Floyd Roland

Thank you, Madam Chair. There are four communities that we are directly involved with in the facilities maintenance end. We also do have some involvement in the other communities depending on the level of assistance required from communities. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, without knowing if we are getting close to an agreement stage, I couldn’t tell you if we would benefit $1 million more, or $50 million more. We just know that the existing exercise is costing us $50 million a year ongoing if it doesn’t get fixed. We feel we have a good example that it is not working properly, and feel that the federal Department of Finance has recognized that. That is why he has agreed to forego the rebasing exercise for 2004-05. If I stood here today and said if it is $20 million, let’s match that in reductions. If it doesn’t happen...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I know when I go south I think northern Canada is our territory, but as well we know when we meet with our federal colleagues they have northern jurisdictions as well. So it is difficult to pinpoint that, and as I said, we will have to wait to see what criteria is attached in those dollars and how they roll out in the North. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would be glad to arrange with Members of this House meetings and trips into their communities to try to lay out what we have put in place, to explain the reasons why. There is a lot happening in this area and we need to get that across to Members and their constituents. When we took office and I took on this responsibility, it wasn’t my intention and a target that I would automatically go after taxes of our own people in the Northwest Territories.

The unfortunate reality is we have to come up with some new revenue to maintain the existing level of...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Member is correct in a sense of how those royalty revenues would impact on transfers. The federal government would use that as an opportunity to drop the transfer payments, but at the same time, what we are trying to negotiate is a better deal where we would get to keep a larger portion before the federal government takes back from our transfers. So an actual incentive. Right now there is very little incentive to do any development in the Northwest Territories for, number one, any new revenues we get, we get a drop in transfer payments. That...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Tlicho agreement, number one, would have to be signed off and agreed to with the federal government. Once that is done, a number of things would happen and we are working already to ensure that when that timeline comes upon us we have agreements in place. There are discussions now on tax arrangements. Part of what would happen, and the scenario we see, is that we would…The federal government is involved in these discussions as giving tax room to the self-government group. Once they have that tax room from a GNWT perspective, we would see...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in the area of our tax bases, one thing, as I stated, is that we are in negotiations and discussions with aboriginal groups that are on the verge of having self-governments established in their jurisdictions. We are also discussing our tax-sharing arrangements and seeing how far we can do that. As a government, we are interested in hearing from the groups and Members of this Assembly to try and enhance our situation. A form of that can be tax incentives. If we can use tax incentives to increase and stimulate investment in the Northwest Territories that’s...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my understanding from the work done on the federal budget is that $3.5 billion is over a 10-year period. Approximately 60 percent of that has been identified for the Northwest Territories. It will flow through the federal government. It is for the North. Let me correct that. It is for all of the North. So the Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut are included in that, it’s not only for the Northwest Territories. We have, however, been highlighted in some of the detail, that whatever comes to the Northwest Territories will go towards the Giant Mine...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, taking the example the federal government has set, this government intends to be prudent with the money that we do have and not going forward with the rebasing exercise gives us a $50 million impact for the 2004-2005 year and will be put towards our deficit. That’s our intention with that money. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I guess first and foremost would be how the federal budget has impacted us positively and we can pass that on to our constituents. Number one, most critical is that I will not have to come back in the June session with a negative $10 million supp which would mean cuts to programs.

---Applause

Mr. Speaker, that's the most critical and most important this year.

Going forward on the rest of the federal initiative, the money that they have identified for immunization will help our Department of Health and Social Services ensure that they have this money and that they will be...