Thank you, Mr. Chair. Just a couple of things I wanted to comment on. As we all know, there were reductions to the ferry services in the fall, with the Peel and Mackenzie River. It is really unfortunate, as I said in my statement earlier today. Just when the department seemed to have mastered operating during the fall season, they turn around and shut it down. I am not sure what they used those funds for, whether it was to buy NTCL or give it to transportation for maintenance of the Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk Highway, just looking at all the different numbers that increased.

It could be used for anything that the department wanted, but they cut a lot of jobs, just to let them know that. They might not see that from whether it is here in Yellowknife or Hay River, but back home we really notice a big difference, Mr. Chair. Reducing the cost of living was in his opening statement, and he is actually increasing the cost of living, up in the Mackenzie Delta, with shutting this service down to our residents.

I guarantee you will see the price of fuel increasing in Inuvik, the cost of groceries. Every year, we have the same issue in Tsiigehtchic, running out of groceries in the store there. For sure, you are going to be seeing skidoos running across the rivers now to shuttle people across. That is the only way that you could travel out of Tsiigehtchic and McPherson to keep the costs down. Not everybody could afford choppering out of Tsiigehtchic or flying, travelling to McPherson, jumping on the charter, which only operates during the week. You know, there are no services on the weekends out of Fort McPherson, as well.

So, they are actually not doing what they've stated in their statement, which is reducing the cost of living. Maybe here in the south you pay anywhere from 50 to 60 cents cheaper per litre of gasoline than we do back home, so all of these, the department needs to consider when they are making these sort of decisions. It may seem like a lot to them, but they cut $1.8 million out of this service that is benefiting the whole region, and then they go and spend a little over $7 million for a barging company, which the majority of those assets are not able to operate.

We have a graveyard in Hay River that now this government has to clean up. A lot of my constituents and people around the territory are saying, well, now we have to clean up this whole mess. Sure, we have some barges that can operate and some tugs, but that is an added cost that we have taken on. I know we do have to service the communities that need those services, but it is really frustrating here. We see the benefits first-hand. Right out my front window, you could see the operations during the fall, and it is a real shame that the department made those cuts. That is all I have for now. Thanks.