Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Department of Education, Culture and Employment was one of the first departments to transfer to the territorial government when the government came north from Ottawa in the late 1960s. At the time, Mr. Speaker, the Department of Education was concerned with the education of our children and providing adult vocational training. Over the years, the department's mandate has expanded to include the following: arts and culture; heritage and museums; languages, aboriginal and French; colleges, including the granting of university degrees; employment programs; income security programs; and Labour Board.
As you see, Mr. Speaker, we are talking about a fairly extensive list of responsibilities and I strongly believe that amongst these competing priorities, culture, heritage and language are getting the short end of the stick. This is somewhat understandable, given the support most northerners have for quality education in our schools and post-secondary programming. Mr. Speaker, I believe this is because the sheer size of the department and the many roles it is expected to pay in defining northern society. The areas of culture, heritage and languages do not have a true champion at the table, Mr. Speaker. This is not the fault of the current Minister. I feel for him, having to make choices between competing priorities, but I cannot fault for choosing to improve education for our children and making sure that those who are less fortunate have the income security programs they need over increasing funding for culture, heritage and languages.
The Government of Nunavut has recognized this need, Mr. Speaker, and created a Department of Culture, Language, Elders and Youth. I believe we should be looking at their model in developing a department that is focussed on culture, heritage and languages. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
---Applause