I was very pleased to see, in the latest federal budget, that they have committed to base-plus funding. This is an issue that has affected us in the north, not only in the Northwest Territories but in all three northern territories. It's been a continuous requirement to have per capita funding. For example, on the infrastructure funding, because we have a very small population, to do it on a per capita basis we might get a couple hundred thousand dollars to build roads. It might allow us to build maybe half a kilometre of road with that approach. Similarly, with health care almost every program we deliver is on a per capita basis. We get a very minimal amount of funding, although we're in the highest-cost environment in Canada.
Base-plus allows us to deal with specific issues. It allows us to build a road, if needed. It certainly allows us to have a health care system on par.... I wouldn't say it's on par now with the rest of Canada, but it certainly allows us to have a health care system where people can access health services even in some of the smaller communities. It also allows our children to have an education so that they can aspire to whatever they would like to aspire to.
We still have a lot of social issues. We spend 70% of our budget on social programs, and we still have significant issues with suicide. We still need to spend a lot more on mental health, obviously.