Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Mr. Dent.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As Members of this House are aware, as I said earlier, I have written to Minister Finley to protest the cuts. The Premier has written to the Prime Minister to talk about the cuts, particularly the literacy and Status of Women cuts. I have another trip planned to Ottawa later this fall. I have my office working to see if I can add to that trip a meeting with Minister Finley to discuss this issue. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Dent. Supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, is the Education Minister working with the coalition, with the other Education Ministers in this regard to basically knock down the door of Ms. Finley's and saying what are we going to do to get attention of this issue? Mr. Speaker, what is this Minister doing, for the record to, again, bring highlights to this issue? Is he going to arrange not in a letter, but a full force down there in Ottawa to finally get attention to these literacy cuts? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Mr. Dent.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, the Ministers of Education for Canada are continuing to work together to see if we can find some way to raise the profile of this issue. Yes, it is my intention to continue to seek a face-to-face meeting with Minister Finley to press the case. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Dent. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, can I expect that the Education, Culture and Employment Minister would maybe take steps so far as to work with other Ministers across the country? These cuts affect everywhere in Canada. Maybe he could speak to the other Ministers in the other provinces and territories about passing motions in every Legislature across Canada to get the attention of this government. Would this Minister agree to do something like that, again to get the attention

of the federal government that every Legislature, every group of people, are concerned about these cuts? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Mr. Dent.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I have told this House, I am already doing that. I am already working with other Ministers, and not just with Education Ministers. At the last FPT that I attended, all of the Ministers there took occasion with the Minister who was present to express our concern about the cuts to the literacy file in hopes that it would be passed on to Minister Finley. We are working, not just as Ministers of Education, but generally, federal, provincial and territorial Ministers across Canada are working with our Premiers to make sure that the federal government is aware that we are very concerned with these cuts. We are expecting that we will see some reinvestment in the area of literacy in particular. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Dent. Oral questions. The honourable Member for the Sahtu, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The honourable Premier, Mr. Handley.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The GNWT position is that the federal ownership and a share of that oilfield is in lieu of resource royalties. Therefore, the profits they make from that ownership should be subject to the same rules as any other resource revenue sharing arrangement. The federal government is of the view that they should be able to take the profits out of their equity share and not have to pay royalties on it. We don't agree with that. Mr. Speaker, we are firm on that position. The revenues need to be shared with us as a government as part of the resource revenue sharing deal. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Supplementary, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Given that the federal government has some ownership in the Norman Wells oilfield along with some pure oil, in 1920 they struck a deal, so I don't think they really want to give up their golden pot here to say we are going to share with our own people in the Northwest Territories. So that position, I am not too sure how strong our argument is, Mr. Premier, in terms of how we negotiate something like that. I think it is over 86 years that they have been retracting royalties from the Norman Wells oilfield. I think they own a considerable amount of dollars. I want to ask the Premier, without giving any type of indication as to our strategy in terms of negotiating this specific area, what type of discussions are happening with the leadership in the Sahtu and also with the North in terms of coming to a resolution to sign off on these other five outstanding issues to come home with a package that will be satisfactory to people of the Northwest Territories? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. Handley.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, the Norman Wells oilfield issue of where the royalties are going to be paid, whether they should be paid at all and so on, how we treat the federal ownership, is one of the six issues that are outstanding. Mr. Speaker, I won't get into all of them, but in the last meeting of the leaders I outlined that we, as a territorial government, wanted to come to an agreement with the federal government. The aboriginal leaders' negotiator in the summer of 2005 had said this is not an issue for the aboriginal leaders, it's only between the GNWT and the federal government, but they were ready to initial off on a draft devolution agreement. We said we weren't until this was settled, and I believe the aboriginal leaders understand our position and, in fact, agree with us because this some day could be part of their resource revenues as they take over self-government. But, Mr. Speaker, it's one of the issues I want to talk to aboriginal leaders about, following the November 9th meeting.

I've also written a letter to Minister Prentice saying let's start devolution by resolving these six issues. The Secretary to Cabinet has also written to Harvie Andre with the same message. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Supplementary, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the issue of the Norman Wells oilfield is an issue where the federal government has their cake and they're eating it too, and they're just throwing us the crumbs.

Mr. Speaker, I want to ask the Premier what is his position from the government in terms of Imperial Oil or if the federal government ever decides to sell their share of the oilfield. What are the chances of the Government of the Northwest Territories to have some ownership in an oilfield, because if the Norman Wells oilfield is being sold by Imperial Oil, the first agreement says in here under the Norman Wells Imperial Oil Agreement, Imperial Oil shall give the U.S. government the option to buy half of the recoverable reserves in the proven area. So I want to ask the position of this government here. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. Handley.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. First of all, let me say that it's our view that if the ownership of the federal government's share of that oilfield were to change hands we should not have to buy it. That should be part of the devolution deal. If they don't want to agree to that, then let us get a share of the royalties off their equity piece as well. It doesn't matter to us whether it's Imperial who owns it or the federal government or Petro-Canada or who it is, we should be collecting royalties from it. But if it is to be transferred, then it should be transferred but we shouldn't have to pay market dollars for that. That wouldn't make any sense, from our position. Thank you.