Bob McLeod

I wouldn’t call the diamond division as being gutted. We still have our marketing side of the Diamond Program and the responsibility for the diamonds was factored into our mineral section. So we have recently focussed more of the diamond file to an associate director position. We do have a proposed revised diamond policy, and our expectation is that we would brief standing committees very shortly, with a view to coming forward and having the policy approved once we have received the input of the committees. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Certainly Canada is a free country and people can move to where they want to live. I think the diamond cutting family, if I could call it that, has fit in very well into Yellowknife and is a very important part of the community. So I would hate to see that happen. But I think on our part the best way to keep these people in Yellowknife is to have a strong secondary diamond manufacturing and polishing industry, and I think the best way is to ensure that 100 percent of our NWT diamond allocation is bought and cut and polished here in the Northwest Territories and that’s what we are working...

There are quite a number of possibilities not only for the Sahtu region, but with regard to the Sahtu. I guess the immediate one that comes to mind is the conversion to natural gas that would reduce the cost of living. Secondly, you’d be looking at hydro, also mini-hydro, hydrokinetics that could work under the ice and certainly cogeneration and, of course, biomass, which would be a significant form of energy as well. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I don’t have the exact numbers, but I think the first study was $50,000, and I expect the second one to update the original study was probably in the neighbourhood of $25,000.

Mr. Speaker, since the Joint Review Panel hearings concluded almost two years ago, preparations have been made to ensure that the Government of the Northwest Territories has all the necessary tools to participate and represent the best interests of Northerners and the regulatory process of this highly anticipated project.

We are nearing the end of the environmental assessment review process. The Joint Review Panel will be releasing its report and recommendations in two short months.

As we speak, much work has been underway to get ready for the release of this report. A Joint Review Panel review...

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document titled NWT Business Development and Investment Corporation Annual Report 2007-2008. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I don’t want to get too far ahead of myself, but I think the main thing we want to do right now is we want to make sure that all of the factories are operating. Diamonds have been produced in the Northwest Territories for 10 years now. We have learned a lot over the 10 years and we think that we can find ways in working with the manufacturers so that their operations can become more effective and efficient, and, hopefully, we expect that they will become more feasible. So we feel that there are things we can improve upon. We can become more effective so we can move faster. We can have a little...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think I heard two questions there. I think we have no problem with the Canadian diamond industry growing. We think it’s to the benefit of the Northwest Territories, and certainly with a strong diamond sector, we can change the definition of a Canadian diamond, which will be to our benefit. We don’t believe that we are falling behind, but there are some challenges.

Everybody knows that it’s much more difficult and more costly to operate up here in the Northwest Territories. Secondly, the provinces where these operations are being conducted, Ontario, Saskatchewan, they...

If you are an employee earning leave credits for the amount of time that you worked and the amount of usage that you have, you are entitled to so much sick leave. If you use more than you are entitled to, then you have to enter into other arrangements, either leave without pay or you go on disability. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I didn’t say that. I just said that anybody that applies for medical leave, there are some requirements. If it’s for more than three days, you have to get a medical certificate, and Human Resources or managers don’t have the medical skills to be able to determine whether it’s valid or not. So generally if it’s for a longer term, it has to be vetted through our medical process. I think it’s involved with Stanton Hospital. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.