Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today, I too would like to highlight the concerns raised last evening in the Great Hall at our constituency meeting, attended by six of the seven Yellowknife MLAs. Mr. Bell has already given us a very thorough review of a number of the points, but there were two or three that I would like to highlight.
Mary Kosta, in her 22nd day of a hunger strike who, along with the Canadian Autoworkers' Local, is working so hard on behalf of Giant Mine pensioners to secure a fair and just entitlement. Highlighting, in a very passionate way, the unfair treatment and deplorable position Giant Mine pensioners, widows, retirees and former employees are in, who have not received severance pay are in.
She has asked us to put forth a motion calling on the federal government to provide immediate relief of Giant Mine pensioners and laid off workers. I should add that many MLAs have written to federal ministers seeking an immediate remedy to this unjust treatment. In the longer term, this House, Mr. Speaker, needs to seek control of legislation which affects not only our resources, but our workers, so that pensioners of the future can also be assured fair and just treatment in an accountable system of government.
The need for a vision and a plan of where we want to go in this Assembly over the next five to 15 years was also raised in relation to devolution of programs and the transfer of authority and responsibility of resources from the federal government. Caucus continues to work on this vision. We must remember that it has to be inclusive of many to be successful. We have been preoccupied, Mr. Speaker, with economic, development and fiscal issues, but we were reminded last night that we also have an obligation and an expectation on the broadest possible scale, to develop a caring and fair-minded society.
We heard from representatives of the non-government organizations, Mr. Speaker. There is a heavy burden placed on the social safety net in Yellowknife as a result of sexual and spousal assaults, gender issues, lack of self-esteem, and many other social ills. We value the efforts and the energy of the people behind these community support group efforts, Mr. Speaker, and we continue to press for the kinds of things that they want to achieve.