Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise to pay tribute to a man who was much loved and very much respected in his home of Resolute Bay, in the High Arctic, throughout the circumpolar North and indeed throughout the world. Bazel Jesudason died in Resolute Bay on August 9th of last year after a brief illness. Born in India in 1941, Bazel chose to be buried in the Arctic amongst people he loved.

Mr. Speaker, Bazel was a man well-known for his love of people and acceptance of many cultures. He spoke many languages, including Inuktitut, and was a devout Christian all his life. Bazel first came to the North in 1969 to lqaluit and then Lake Harbour as a power plant operator and mechanic. In 1970, he was transferred to Grise Fiord. It was there he met his lifetime partner, Terry DiPasquale.

Bazel had travelled extensively with Inuit on the land and decided to start his own business in tourism. In 1979, Bazel left the security of the civil service and launched High Arctic International Explorer Services Ltd in Resolute.

Starting with well-organized sled trips between Resolute and Grise Fiord, the business expanded to include a hotel which was very much a home away from home under Terry's guiding hands, and package trips were added to other High Arctic destinations including the North Pole.

Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my Member's statement.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Does the Nunavut political accord require that the Government of the Northwest Territories be consulted on financial arrangements for Nunavut? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is to the honourable Premier, Don Morin. I would like to know about the status of the federal Cabinet submission on Nunavut. Has

the Government of the Northwest Territories been consulted and involved in the preparation of the federal Cabinet submission?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. With the date for the establishment of Nunavut on April 1, 1999 only about 36 months away, I'm becoming concerned that there are some very important questions, particularly about the financing of the new Nunavut government which we are not getting answers for.

As a Member of the Nunavut Caucus in the last Assembly before division, I want to be sure that there's enough funding for the Nunavut government. With Nunavut so close, we should know that the funding will be available so that the new government can do its job properly.

I was concerned when the Nunavut Leaders' Summit planned for Arviat had been cancelled this month because there was no one available to speak for the federal government to tell us what is really going on in Ottawa. I understand that under the Nunavut political accord signed by the federal government in 1992, the federal government is required to consult with the Government of the Northwest Territories and with Nunavut Tunngavik on the financial arrangements for Nunavut.

Later today, I will be asking our Premier if he has been informed of what the federal government is doing about the funding for Nunavut, and if our government has had input. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. ...not just the value of the healthy competition, but the social and cultural exchange and the opportunity to see other parts of the Territories and the North. I think this is a very good value for a small amount spent per athlete. Members should also be aware, Mr. Speaker, that our government only contributes $300,000 in direct funding to the cost. That works out to a cost for our government of only about $70 per athlete. The rest is raised privately and by volunteer efforts.

I would like to say, Mr. Speaker, that for my constituents, including the dogteam which came all the way from Arctic Bay to demonstrate the tradition going back thousands of years, I believe the Arctic Winter Games are good value for our money. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. (Translation) I wish to speak today in support of the Arctic Winter Games. (Translation ends)

...support of the Arctic Winter Games. It has recently been suggested by another honourable Member that the games are too costly. For example, mentioned was the cost of the preselection of dogteams.

Mr. Speaker, I have found that about 2,400 athletes from 52 communities participated in regional trials. They tried out for the games. In January of this year, another 1,400 athletes from 44 communities competed in the territorial trials. The 370 athletes who will go to Alaska represent only a small number of people from many small communities, like the one I represent, who have a chance to participate in the goal of participating in the games. I believe that these regional and territorial trials encourage people at the community level to compete and train all year round.

As for the cost, I would like to point out that the Arctic Winter Games are run by volunteers. Most of the budget is spent on travel. Most of the money comes from lottery revenues, registration fees paid by the athletes, fund-raising and donations. In fact, if you add up the total number of athletes in Baffin at each of the regional and territorial games themselves and divide that into the total Arctic Winter Games budget of $1.5 million, that works out to a cost of only about $360 per athlete. Most of the money is spent on regional and territorial costs. When I look at the value of sending an athlete from one of the small communities, experiencing not just the value of the healthy competition

Sorry, Mr. Speaker, can I ask for unanimous consent?

Mr. Speaker, a lot of the students of my riding of High Arctic are married. The college in Iqaluit has married accommodations. Mr. Speaker, has the Minister looked at this extra cost associated with funding of married accommodations with the transfer communities?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. For example, Mr. Speaker, students from my riding of High Arctic, if they want to attend these transferred programs, it will cost the government at least 35 per cent more in the airfare alone.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my question is to the Minister of Education. Why are we transferring programs from the Nunatta Campus when the Minister and the Arctic College board of governors know that the long-term costs of doing this outweigh the regional balance that we are trying to achieve?