Mr. Speaker, the Member indicated that he wouldn't go any further, but I think he should go further. If we compare it to the De Beers agreement or Diavik agreement, we have NWT residents that are very similar. It is about providing proof, as one has to do in the MGP SEA, that one is a northern resident. So the standard has not been diminished in that respect. You are still required to provide proof, just as you are in the Diavik agreement, just as you are in the De Beers agreement. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. Supplementary, Mr. Braden.

Mr. Speaker, I am going to ask the Minister to pick it up and have a really close look at it because there is a very small two-letter word in here. The word is "or." Let's get into it then. The NWT resident means any individual who makes a representation or provides evidence that is in either case reasonably relied on, et cetera, et cetera. It is that, or that is the betrayal, Mr. Speaker. So anybody can walk in and say I am a northerner. Bingo. They are hired, but the guy who is invested and his family has been here perhaps for generations is on no better terms. Mr. Speaker, does the SEA set any hiring targets for northerners by contractors or operators, as we have done with all other major development projects in the NWT?

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Bell.

Mr. Speaker, the Member knows the answer to the second question. He knows that 3,000 jobs will be made available for northerners. I think he probably also knows that fewer than 2,000 people in the Northwest Territories are currently unemployed. Mr. Speaker, it is important to keep perspective. This project is so massive, anybody in the Northwest Territories who is prepared to build the capacity and take the training required is going to get work on this project, Mr. Speaker. That was the aim of this government; to ensure that, in fact, would be the case. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. Supplementary, Mr. Braden.

And so is everybody else in the country and the world eligible on an equal footing with northerners. That is the part that the Minister does not get, Mr. Speaker. I have one more question here, Mr. Speaker. We are already seeing jobs and revenues literally flying out of the North, flying out of our communities from the diamond mines. Mr. Speaker, it is astonishing that our government has, in effect, agreed in writing that northerners will have no advantage. Will the Minister be readdressing this betrayal of northerners in further agreements on the Mackenzie Valley pipeline?

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Bell.

Mr. Speaker, the rhetoric is incredible. We would be prepared to brief the Member again, as we did a couple of nights ago, if that is required. Anybody from around the world on equal footing. Well, unless they live in Deline, unless they live in Fort

Resolution, they are not going to get their travel paid to the worksite, Mr. Speaker. If they are not a northern resident, they are not going to be eligible to participate in our $21 million training fund, Mr. Speaker. It is just ludicrous that this has been a betrayal. This is, in fact, an unprecedented agreement in the energy industry. We take what we have learned from the diamond agreements and we have ratcheted it up, Mr. Speaker. It is an incredible agreement that we should be proud of, that we spent a lot of time working on and, if the Member chooses to only see the glass half full, then that is his choice, but it is a shame. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Under the Protected Areas Strategy of the Mackenzie Valley five-year action plan, the GNWT has committed to protecting a network of culturally significant and ecological representative areas prior or concurrently with the development of the Mackenzie gas pipeline. The Territorial Parks Act allows for the designation of wilderness and cultural conservation areas. Does the Minister of ITI intend to use the Territorial Parks Act to meet its commitment under the action plan?

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The honourable Minister responsible for Industry, Tourism and Investment, Mr. Bell.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It is a good question. I appreciate the question. As Members know, it was this government that took the lead in funding the PAS, some $17 million with the NGOs, with the federal government, but we came out when it was apparent that somebody had to make the first move and committed the funds. It is certainly something this government is proud of.

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We are not imposing any one solution on communities, Mr. Speaker. We are going to be flexible. It is key, though, that it is driven by the desires and the wishes of the communities. That is, in fact, what we are willing to work with. So if territorial parks legislation can assist as the folks in Wrigley believe it can, we are prepared to sit down and talk about how. I know in the Sahtu, there are some arrangements being made with Parks Canada in terms of an interim land withdrawal. So whatever the vehicle, Mr. Speaker, we are prepared to get this done. Protected Areas Strategy support is critical. We will provide that support. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. Supplementary, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. When will the Minister be able to commit to meet with the Sahtu representatives within the life of this government? Next month, next week? How soon can we get that commitment? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. Bell.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. ENR has funded a regional coordinator position. I think that funding started in 2006 as a pilot to help us work better as a government in the Sahtu region to make sure we get some of these protected area strategies and some of these ideas to fruition. So we are prepared to sit down right now, Mr. Speaker, as soon as a delegation from the Sahtu, as soon as a committee from the Sahtu is prepared to sit down with our officials. I suspect it would be led by ENR and the coordinator would play a role, but we are more than happy and prepared to do that. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. Final supplementary, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Why has the department failed to participate as an NWT PAS sponsoring agency? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. Bell.

Mr. Speaker, we are prepared to act as a sponsoring agency in any number of cases. We want to sit down, though, and talk with the communities about whether or not that is, in fact, the most expedited, the best course of action going forward. I think there are a number of aims, objectives and goals to be achieved in each of the regions, in each of the sensitive eco areas. We just want to simply make sure that territorial parks legislation used, and ITI as a sponsoring agency, is the most effective way to do that, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. Oral questions. The honourable Member for Range Lake, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are to the Minister of Justice. It is in follow up to these answers earlier that seem to suggest that the Standing Committee on Social Programs is very powerful and the Minister will follow the direction accordingly. Mr. Speaker, SCAN legislation, as we know, went through consultation from November 1st to January 19th. We did not receive the legislative proposal until February 5th. We had our long evening meeting last night. The Minister is stomping at the bit to see our response even though there are at least three remaining questions. But at the same time, Mr. Speaker, the Standing Committee on Social Programs reviewed a legislative proposal on the Maintenance Enforcement Act which would prevent some of the parents, both Mom and Dad, who are not paying child support from obtaining a licence. We did that review on February 1st, 2006. We responded on March 7th, 2006. As of now, we are told that this legislation will not see the

light of day. I would like to know why it is that that committee response has not been heard in almost a year when SCAN legislation, the Minister wants a response in a week. Thank you.

I would just caution Members not to make reference to legislation that is before the House. I will allow the Minister to respond to the question. The honourable Minister responsible for Justice, Mr. Bell.