Daniel MacIsaac
Northern News Services

NNSL (Apr 23/99) - Reaction to the 1999-2000 territorial budget has been generally favourable but also fatalistic.

Speaking after a meeting of the Yellowknife Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday, president Gord Van Tighem said members were pleased with the budget and had no major criticisms.

"They were still able to come up with a balanced type of budget, but probably there are more longer-term concerns," he said, "and the point is we have to push the government to get more money out of the federal government."

Indeed, changing the territory's fiscal relationship with Ottawa and gaining a greater share of resource revenues was the major point of Finance Minister Charles Dent's budget speech Monday. The minister announced that the remainder of the government's surplus, $34 million, had been used to balance the new, $742-million budget.

Van Tighem said convincing Ottawa to change the revenue-sharing formula is not unrealistic. He said without a surplus next year, the government faces a deficit budget -- a situation outlawed by the government just two years ago.

"That's the bargaining chip, I guess," he said.

Mayor Dave Lovell was less optimistic.

"I wouldn't count my chickens before they're hatched," he said.

Lovell said Ron Irwin, former federal minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, had said he wouldn't consider transferring additional revenue unless all parties -- including aboriginal groups -- agree. Lovell said Premier Jim Antoine has told him he's received only "varying degrees of enthusiasm" from aboriginal groups on the subject.

Lovell said in general the budget contained no surprises except for the decision to use up the surplus.

"It's not a wonderful budget, but it couldn't be," he said, "though I am surprised they'll be spending off the surplus, because they don't really know what we'll do next year unless they do something drastic."

Lovell said with approximately 70 per cent of the budget going toward education and health care, he didn't see where future cutbacks might be made.

"I can't see making cuts in expenditures," he said. "If anything, we should be spending more than less."

Lovell said he was unconvinced by Dent's pronouncement that revenue might be generated from unexploited natural gas and oil reserves.

Yellowknife North MLA Roy Erasmus reacted positively to the budget in the assembly on Tuesday. But like both Van Tighem and Lovell, he stressed the need for the government to move quickly on preparing for next year -- by negotiating for greater resource control or increased royalties.

"If we don't do that it will mean a decrease in our programs and services," he said. "I do not think that anybody wants that."