Yellowknife (Feb 19/03) - Premier Stephen Kakfwi hopes a meeting today at 24 Sussex Drive will serve up a new deal for Northern health funding.

Premier Kakfwi: Hopes to make a new deal - NNSL Photo

The premier flew to Ottawa Sunday where he joined Nunavut Premier Paul Okalik. They went to the capital in a last-ditch attempt to get Prime Minister Jean Chretien to commit to more health-care dollars for the North before Finance Minister John Manley presented the federal budget.

Two weeks ago, Kakfwi, Okalik and Yukon Premier Dennis Fentie rejected a proposed federal health funding accord that tied cash to population.

Under the per capita funding proposal, the three territories would have shared $38 million over three years.

It appears the premiers' tenacity may have paid off. Kakfwi said he was invited to meet with Chretien, Okalik and Fentie to discuss the North's health-care needs at the prime minister's residence Thursday at 9 a.m.

"We're looking forward to receiving an offer from him," Kakfwi said Monday. He noted that it was Western Arctic MP Ethel Blondin-Andrew who set up the meeting.

After receiving a standing ovation from Liberal MPs in the House of Commons on Monday, Kakfwi believes Chretien has had a change of heart.

"We think that it's going to happen, that there's going to be a reasonable proposal made by the prime minister, and we'll be there to receive it," said Kakfwi.

The premier said he and his territorial counterparts would like to see a base fund of $20 million for each territory per year on top of funding they would receive under the health accord -- about another $5 million a year for the NWT.

If an agreement is reached tomorrow, the premiers will likely end their holdout and sign the accord. If not, they will continue to pressure Ottawa for more money.

"Surely, the prime minister of this country is not going to politic with the health needs of Canadians in the Northern territories," said Kakfwi.

Word of the meeting was welcomed in the legislature.

"I hope this one has a different outcome because we have the other premiers involved," said Inuvik Book Lake MP Floyd Roland.

Frame Lake MLA Charles Dent said he would have preferred the meeting was held before the federal budget was released on Tuesday.

"I think it's positive we have the meeting. All we've got to do is hope we've got everybody down there listening to us, particularly in the PM's office."