Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Minister of Health and Social Services, the Honourable Michael Miltenberger. I have been following, with great interest, the local newspaper coverage on addictions. I applaud the proactive approach taken by the RCMP and local community members to address this issue within Yellowknife. The action they are taking is far more productive than the horror stories I have heard on CBC radio about Saskatoon police driving drunk people out of town and leaving them to die.

Mr. Speaker, all this attention and action being taken by the community of Yellowknife to address the issues of addictions highlights the absence of a major player in this area: the territorial government. I would like to ask the Minister, since being elected as Minister of Health and Social Services, what concrete steps has the Minister taken to address additions in the Northwest Territories? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. One of my first actions in this legislature was to table a petition asking for alcohol and drug treatment services in the Dogrib region. The petition contained over 600 signatures. I have continued to bring up this issue for over three years. Throughout the North addictions are known as the number one social problem. Mr. Bell pointed out in his statement on Friday that here in Yellowknife 90 percent of the RCMP workload on call-outs is alcohol related.

Mr. Speaker, Yellowknife has been called a magnet community because many people from the communities are relocating here in hope of finding work or homes, as there is little to none in some of the communities.

The high cost of living and lack of affordable housing is creating a growing group of people who are either homeless or highly stressed because of the difficulty in finding accommodations. This is not a healthy situation, Mr. Speaker. As well, it is not unusual for people who have left the communities to attend a 28-day treatment program, to wind up on the streets because there are no support programs or structures in place in the communities.

Despite clear signals that addictions are our most chronic and prevalent social problem, the government's response has been at best minimal. There is still little to no funding. But as we see, this does not make the problem or the need to address it go away.

Mr. Speaker, the problem is growing. Hard drugs, such as crack cocaine, are becoming easier to access than pot. I've also heard tragic stories of youth addiction and of marriages being destroyed. I know that there are people who say that addicts have to take responsibility for their own actions. I agree. But I also think that as a government we need to ensure that services are available for people who want to address their addictions and create a healthy life.

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Mr. Speaker, I will have questions on this matter.

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Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Your committee has been considering Bill 14, An Act to Amend the Public Service Act, and would like to report progress. Mr. Speaker, I move that the report of Committee of the Whole be concurred with.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'd like to ask the Deputy Premier if he can give direction to all departments so they can have a consistent way of dealing with contracts in the North. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just listened to my colleague on the right talking about contracts. I'd like to ask the Minister if, during the time they're looking at the way they're doing things, there is some way that they're giving out contracts and they're not benefiting the North, then maybe they should look at changing those. As for the BIP being implemented, also I think that needs to be changed. I was actually one of the first Members to ever say that. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'd like to ask the Minister if he is indicating that he will be dealing in a consistent way with all contracts or just negotiated contracts? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Deputy Premier, the Honourable Jim Antoine. I would like to ask the Deputy Premier, since this government supports negotiated contracts and now that more self-government and aboriginal companies are being created, I would like to ask the Deputy Premier if he can look at the way the contracts are being done by all departments in this government and make sure that we have a consistent way of dealing with all the contracts that are out there in the North for private contractors, public contractors, regional or whatever. Would the Minister give me an answer to that? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, last Wednesday's Yellowknifer had an article about the NWT Construction Association and their opposition to the negotiated contracts for government projects. Mr. Speaker, I was surprised to see my name included in a list of seven MLAs opposed to negotiated contracts.

When I was approached by the Construction Association about where I stood on the issue of negotiated contracts, I responded that there have been a lot of issues with the way DPW does their contracts, and it is time that this government really looks at whether the process is benefiting the North or not. One suggestion I had made for the Construction Association was that perhaps they could be given notice of impending contracts before negotiations start. I would like to make it clear that my issue is not with negotiated contracts. In fact, I have supported negotiated contracts in my own riding since I was elected. I can name three of them. One was the Bay Island Bridge, the other one was the Edzo fire hall and the other one is the winter road construction between the smaller communities. Mr. Speaker, by supporting them, I feel I am encouraging local employment.

My issue is with the inconsistent process this government uses to award contracts. It seems as though each department follows its own regulations as to how to hand out contracts. Mr. Speaker, there has been a lot of controversy over how the government selects and how it runs projects. For example, how the government handled the cost overruns for the new correctional facility in Yellowknife. That made a lot of people question the government's ability to plan and follow a budget. Many ridings lost out on opportunities for services because so much money was eaten up by the cost overruns for this facility. The multi-million dollar government contract that was recently awarded to Buffalo Airways angered Northerners who felt that they did not have the opportunity to be considered for this contract. These are just two of them.

Mr. Speaker, one part of being an open and accountable government is to have regulations which are consistent across departments and which are clear to the companies bidding on the contracts. Mr. Speaker, I think the way contracts are awarded needs to be a fair process for all Northerners and that they benefit all communities and also the aboriginal governments that we have agreements with. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I move that this committee recommends that the Government of the Northwest Territories increase and strengthen access to policing services by expanding support for the community constable program and the First Nations policing program. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.