplus to fund our capital infrastructure program. So that's what that money would get to use offset on our capital programs. So it's good in the sense we get to keep the program that was on the books. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. The honourable Member for Monfwi, Mr. Lafferty.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the recent drastic federal cuts to literacy funding have hit the Northwest Territories Literacy Council particularly hard. They have depended on these program dollars for many years and have built important programs and services that communities across the NWT have come to rely on. These cuts will have a major impact on delivery of family community literacy programs and supports, and will affect aboriginal communities in particular. I understand the Minister will be meeting with his federal counterparts next Tuesday. Mr. Speaker, could the Minister please outline for the House his strategy to ensure our literacy programs are reinstated? Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. The honourable Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Dent.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I told the House yesterday, the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada will be arranging a meeting with the Hon. Diane Finley, the federal Minister responsible for the literacy funding that was cut, next Tuesday. Our intention is to seek from the Minister some understanding of where the Minister is going. We've heard from the federal government that their intention is to fund federal programs, programs across the territorial and provincial boundaries across Canada. But I am hoping to make sure that she hears this, that is that if she is looking at expanding the programming available for aboriginal people that, if it is an on-reserve program, it won't have any impact in the Northwest Territories. I will be ensuring that she is aware that we need to see programs in the North that are not aimed just at reserves. We are hoping that we will hear about the way in which the federal government will be coming back into the field and that we will see some reinvestment in the North. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Dent. Supplementary, Mr. Lafferty.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I am glad to hear the Minister is outlining the NWT's perspective, that we are unique in the federal umbrella. The NWT Literacy Council has lost $344,000 as a result of the cuts. This funding represents three areas, Mr. Speaker, coalition funding, family and community literacy development and aboriginal literacy research project. Mr. Speaker, I think it is obvious that we cannot depend solely on the federal government anymore for support for literacy. What plans has the Minister made to support the

NWT Literacy Council at this time to ensure that the essential services continue? Mahsi.