Thank you, Madam Chair. Sorry. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I will speak to a number of the issues very quickly and when I get to the issue of the rehab teams and the implementation, I will get the deputy to speak how that is going to roll out.

On the issue of medical travel, I want to recognize that this is a very important area. It's run out of health service administrative in Inuvik. The staff there deal with thousands of queries, issues and files. It is a very difficult job. There are times, because it is a very sensitive and often emotional issue, and a time when there are health issues under discussion and there is movement, so people get concerned and things don't happen the way they are supposed to. So we spend a lot of time out of my office because we get calls from MLAs, I call the deputy, the deputy gets calls, as well, and we try to sort these out as expeditiously as we can. I just want to recognize, though, that these folks do work long and hard. We are constantly trying to improve service and it is a very important service, but we are always interested in trying to sort out those circumstances where things haven't worked the way they are supposed to.

The issue of agencies, we have created a cycle of dependency that has implications and it is something we are trying to break and that is why I have indicated we are going to look very seriously at how we can adequately resource and make it workable to have float pools in the Beaufort-Delta, one out of Yellowknife, where we will have and fund adequately a service where we will get nurses that will work for us that we can put them out where they are needed on a rotational basis, as we look, as well, to do the ongoing training and get more grads out there on a longer-term basis, more permanent basis, in the small communities. Very clearly, by addressing a short-term need of getting nurses in there by flying them in every three weeks and flying them out for three weeks, we've created a double standard for those who are there in the long term. It's been a circumstance that has dogged us and bedevilled us ever since. We solved one problem, but created others and we are trying to get ourselves out of that. I recognize that that is a very clear issue.

The issue of ambulance services, Mr. Chairman, is one that there is no clear government position or departmental position on in terms of standards; how it's delivered, who is delivering it. Municipal and Community Affairs and Health and Social Services are in the process of bringing forward a paper to Cabinet that is going to speak to that issue, recognizing that we do need some standards, we do need criteria for training, who is going to deliver it, how is it going to be delivered. Right now it's a very mixed bag. In some communities, it's tied to municipalities with the fire departments. In Inuvik, it's a contract. In the Tlicho, it's a contract. In Fort Smith, it's delivered through the town and tied to their fire services as it is here in Yellowknife. It is clearly an area that needs some clarity and some framing with standards and recognition that it is a very important service. So we are going to do that.

The HR amalgamation was a government-wide initiative. There was a clear recognition and for those of us who have a history going back to the 13th Assembly when they basically blew up the personnel department, it's been an issue ever since. It's constantly come up and there was a recognition that we were replicating a service across government in all the departments. There were inefficiencies, there were all sorts of systems issues coming to light, there was HR staffing issues with unions. So the decision was made to consolidate HR services. There was discussion. There was, as to be expected, some concern and resistance in some quarters, but the final decision was that this was a good initiative. I still believe it was the right decision to make as we sort this out. We have nine years of independent HR development across government and bringing everybody back into the same tent is taking some time, but it's a labour that is going to be worth it.

Mr. Chairman, with your indulgence, I would ask Mr. Murray to speak to the rollout of the rehab teams of how we plan to get this done. Thank you.