Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In business when one is faced with limited cash flow and facing tough expense control, you look at your balance sheet to find ways to leverage your assets. In all cases, whether you’re in government or in business, you strive to isolate financial risk and look at the balance sheet of self-financing your paid service models.

One such asset and paid service model is our Yellowknife Airport, to which the current governance is in dire need of a shake-up. Mr. Speaker, let me explain.

The Yellowknife Airport is under the care and regulations of the GNWT. This entity is at financial risk to taxpayers and is not self-financing. In reality, it is bleeding money to the tune of over $2 million a year and this shortfall is picked up by the taxpayer. In this age of financial stewardship this is unacceptable, even for a government, and especially a government teetering on the edge of a financial cliff.

What is the solution? To turn this around one would have to consider the success of some key metrics of financial performance, customer service, safety and a longer term vision. One would have to consider maximizing the value for the shareholder and for the community in terms of its socio-economic returns. There needs to be the right balance, the right governance, the right owners, the right efficiency motivation and the right economic objectives, which today are severely lacking.

It goes without saying, no two airports are alike, and similarly, no two communities have identical objectives for their airport assets. But without a clear vision for the role of the Yellowknife Airport and our government’s inability to continue at the helm, the stakeholders suffer, the community suffers and the taxpayers suffer as well. This is not a winning combination.

I will have questions later today for the Minister of Transportation.