Thank you, Mr. Minister. With that, I’d like to ask the Minister if he would bring in any witnesses. Mr. McLeod.

I’d like to call Committee of the Whole back to order. Prior to the break we agreed to begin with Bill 15, An Act to Amend the Deh Cho Bridge Act. At this time I would like to ask the Minister responsible for the bill if he has any opening comments. Minister McLeod.

Committee concur?

I’d like to call Committee of the Whole to order. We have Committee Report 6-16(6), Bills 9, 10, 15, 16, 17, 18, 22, 23. What is the wish of committee? Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Again, I think, my question is: do we have the financial means and the capacity to take on this type of legislation that will be imposed on us by the federal government? Do we have the financial means to implement this type of legislation in the Northwest Territories? Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, as we all know, most individuals that are sentenced for two years and less spend their time in the Northwest Territories. Anything over two years, they are basically sent to a federal institution. I’d like to ask the Minister: have you been made aware of what the minimum sentence year is going to be and will there be implications on inmates that we have now, which may be having to do more than a two-year sentence and having to leave the Northwest Territories or is the minimum sentence, it could be two-and-a-half years. What effect will that have on our system?

Mr. Speaker, that’s the concern that I have, is that presently we already are having a financial shortage in regard to the Department of Justice, where money is being taken away for programs and services that should be there for the inmates to pay for extra guards so that we incarcerate these people and keep them housed in the institutions. So we’re already taking the money away from programs and services to pay those additional costs. The fear that I have is that by having more inmates in our system, as a government do we have the capacity, resources or infrastructure-wise to take on more inmates with this legislation coming in?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is directed to the Minister of Justice. It’s in regard to the federal government’s tough on crime legislation and the possibility of minimum sentences.

I think, as a territory we should learn from other jurisdictions, regardless if it’s the United States who took the same approach and who ended up building more jails and having more people incarcerated, and for simple, petty crimes, that they end up in jail because it’s a minimum sentence.

As we know, the Northwest Territories probably has some of the highest crime rates in Canada in regard to Aboriginal people incarcerated into our jail system, which is almost 90 percent of the people in our system.

Mr. Speaker, my question to the Minister: have we looked at the implication of this legislation on the Department of Justice to be able to implement a tough on crime agenda, especially when you’re dealing with minimum sentences?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’ll be remiss if I don’t recognize the Aklavik Drummers and Dancers, who have already been recognized. So, welcome to the House.