Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I will be supporting the motion. I am really pleased to see it come this far in regards to all 19 Members working together. In my riding in Nunakput, this will directly affect it and help the cost of living. Maybe, you know, quality of life will pick up and maybe we wouldn’t have to struggle so much for the food for our families, fuel to heat our homes and gasoline to go hunt caribou. If those prices dropped, I think there would be a lot more ease to the people in my riding.
Jobs from the project would be well utilized from Northerners. I know there is a lot more skilled labour up in the Beaufort-Delta and the Territory, and then the Beau-Del in the Sahtu will be connected to the capital. Right now the Beaufort-Delta is connected to Whitehorse, Yukon. That is where we do all of our shopping. That will change. I always say Nunakput has all the oil and gas. Now we will be able to tap into that resource. Norman, you have gas too.
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The upside to that, we are going to open up the Western Arctic for a deep sea port. That is going to bring the cost of food and everything right down. Our sovereignty issues, you know the rangers will have backup then. Right now we have to get them flown in. They will be able to drive in. Rangers are such an important program up in the Beaufort-Delta and the Northwest Territories. It is good to have them.
If we want to go out on a holiday, we would be able to drive out, not fly when you pay almost $1,000 a ticket. I have nine kids. That is almost half a year’s wage.
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I am trying to bring this into reality for everybody. My family is big. Then we could always say it is not sea to sea to river, it is sea to sea to sea.
Mr. Speaker, I helped Mr. Abernethy again in his statement so I ran out of stuff, so thank you and I am supporting the motion. Thank you.