Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, I rise again today on the foot of yesterday’s Member’s statement. I still have serious concerns with the EDAP program. Madam Speaker, I want to firmly ensure that people of the Northwest Territories know that I am absolutely proud that this government is putting people in the North into home ownership, and I think that’s the number one issue that needs to come forward here so people know that it’s important for me.

However, Madam Speaker, I don’t think it’s fair that we continue to give one family $72,000 to ensure that that one family gets into a housing situation where, as I said yesterday, we could have helped three families with approximately $24,000. That would have been a fair and reasonable down payment, but no, Madam Speaker, we have to offer payments of over $50,000, $60,000 to one family. But it doesn’t stop there. We gave one family $109,000 for construction costs. In my mind, that could have helped five families very reasonably in our Yellowknife area. I think that’s totally out of touch with what’s considered fair and reasonable, and I need this Minister to provide details and maybe start looking into caps of what is considered reasonable assistance. That’s outrageous. I think in the phrase EDAP we should get rid of the D and A and call it expanded payment program. It’s not a downpayment; it’s almost buying that person a house.

Madam Speaker, that is not fair to the families that didn’t get their applications approved and that’s why I’m here today, is because there were families that didn’t get approved. The pot dried up because we only decided to help 14 families last budget year instead of who knows how many more we could have put into home ownership.

Madam Speaker, it’s about helping the families, not one family. But the families we turned away we have to remember are still trapped in those low income support housing and we could do more. This government needs to look at what’s considered a reasonable cap and reasonable assistance. As I said yesterday, anything over $50,000 is just out of touch and, as far as I’m concerned, giving one family $109,000 for construction costs is completely unreasonable. So I’m just going to say again today that just ain’t right. Thank you, Madam Speaker.