Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are directed to the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. The Gwich’in Assembly passed a motion last year directing the Gwich’in Tribal Council to make an elders payout for elders over the age of 70 and then also they made a second payment to elders 60 and over to age 69. Mr. Speaker, under the Gwich’in Land Claim Agreement it is pretty clear in regards to these payments not being clawed back by governments, regardless if it is the federal government or the Government of the Northwest Territories. But it is pretty apparent, Mr. Speaker, that those elders, especially the ones 60 and over who depend on income support have had their payments clawed back.
Mr. Speaker, there is a letter written to the Premier and the Minister of Health and Social Services and also a letter to the Department of Education on this matter. I would like to ask the Minister exactly why is it that this government clawed back the elders’ payment to the Gwich’in elders in regards to their portion of income, which was somewhere around $2,600, but again those people weren’t allowed any income support payments or support for the whole month of December because of these payments which they were left without. I would just like to ask: why is the government doing that, knowing that it is an exemption in the agreement?