Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to provide my colleagues with an update on the status of the joint work being undertaken by the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs and the Department of Health and Social Services on ground ambulance and highway rescue services.

Over the past several years, community governments and other stakeholders have raised concerns about the lack of a comprehensive, coordinated system of ground ambulance and highway rescue services in the Northwest Territories, and about the need for clarity with regard to service levels, responsibility for service delivery and associated funding.

Municipal and Community Affairs and Health and Social Services are working together to address this matter through a two-staged approach. This process will address short and long-term issues. In the short term, the departments are providing funding to address immediate pressures experienced by some community governments in the provision of these services. One-time funding of $200,000 is available on an application basis for communities who provide these services. Six out of seven eligible community governments applied for assistance by the deadline of August 1, 2007.

MACA and Health and Social Services are jointly reviewing the applications received and funding is anticipated to flow to community governments by the end of August 2007.

MACA and Health and Social Services are also in the process of developing a work plan to achieve the long-term goal of a policy framework where the GNWT legislates and delivers ground ambulance and highway rescue service. This work plan includes several aspects including the development of a service levels model that outlines appropriate service levels depending on the community, the development of an appropriate funding framework, and, eventually, programming that is consistent with the regulatory service levels and funding framework.

The departments anticipate that it may take some time to develop the required policy and legislative framework, given the need for data collection and to undertake the required research as well as to gather baseline data. In the interim, MACA and HSS are committed to continuing to consult with effected stakeholders as required, in order to achieve a comprehensive, coordinated system of ground ambulance and highway rescue services in the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause