Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the answer on that, because the Premier can only answer what he can answer. But the fact is the ground is moving on this issue. So the reality now goes to what are we going to do about it.

Mr. Speaker, the fear is those millions of dollars will be lost and it will all be gone. As I said in my statement, the fact is perhaps the polar bear diamond will now become the latest endangered species because the Ontario diamond may have a shine to it. It certainly will outpace our own. Mr. Speaker, is the Premier willing to look into this issue to find out what strategy we can put in place to make sure that our diamond cutting industry isn’t lost to Ontario or elsewhere in Canada? Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, just for the record, let’s be clear here. We are not losing the industry. We have worked with the industry. We have put supports in place for the industry. We have put training and programs in place for the industry. We have worked with the diamond mines. Our socio-economic agreement has looked at this to make sure we could have a supply maintained in the Northwest Territories. I expect that the Department of Industry and the Minister responsible will be, as their department is doing the work, going forward to the standing committee on this policy. We will be able to answer and have a lot more information and Members of this Assembly can help us as we go forward on how we approach the next phase of that industry in the Northwest Territories. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Your final supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have been gratefully corrected. Potentially the polar bear

diamond is a species of concern right now, maybe not on the endangered list but the reality is Ontario is now producing diamonds and their market is looking a heck of a lot more attractive when they can get deals on land to set up shops. They can get workers in there cheaper. Their power is cheaper. Everything is cheaper to do the business. I need to know from a constituent point of view, from a territorial point of view, what this government is doing as far as a strategy to make sure we continue to court these industries in a way that they are willing to invest and cut diamonds here in the Northwest Territories, to benefit the Northwest Territories, that produce taxes in the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, it might be my opportunity to ask the Member what he is suggesting. We have already committed to a process. The Minister and the department are reviewing that policy. We will be meeting with the standing committee. We will be reviewing this process. We will await that work that has to be done.

Meanwhile, our diamond industry is spooling back up. Our factories are hiring more people again as there is more interest and more money available for diamonds again throughout the world. Let’s be clear: the Northwest Territories diamonds, the polar bear diamonds, are prized throughout the world for their quality that we have here in the Northwest Territories. Let’s not undersell ourselves on this. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. The honourable Member for Nunakput, Mr. Jacobson.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. From my Member’s statement today regarding the Helen Kalvak School in Ulukhaktok and our small, remote communities, the delay of even simple repairs can be significant; parts can often take weeks, given the unique situation. Will the government devote resources to develop a system so parts and materials and skilled workers will be available to repair the schools faster? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Jacobson. The honourable Minister of Transportation, Mr. McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Member raises a very important point, something that has been raised by a number of communities in his riding. Of course, our government has been very concerned over some of the frontline services that we have been providing to some of the very isolated communities. This year in the community the Member represents, we were further challenged by the fact that some of the

materials got bumped and really compounded the issue even further. I recognize that there are some challenges that we have to overcome. We are planning to deal with the issue such as the availability of contractors and skilled workers in those communities. We plan to look at the possibility of hiring some of the retainers in some of the communities that the Member is referring to. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, there are many school authorities in the south of the Territory now turning to other materials such as non-breakable glass. Will the government look into all types of alternates to address our school’s maintenance challenges and problems? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, the issue of materials that can be utilized in communities that have durability to last for the long term is something that is ongoing. We continue to research that. We have to recognize the fact that we certainly have a vandalism problem in a lot of our communities. Last year, for example, we had in excess of over $5 million worth of damages done to our facilities. We look at ways that we can use material that will help us alleviate some of those concerns. I continue to work on that. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, for years, this government has been promising all schools, students and teachers will be treated equally and that all resources will be devoted so that all communities will be able to have the same level of standards for larger centres such as Yellowknife. Will the government look into whether all of these commitments can be implemented immediately so our students no longer have to work in a substandard environment? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, we have put together a fairly aggressive deferred maintenance plan for all the communities in the Territories. We expect to set a standard that everybody can appreciate. I will work with all the different departments to ensure that happens. We will continue to move forward on that plan. We certainly will be able to share it. I think we have already, with all the Members, on what we plan to do for the next few years. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Final supplementary, Mr. Jacobson.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to invite both the Minister of ECE and the Minister of DPW to come for a tour of the Nunakput communities to see this firsthand. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I can’t speak for the Minister of ECE, but I would certainly be very happy to visit the communities that the

Member represents. I will talk to the Minister of ECE to see if he will accompany us. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The honourable Member for Frame Lake, Ms. Bisaro.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are addressed to the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. I would like to follow up with him on some concerns. I would like to talk to him about minimum wage.

The Minister and the House knows I have been pushing this issue for quite some time, I think probably since I first got here two years ago. My latest questions to the Minister in discussion on this subject were in June of this year. At that time, the Minister indicated, or the Hansard indicates that he said, “we are hoping to finalize our discussion with the various parties within a month or two and have a final decision by the fall.” I would like to ask the Minister if he could give me an update, please, on the status of the discussions that he has been having with businesses and with the department and with the various stakeholders involved in minimum wage, the status of the discussions and consultations. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. The honourable Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Lafferty.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Certainly I appreciate the Member’s question in this regard, because that is one of the topics that is before us. As a department, we have reviewed and consulted with businesses and stakeholders. We have compiled our information and we are just waiting to present to the Standing Committee on a going forward basis. We are looking forward to that. At that time, we will certainly address those issues. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, thanks to the Minister for the update. I await that briefing, I guess, with anticipation. I guess I would like to ask the Minister whether or not a decision has been made. Can he indicate whether or not there will be an increase to the minimum wage and whether or not there is a timeline for the implementation for such an increase? Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I cannot make a decision at this point. I need to consult with the standing committee first, because their input is valuable to our decision. We need to go back to the Cabinet to move forward with whatever decision is made at that point. But I can certainly say that the Member will be satisfied. Mahsi.

I hope I am satisfied, Mr. Minister.

---Laughter

Thank you for that. I don’t remember when, probably a year ago now at this time, I had an indication that there was going to be a Cabinet decision on this particular issue in December of 2008, and then in June it was, well it hadn’t happened. We were carrying on forward. I appreciate that the Minister wants to discuss with the standing committee. Certainly standing committee wants to know what is going on before it gets to the public, so I really appreciate the fact that we are going to get a briefing. Once that briefing is done, when can the Minister advise that a decision will be made by Cabinet and this actually whatever is going to be implemented will take effect? Thank you.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Certainly it will be from the outcome of the committee’s decision. Certainly we’ve been waiting for some time now to present to standing committee. We are just waiting, I guess, for a green light to proceed with that. At the same time, once a decision is made, we will certainly bring it back to Cabinet, because we are just waiting for that decision to happen and we will expedite the process. Mahsi.