Glen Abernethy

Nothing is being downloaded, because nothing has changed. The fact is, the communities have had this responsibility and they have actively pursued it in different communities. There is fundraising that can be done. Communities have always taken this action. It’s not being downloaded, because it has always been the responsibility of the community. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Madam Chair. The statutory training is continually adjusted based on feedback from the different participants, but I hear the Member and I support the recommendation 21. The new action plan will include an evaluation of the Statutory Training Program and it will be updated accordingly.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There’s no question that handi-vans provide an essential service for persons with disabilities; however, the provision for transportation services for people with disabilities is beyond the core mandate of the Department of Health and Social Services. I have had an opportunity to share the concerns that have been raised by the Member and the public with the Minister of MACA, and at present there is no GNWT funding available to municipalities for transportation services. The funding that they do receive from Municipal and Community Affairs is for water and sewer...

Thank you, Madam Chair. We obviously agree with this recommendation given that I’ve already indicated we intend to have this manual completed by October, and I agree with the Member’s comments as well.

It would actually take a change to policy, we believe, at this time, but as I indicated, we need to make sure that any changes to policy or residency won’t affect the TFF and ultimately affect the finances that come to the Territories as a whole. From the perspective of Health and Social Services, it’s a policy change, but I’ll be able to confirm if it will affect anything else as we conduct a review and come back to committee and Cabinet.

Thank you, Madam Chair. These discussions are actually underway with the Child Welfare League of Canada to determine whether the league would be in a position to initiate this assessment and help us in the fall of this year, so we agree this information is necessary and important.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Since I’ve become the Minister of Health and Social Services, I’ve actually had a number of constituents and other residents raise this particular issue with me, and I’ve already directed the department to begin the analysis. First, what are other jurisdictions doing, how many have moved from the 183 days to 153 days. But more importantly than just the number, how many of those are for out of province and how many of those for out of country. I’ve also asked the department to do a cost analysis on what this could bring or limit the Northwest Territories.

Given that we...

Thank you, Madam Chair. Two things. I’m a little confused. I think this is recommendation 15 from your report, not recommendation 14. The recommendation 15 goes right in, and for the record, we agree with recommendation 15 as it relates to recommendation 13. We were talking about modifying what’s provided in recommendation 13 and included in recommendation 15 so the information the Members are looking for is there. It’s just much more practical to do one report as opposed to multiple reports.

Thank you, Madam Chair. With respect to recommendation number 12, I’d be happy to discuss with the Standing Committee on Social Programs the appropriate format and time in providing updates on a regular basis. I will say that it may not always be appropriate to forward some of these internal work plans, depending on the level of detail about staff and clients. Some of the work plans may include client-specific information, so it may not be appropriate to provide those as we may need releases and other pieces of information. But I’m happy to have further discussion with the Standing Committee...

Thank you, Madam Chair. This recommendation will be addressed in the amendments to the act. Drafting is underway and is expected to take about 12 months, with introduction of the amending bill in the spring of 2015. As outlined in the legislative proposal, the amendment will include enhancing services offered to youth, including youth protection orders, housing supports under support service agreements and defining youth under the act. It will also include extending support services to youth who are in permanent care until they reach the age of 23 and requiring the development of a written...