Caroline Cochrane

The competition is now open. It's going across Canada. It closes, I believe, at the end of this month. At that point, we will be conducting the interview process, and we are presuming that person will be hired by the end of this calendar year.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have made a commitment and I will stand by my commitment that I am not willing to let Aurora College stay status quo. There are issues that need to be addressed within our post-secondary education, and my commitment is to making sure that we have the best quality post-secondary and secondary and elementary education for our students as possible.

I cannot really identify who will be left in that social work program this time next year. That is an operational decision that will be made by the associate deputy minister for post-secondary renewal when they, that person, assumes their position.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. On my right is Mr. Andy Bevan, the assistant deputy minister for Labour and Income Security with the Department of Education, Culture and Employment. On my left is Ms. Christina Brownlee, the legislative counsel with the Department of Justice. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So, yes, once the associate deputy minister for post-secondary renewal is in place, he, she, that person will be responsible for utilizing both the Aurora College foundational review and the internal review on the social work program that was done by the college.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I am pleased to be here today to introduce Bill 17, An Act to Amend the Student Financial Assistance Act. I'd like to thank the Standing Committee on Social Development for their review.

This bill seeks to extend the term of Student Financial Assistance Appeal Board members from two years to up to four years. It also seeks to amend the qualifications for the post-secondary student representative on the appeal board to include individuals who have been a post-secondary student within five years of their appointment.

This bill will allow board members to establish continuity...

Yes, thank you, Mr. Chair.

Yes, like I said many times, as soon as that person is in place, the first priority of all the evaluations is to be the social work program and the degree in education; that will be a priority. So, yes, that evaluation had better happen in the life of this Assembly. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

What I'm hoping will be left when this is done is that we will keep the strengths that are offered within the social work program currently and also address the weaknesses that have been identified in both reports.

I would be shocked if we did not fill the position. We have had applicants from across Canada apply, and I have even gotten three that came across my desk as a Minister, so I am not even sure why that would not happen, that it would not be done.

As the Member had spoken before, I do not know if it was a hockey puck or a football, but this is not a game, Mr. Speaker. This is about building a strong foundation. We need to do things in proper time. We need strong leadership to guide this forward. It is not appropriate that a Minister who does not have the expertise in bringing forward post...