Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I'd like to talk about the Northwest Territories Metis Nation. As we all know, the Northwest Territories Metis Nation is one of the aboriginal groups in the Northwest Territories and in Canada that are negotiating with the territorial government and the federal government on contractual arrangements between the three bodies.

The Deh Cho reached its agreement that was signed in 2002 and is something of a worry for the Metis Nation. They feel the Government of the Northwest Territories is not living up to that agreement and are, in fact, reneging on that agreement, Mr. Speaker. I promised them that I would help open up dialogue between the two organizations and this is one of the ways that I plan to do so, is to raise the issue in the House. If our governments are entering into agreements with other governments, this government has to live by those agreements; bottom line, Mr. Speaker.

On September 19th, Mr. Speaker, the Powley case out of Sault Sainte Marie in Ontario, a Supreme Court decision, recognizes Metis rights as aboriginal rights with the same weight as treaty rights. That is more reason why this government has got to play a more serious role in dealing with the Metis Nation.

I congratulate the Metis people for persevering and fighting for their rights all these years. Where at one point in time they were not getting any rights at all, now we have the Supreme Court decision that says they have rights just as much as treaty Indians. My position has always been that we're all one family and that Supreme Court's decision is consistent with my philosophy here and, I believe, the philosophy of a lot of Northerners.

So I encourage the government to continually be vigilant in their dealings with all aboriginal governments, including the Northwest Territories Metis Nation. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, recognizing that this is the last session of this Assembly, I'd like to ask the Minister if he could be time sensitive. If maybe he could share with us the direction that the government gives to the bureaucracy within the next two weeks with Standing Committee on Accountability and Oversight so that we have some kind of input on the transitional document that we want to leave for the next government. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I think it's a good idea, even if it's going to be the bulk of the work by the next government. The Government of the Northwest Territories is here to represent the people of the Northwest Territories. We're losing generations of people to alcoholism and other social ails. I'd like to ask the Minister if he would involve the Standing Committee on Accountability and Oversight in giving direction to the bureaucracy to start a process that will look at diversifying the economy of the Northwest Territories.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this government has been in the Northwest Territories for 30 plus years. I'm surprised that a study of this nature has never been done since economy and unemployment is very important to today's style of living. Mr. Speaker, I'd like to ask the Minister if he would direct his government or the Government of the Northwest Territories and staff to start a process to see what kind of impact diversifying the economy of the Northwest Territories to devolution of jobs to the communities would have on the economy of the Northwest Territories and the social level of the economy of the Northwest Territories. Socio-economics.

Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my question is a follow-up to my Member's statement. It's dealing with Finance, so I'll ask the Minister of Finance. Mr. Speaker, it's fitting that my colleague, Mr. Braden, has asked the questions on alcoholism recognizing that alcoholism is a symptom. Unemployment is one of the causes. So I'd like to ask the Minister of Finance if the Government of the Northwest Territories ever did any kind of study to see what kind of effect diversifying the economy of the Northwest Territories by devolving Government of the Northwest Territories positions into all 33 communities of the Northwest Territories, what kind of effect would that have on the economy? Whether positive or negative. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. I would like to recognize my constituency assistant, Ms. Caroline Sanderson and also the Tlicho people who were here in the House, especially my great-uncle Johnny Michel.

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Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, let me just start by saying that it is good to be back in the House. I would like to be one of the first ones to thank you for your four years in that seat and making sure that good orderly discussion in the House occurs. It's going to be hard to find somebody to fill that seat as comfortably as you have, Mr. Speaker. Thank you very much.

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Mr. Speaker, I would like to speak today on unemployment. In the Northwest Territories, we need to diversify the economy. The Government of the Northwest Territories is the only organization in the Northwest Territories that could help diversify economy in the Northwest Territories.

Right now we have 33 communities. Twenty-seven of them are non-tax based. Twenty-seven communities hardly have any government employees. Mr. Speaker, if you sit back and look at the big picture, what we see are regional centres having 90 percent of government employees administering a welfare state. It doesn't make any sense whatsoever where people in five communities make all the money while their tax dollars go to income support and other social programs because there is no employment in the communities. In this day and age of communications why is it policy people, analysts, are all in regional centres? Why can't we diversify the economy of the Northwest Territories so that we could say that the Northwest Territories is in every community and every community belongs to the Northwest Territories' government? We can't say that now.

I can't see why we continually go down the same path saying the economy scales say you can't put a position in there because it is just going to cost the taxpayers too many dollars. At the end of the day, Mr. Speaker, it is the taxpayers' dollars that are keeping the people on welfare, not even welfare. You call it income support or employment support. What about the employment in the communities? If we don't put the jobs there, then there is no employment besides short-term employment that does not lead to long-lasting employment that a person could go to a bank with.

Mr. Speaker, this next couple of weeks I will be speaking on this issue, I will be asking appropriate Ministers why we don't diversify our economy to diversify employment in the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my constituents of Lutselk'e and Fort Resolution have come to the Department of Justice on more than one occasion in the past years to look at restorative justice, as the Minister put it, in the form of a camp where the youth and elders could be placed out there so there is a cultural component and there is a back-to-the-land component. The teaching of the ways of life of the aboriginal people could be part of the restorative process. I would like to ask the Minister if he can commit his department to look at that seriously over the summer and maybe come back with an option at the next session? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate that answer, even though it is pretty vague. Mr. Speaker, we are providing $20,000 to communities for part-time justice coordinators. That is just another example of how we have devolved responsibilities and under funded them. Can I ask the Minister if he can be a little bit more specific when dealing with the sentencing of youth for minor crimes in communities? There is lots of support from committees, but how about for the staff and the youth for rehabilitation and for staff safety and the work environment? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.