Thank you, Mr. Chair. I know that this is something that the Chief Electoral Officer recommended. I think the committee has taken an important step in recommending that we do some work before making those kind of changes. In other jurisdictions they vary, but often the central election body or the provincial election body does send teams in to support municipal level elections, and that can be very helpful when you may have a situation where the chief administrative officer of a municipality is also the returning officer and, if there is a dispute over the results, they have to basically act as the decider for their new employer, who would be the mayor or whatever have you. So that conflict of interest can be difficult, so having a third party assist with administration of elections I think could help preserve the integrity of the electoral process.
You know, there have been over the years several complaints around the conduct of municipal elections, and it puts the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs in a difficult position if they are being requested to suspend the results of an election. I think if we had a second set of eyes on the issue, we might be able to avoid those circumstances, so I look forward, and I hope this is supported and this is moved and we are able to see this work done and ultimately determine if it is the best choice for the Northwest Territories. Thank you.