Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, last fall I brought forward concerns for my constituents about the loss of extended ferry service. I warned the Minister that, without those services, the government risked leaving communities in the Delta to face heightened costs of living, restricted travel between communities, heavy commercial traffic, and potential fuel shortages.

Well, Mr. Speaker, I take no joy in the fact that my fears are justified. As I committed to doing last fall, I monitored ferry use for the rest of the season and kept track of private and commercial traffic as well as community needs. This winter, Fort McPherson, a community of more than 900 people, ran out of gasoline, and Tsiigehtchic ran extremely low on groceries, along with many other communities in the region, including Inuvik. Suffice to say, the communities are disappointed, as I am, Mr. Speaker.

This is simply not the kind of message we want to see from a government that says it wants to help small communities. Our small communities want to know that government hears their concerns and understands their needs, and that the government won't save a few pennies at their expense.

I will have further questions later today. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.