Mr. Speaker, a well-known saying about history is that those who do not pay attention to historical events are destined, perhaps doomed, to repeat them. Truer words have never been spoken, Mr. Speaker, as we look at the track record of this territorial government and the federal Government of Canada in negotiating resource revenue deals for the people of the North.

What are the legacies of major developments in the NWT? To cite a couple of them, Mr. Speaker, for 80 years now Norman Wells has pumped enormous wealth into the coffers of Ottawa. Since 1985 alone, $4 billion worth of oil has flowed out past the communities of Tulita and Wrigley.

What's in it for those communities? Mr. Speaker, the Yellowknife goldfields, the greenstone belt here has generated enormous wealth, too. Some 12 million ounces of gold were recovered since 1938 and what is the legacy of that wealth? Two hundred thousand tons of arsenic sitting on our doorstep.

Mr. Speaker, if we look at the future with the resources that we know of, natural gas in the Mackenzie Delta at current prices, that will generate $100 billion in product and $700 million in royalties every year for a quarter of a century at least. Let's look back at the history lesson and match it up with what we know is the biggest potential project yet, the Mackenzie Valley pipeline. What's in it for us? Well, so far we've seen letters of comfort, we've seen more deals negotiated in secret with proponents, and we see yet more unfulfilled promises from Ottawa. Such is the legacy that will continue for northerners until we have the resource and devolution deal in hand. Why do we continue, Mr. Speaker, to sign away our heritage, and our future, and our legacy on deals such as the recently signed socio-economic agreement?

---Applause