Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions today are to the Premier about the socio-economic impact fund that the federal government had promised to corridor communities along the Mackenzie gas project. In a letter that was addressed to our Premier from the Yellowknives Dene First Nation about the Akaitcho territory, which I will be tabling in the House later. Mr. Speaker, I know the territorial government did offer the non-corridor communities, I think two years ago, about $30,000 per community to do some socio-economic impact assessments in these communities. Even though I didn't really feel that the $30,000 was really near enough to do any kind of socio-economic work in any communities, especially to do a comprehensive report which is required for the Mackenzie gas project, I want to ask if this government was aware while the socio-economic funding negotiations were going on, why this government didn't advocate for all the regions to be covered under this impact fund accordingly. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, just today I want to use my Member's statement to talk about the federal government socio-economic impact funding of $500 million, which does not include the Akaitcho territory or the Tlicho territory. Mr. Speaker, in the socio-economic baseline study, the area, and I quote, in the study it says "includes all the communities in the NWT in which the direct or indirect effects of gas production and pipeline construction may affect permanent residents." Also, Mr. Speaker, this study even included north-western Alberta. Mr. Speaker, the exclusion of the Akaitcho territory and the Tlicho territory in the ability to access this large funding source from the federal government is just another blatant display of disrespect and disassociation of fairness and unity towards many northerners by the federal government and Mackenzie gas proponents, and especially by this government, the government of our people, for not being the first ones to raise the red flag on this type of injustice.

We have all heard many times in this House and many other forums that on this Mackenzie gas project that this ripple effect of such a massive development will be felt by all communities in the NWT and others beyond our borders, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, although the Mackenzie gas development impacts may vary in severity depending on where you're living, does not exclude the fact that this socio-economic impact funding should be distributed amongst all communities in the NWT. Implore that this government should negotiate a similar socio-economic impact fund for communities that were left out of this agreement and raise the seriousness to the federal government of this issue and let them know that we cannot, and will not, take this kind of treatment lying down. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I think probably this is one department that will get more praise than criticism, the only department in this whole process here that will probably be on the flipside of the coin here for once. I just wanted to say that I really have to commend the Legislative Assembly. I know I did make some references in the past about the lack of affirmative action here in the Legislative Assembly and I really have to commend the office of the Clerk and the Legislative Assembly for really forging ahead and getting some action done on the affirmative action side. I definitely have to commend them on that. They are definitely a model for all government departments, that it is doable and even at the highest House of the NWT. I think the rest of the government departments should really give them a lot of praise for carrying out that initiative in such short notice.

The APTN and our own TV channel option was always discussed here with all the Members. I was sad to see that the APTN channel went because a lot of the small communities really relied heavily on it. I still get a lot of feedback now from a lot of the smaller communities. You would be really surprised to know that there, in the small communities, they stay up until past midnight just to watch the sessions here and take part in what's going on in government. So even though it is at the wee hours of the evening, I think the tuning in of the Legislative Assembly is still really on the high priority list of a lot of people here in the NWT, especially out in the remote centres.

With regard to the technology side of things, I know there are definitely pros and cons to more technology here in the House, but I think if we keep it good and simple and put more emphasis into what actually gets discussed here as opposed to what gets distributed, I think that is the important thing to come to grips with. I was never really in favour of bringing in too much technology into the House in the first place because of distractions. But the door is still open for it anyway, so I would encourage the office of the Clerk to forge ahead and see how we can improve in that area. There's always improvement, undoubtedly; but I think what we've done so far is leaps and bounds anyway. That's all I have to say. Thank you very much.

---Applause

Well, that's fine. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I understand there's wage subsidies, but I more or less want to point toward or lean towards more of a human resource support network, I guess, out there that a lot of private businesses, a lot of local boards and agencies, LHOs for instance, would love to take on apprentices. They can scrape up dollars, Human Resources, Education, Culture and Employment. But just putting together the forms and the filing every month, the reporting that's required even for the Department of Education, Human Resources Canada, workers' compensation. There's a whole list of reporting requirements for an apprentice, and getting them into school, the logistics that's all involved and stuff like that. There are no support mechanisms out there. It's just more or less you apply to us, we'll subsidize you, you do everything. A lot of private businesses, LHOs included, don't have the time or the energy to put that much effort into it and basically it just goes by the wayside. So I'm just more or less looking for more than just dollars and cents, I guess, especially on the human resource side. How can they offer some kind of a contact person or a network where they can access information and assistance to help them move apprentices through their system? Is there anything like that in the Human Resources department?

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I just have a question and it's probably along the same lines as what Mr. Braden was talking about, but more in reference to tradespeople in the NWT. I know that many of our tradespeople that get certified and out of the trades here in the NWT are a result of not the government pushing them through the trades schools, but more private companies or maybe they are LHOs who devote a lot of time and energy and don't receive any government funding even on the LHO level to do any sort of training initiatives for even administration, let alone apprentices. Only to have the government recruit them after they have reached their certification and then they go and work for the government after they are done, for a better wage than what a private company or even an LHO or local board can afford with the budgets that they have.

I am not sure how to address through Human Resources, but that kind of a retention issue to me is serious at the local level, because I have LHOs now that really don't want to devote any time and energy into hiring apprentices and pushing them through the four years in school all the time. It's a lot of work to keep track of their hours and filing it with Human Resources Canada. This alleviates a lot of time for the Government of the NWT. At the end of the day when they recruit them, they have saved all that recruitment time and money and it leaves the LHOs just hanging there with nobody to handle the trades or the businesses that are just left empty handed with no compensation package or training remuneration package. I am not sure how to address that kind of human resource strategy, but to me it doesn't seem like it is the

way it should be going. We should encourage, definitely, local businesses and private industry to train and take on apprentices in the trades area, but we can't just turn around and recruit them for the government's use, or under use is what I like to call it.

I just want to ask the Minister if the Human Resources department with this labour relations department, I guess or maybe the organizational development department would have any models or any consideration for how they can provide training dollars to local businesses either through a remuneration package or compensation package or a training package. Even at the LHO level, there is not one nickel of training you can get out of the government for apprentices. Have they put any thought into how they can...I don't want to downplay the whole issue of training and apprentices. I know it's a big initiative now with the GNWT again, but how can they work with local boards and agencies, even DEAs, to maybe devolve some resources, money, human resource expertise into how they can try to retain those people that they train? How can we share those resources? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I communicate with the council quite regularly and I raise all these issues and I am always getting the same answer, that the department is getting saying we are working on it. Really, you know, Mr. Speaker, nothing is happening. I don't mind the fact that if somebody from outside, like this government...The government has paid for this stuff, Mr. Speaker. It's coming out of their pockets. It's coming out of taxpayers' pockets to pay for equipment like this and I don't see why they wouldn't have any kind of authority or they would feel guilty if they went in there and told them we bought this $90,000 equipment, why is it sitting under snow for three years? That's all I am asking the government to do. Maybe just a little push at the community council level during their council meetings and say it's great to talk about in a meeting, but actions speak louder than words. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Is there any likelihood that we can revisit a co-management agreement or some kind of a working relationship which the government...They are providing a lot of funding for this community infrastructure and they are not seeing anything come to fruition at all. So since we don't have a co-management agreement, can the government go into the community, instruct the SAO to start moving on these things and if she needs assistance from the municipal government from the South Slave region, then they should request it. The South Slave region should be in there on a weekly or monthly basis. Can the Minister instruct his department to make regular visits in there to report progress? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions today are for the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, the Honourable Mike McLeod. I just want to raise the issue I have raised in the House several times on the co-management agreement that we've signed with the Deninu Community Council and Municipal and Community Affairs with respect to management of community issues. I just don't feel that the government is pulling their weight in that agreement. By that, I mean there are several issues in the community that have been dragging on for many years. There are many projects that are going uncompleted or they are just not starting. One of the main reasons of why we got into this co-management agreement was for this government to assist them in moving along on things of this nature. Some of those things included the youth centre, Mr. Speaker, was approved over a year and a half ago now and the government hasn't really received anything on that. The playground equipment, $9,000 worth of playground equipment that has been sitting under snow for the last two and a half years, three years almost, without being put up at the school. I think that if the community council wants to do all these things but just is not doing it, I want the government to go in there and say you guys have to get it done; if you aren't going to do it, we are going to do it. That is part of the co-management agreement. Can the Minister instruct his department to do that? Thank you.