I thank the Minister for that. I guess, you know, she said she’s leading the way on developing partnerships with western provinces on bulk purchasing of medical supplies and equipment. Last summer the governments of British Columbia and Alberta signed an agreement to co-purchase health care equipment. Just recently there was another agreement signed by the provinces of Alberta, British Columbia and Saskatchewan on bulk purchasing medical supplies and equipment. Where was the Government of the Northwest Territories, Mr. Speaker? Where was the Minister when it came time to sit down at the table and get in on these discussions on bulk purchasing? Thank you.

I called a meeting of all of the western provincial Health Ministers in Newfoundland. We had a meeting and on October 21st we signed the MOU as well. Thank you.

I’m having trouble understanding who the Minister signed the MOU with if these other provinces already have deals worked out with themselves. When is the Government of the Northwest Territories going to actively get involved and get in on a bulk purchasing plan with our neighbours to the south? Thank you.

The group purchasing of drugs and equipment is an initiative that’s going across the Territories. I’ve had discussions on that with the standing committee. All of the jurisdictions are looking to see how we could reduce costs of essential pharmaceuticals and equipment. This government is engaged in that. Premier Roland was part of that discussion among the First Ministers. We are also part of that agreement of the western provincial Health Ministers. We are part of that agreement. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Your final supplementary, Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have a number of questions and perhaps I’ll get on the list again and hopefully get another set of questions. I’d like to ask the Minister, if we’re part of the

agreement already, are we today bulk purchasing with the provinces of British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan, Mr. Speaker? Is that true? Thank you.

We are part of that group. We are working with other Ministers. It’s a highly complicated process. Yes, we are part of that group. We are part of the agreement. We are a part of the partners and I chaired that meeting and we handed it over to Manitoba as of September. Mr. Speaker, we are doing the right thing. I am giving the Member an answer. Yes, we are very much a part of that. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In my Member’s statement I talked about our new endangered species, the outfitter, and the fact that they’ve been left not just holding the bag but worthless lodges, because of the direction that the caribou management has taken. Mr. Speaker, many of these lodges have the investment of many people, of generations of money, and are seen as their only opportunity for the future, but that opportunity has been pulled away.

Mr. Speaker, I’d like to ask the Minister of ITI what is this government’s plan to do with these outfitters with these worthless lodges while they cannot attract customers to hunt on the Barren Lands or other places throughout the North? What is his plan for the outfitters? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. The honourable Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment, Mr. Bob McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. For some time now we recognize that there has been a shift in the tourism priorities and what areas that the younger generation would be participating, and we recognize that the so-called consumptive tourism, the interests in hunting and fishing were declining. We undertook surveys to determine where the new demand for tourism would be focussed on. Our research has indicated that most people are interested in adventure tourism, ecotourism, so we introduced a program, a tourism diversification program, in 2007-08, to help existing outfitters begin to diversify into other areas and develop new tourism products. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, the Minister defines it as a shift in the market. I would call it more like a tourniquet. The reality is there are no eco-tourists showing up at the door. The phone isn’t ringing off the hook. It would cost hundreds and hundreds of

thousands of dollars to decommission these lodges. The outfitters are left holding the bag waiting for this turnaround in the caribou market, if I may define it as that, which is almost impossible. What is the government doing to help either sustain these lodges through this downshift, which is easily predictable in the area of three to five years they will have to wait to restart, as well as is the government offering packages to help get some of these people out into either new industries or just out of this industry completely? Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, since time immemorial, the people of the Northwest Territories recognized that the population of caribou and wildlife was volatile. It was recognized in the Northwest Territories Act where barren-ground caribou has been designated as game endangered of becoming extinct. Our own Wildlife Act recognized that and it developed a hierarchy of priorities for the use of wildlife. Commercial tags for caribou were the lowest priority.

Now, having said that, I already told the Member that we established a tourism diversification market and fund which we have spent $4.5 million dollars since 2007-08. We also met with the sports outfitters. They indicated that that program wasn’t for them because they couldn’t see themselves changing. So we set up a separate Tourism Marketing Fund for the outfitters in which there was $600,000. It was $300,000 last year. It is $600,000 this year. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, it is great to have initiatives with pittance of a dollar called investment that they referred to, but the reality is the customers aren’t picking that up. What work has the government done to ensure that this has actually taken any effect in this industry or any industry on this so-called market shift?

The problem still remains: the customers are not coming and these outfitters are left with all of these lodges that are difficult to staff. No one wants to work there because they know they can’t make any money. Has the Minister investigated the realities of this so-called bailout program that doesn’t really do anything? Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, we have been working very closely with the outfitters and how to spend this money. For the most part, the outfitters have availed themselves of these funds. We have also put in business plans to continue this funding. We look forward to being able to work with the outfitters in future years. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In the Minister’s own words, he said that, for the outfitters, this is not a program for them. So, Mr. Speaker, if he is hearing from the outfitters that this program

doesn’t work for them, I am hearing from outfitters myself still even just recently as in a few minutes before session started, in an e-mail that the ink isn’t even dry. The program doesn’t work and is not for them.

Mr. Speaker, the reality is the only person this program works for is the person who does the allocation of these funds who sits in some ivory tower office not understanding what it is really like in these industries in trying to create business in momentum in the economy. Mr. Speaker, will the Minister go back and see if we can retool focus that works for outfitters? Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I wonder how many programs the Member would like me to start. I already indicated that we have the Tourism Diversification Marketing Program. We also instituted the Sports Outfitter Marketing Program and outfitters are accessing those funds and there is still funding available this year. A lot of the outfitters are using those funds to put their lodges in care and maintenance so that they can keep them operating. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The honourable Member for Weledeh, Mr. Bromley.

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

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. As it stands, we recognize 11 official languages in the Northwest Territories. The federal government recognizes English and French, so we are very proud of our Northwest Territories jurisdiction language recognition.

I have heard on several occasions of a language that could be integrated or added to the existing 11 official languages. There are comprehensive steps that have to be undertaken, public consultation.

Members would have to be involved in that. The Legislative Assembly would have to be involved in that. It would take some form of consultation with the communities and the people of the Northwest Territories before it goes to the next level. Those are the areas of discussion that we need to undertake.

Mr. Speaker, as it stands, we have 11 official languages. Mahsi.

Mr. Speaker, for the record, I, too, am very proud of those 11 official languages. I thank the Minister for those remarks on the process to get this done.

As the Minister knows, the true test of support programs is the ability to deliver timely support to the place where it can be used best. For a grassroots program, we know that it is really at the community level. I have described a situation where funding for the Yellowknives Dene Community Language Program is filtered through the Tlicho and Akaitcho governments’ administrative structures and there have been several problems described. The Minister has spoken to me of taking steps to make better arrangements to deal with those difficulties. Can the Minister tell me what the status is on those improvements? Mahsi.

Mr. Speaker, I did meet with the Member on identifying the funds that are being distributed through teaching and learning centres. There have been some concerns in that respect. We are currently rolling out the Aboriginal Languages Plan. It will be tabled in the House today. From there, that does cover the aspects of what the Member is referring to. It is broad. It is just not one region, Mr. Speaker. So I am glad that the Member is referring to that, because it is an important piece of work that we need to start talking and making those changes.

We currently provide this approximately $12 million that we need to relook at as well, a profile of that, how it has been distributed to the communities and to language groups. Mr. Speaker, it is general. We are seriously looking at those areas. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.