Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We are all aware of NTCL's recent financial troubles. It's a territorial issue. Barging is an essential service for many of the communities up the Mackenzie and in the Arctic. Concerns about the delivery of fuel and other supplies have been addressed by multiple Members in this House.

Hay River is the base of operations for NTCL, and because of that we have additional concerns. Taking an educated guess, I would say NTCL probably has more land in Hay River than any other private entity, and probably by a large margin. Much of it is owned, but a fair amount is leased land. NT has operated out of Hay River for over 70 years. if they ultimately go under, there are serious concerns that these parcels of land will require extensive environmental remediation. There have also been barges sitting idle in the river for years, and there are questions about their effect on the environment.

The question is: who would be responsible for the clean-up of the lands and waterways? If leased lands are returned to the town, the Town of Hay River could be on the hook for millions. On top of this, the town is owed nearly $700,000 in unpaid property taxes.

Bankruptcy is not a foregone conclusion, but I'd like to know if the GNWT has a contingency plan as it relates to potential liabilities for the Town of Hay River. At the appropriate time, I will have questions for the Minister. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Members' statements. Item 4, returns to oral questions. Item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Great Slave.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'd like to recognize a couple of individuals in the gallery today. My parents, Dick and Loretta Abernethy, are with us, as well as, all the way from Oxford, Nova Scotia, my aunt Diane Harrot is with us. This is the first time she's been to the Northwest Territories. Welcome to the gallery, welcome to the Northwest Territories. It's great to see you.

Masi. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I, too, want to take this opportunity to recognize our colleague's parents. They are also Yellowknife North residents, Dick and Loretta Abernethy, and of course Auntie Diane visiting. I also want to take this opportunity to recognize the executive director of the Yellowknife Chamber of Commerce, Deneen Everett. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Yellowknife Centre.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. It is my pleasure today to recognize Emmanuel Lamvu, who is sitting to your right. He and his fellow student, Ivan Ceria, have been pages here and they are at the William McDonald School in Yellowknife. Thank you.

Masi. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Kam Lake.

Masi. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. If we missed anyone in the gallery, welcome to the Chamber. It's always great to have an audience. Masi. Item 6, acknowledgements. Item 7, oral questions. Member for Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are for the Premier. The GNWT has already set out a clear road map heeding the TRC's Call to Action, tabling Meeting the Challenge of Reconciliation last October. My question I'd like to ask the Premier is: what is the government doing to follow up on these commitments as a one-year anniversary of the TRC? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. The Honourable Premier.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We are working with all of the governments across Canada, and of course the Government of Canada, to make sure that all of the recommendations are followed up on. I guess the biggest area for us to follow up on is for residential school survivors that have indicated there is additional need for healing and reconciliation, and so we will be looking into what further action we should be taking in those areas. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you to the Premier for his reply. Mr. Speaker, when the Assembly of First Nations created the federal government on its delivery of the recommendation of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal People, the government earned an A grade on only one thing, and that was establishing a national Aboriginal Day. I would like to ask the Premier, will he commit to formally request that the federal government follow the NWT's lead in making Aboriginal Day a fully-fledged statutory holiday?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I believe previous governments have done so, and we're quite prepared to do the same.

That's appreciated, and I think that there might be some further consideration at the federal level given to that if we were to raise it again, so thank you to the Premier for that commitment. Then lastly, for the interests of the public, can the Premier describe how the GNWT will be recognizing Aboriginal Day in 2016?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The government first and foremost, and the only jurisdiction in Canada has recognized this as a statutory holiday.

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Nahendeh.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, during the weekend of March 1st, there was some concerns raised about who you need to contact to get information on smaller airports. In the past, it was a regional staff, but I've heard this has changed. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister of Transportation please advise the House when it comes to dealing with afterhours issues for smaller airports, they do not have government staff. Who do they contact, and is there a 1-800 number? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Minister of Transportation.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think I missed the very last part of the Member's question, if it was a 1-800 number, but we take all airport safety and issues seriously in the smaller communities. If you cannot contact a local contractor, I suspect you can get right hold of the Department of Airports, which would be our local director.

I thank the Minister for his answer. I guess my question is if you're going to be contacting the NWT or the Department of Transportation, is it a regional contact or is it a territorial Yellowknife contact?

It probably depends on the issue, the concern that the people will have, so you can actually go through the regional person or come right directly to headquarters.

I guess I should have clarified. These are after-hours issues on weekends. In the past, it's been my understanding, what I've been told by people in the communities that there was a regional contact. Now, it is territorial contract. Can the Minister confirm this is the practice?