Thank you, Mr. Chair. I, too, wanted to just note some concerns that I have, namely: it was stated by the Minister that NTCL, in terms of the acquisition of the assets, and it is not reflected in the main estimates; I am hoping to at least maybe get an indication from the Minister in terms of how that will be reflected in this budget and maybe look forward to the process that might follow.

Amalgamations, I understand. The exercise was to look at, in the face of government, ensuring that there are efficiencies. In communities, it is always their perception that this is a big government and we have to ensure that this government operates in the highest efficiencies possible. I think, in that spirit, I look forward to the ongoing initiatives just to formalize the department.

Some key initiatives that I notice colleagues have raised are the community access programs in terms of ensuring that there are resources out there for communities, that they choose project initiatives to create employment. I could probably count maybe about two or three projects that could be eligible in terms of job creation, so I encourage the Minister to reconsider the amount that has been allocated for this initiative.

In terms of the Arctic Energy Alliance, I see some good initiatives to try to lessen the cost of living by looking at some energy efficiencies, whether it is helping people with their fuel-fired water heaters or else changing the streetlights within communities. I think that is a very good initiative, and we need to continue to support that. At the same time, I look forward to ongoing initiatives, perhaps that we could have a sharper focus, namely the energy plan in terms of addressing the electricity transmission and, of course, the whole challenge of lessening our dependence on fossil fuels.

I would note that it might be that this department has to tackle the idea of looking at a marine transportation strategy in terms of the realities that we face with climate change, the water levels in the Mackenzie going down, and looking at perhaps longer shipping seasons, or else shorter seasons. So I look forward to discussions on those fronts in the future. Mahsi.