Michael Miltenberger

Mr. Speaker, the detail of new money is not available to any of us yet. But I can tell the Member, as I indicated earlier in this House, that year three of the mental health and addictions plan is there on the books ready to be rolled out, pending appropriate funding being available. If there is money for addictions, the intent would be to look at that third year, as well as clearing up some of the shortfalls and inadequacies that are there and that we have identified in the first two years as we rolled out the program to do with office space and those types of things. So if there is money...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, if my memory serves me correctly, there was an arrangement in the days of old with the Department of Health and Northern Addictions Services. Then there was a move to an arrangement with federal Corrections Canada, where Somba K'e was to be used to provide services to federal inmates, and the relationship with the Department of Health and Social Services was severed. Somba K'e was used for that purpose and it wasn't sustainable, and that relationship ceased and there were other avenues explored trying to keep the facility alive. But at that point, there...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, if one was listening to the questions in this House about royalties and resource revenue sharing, this issue with the federal government, there is a whole list of issues that we have outstanding with the federal government that require resolution. We are taking proactive and aggressive or assertive approaches as we can as a government at all the tables that we are at. This is one of them. It is an issue that has national interest. It has national impact. So over the next few months, as I indicated to the Member, we hopefully will be able to show...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this is an issue that impacts two federal departments: Health Canada as well as Northern and Indian Affairs. Yes, we have staff working, sometimes it seems almost on a full-time basis negotiating with the federal government over the outstanding claims, what they’re prepared to allow and what they’re not prepared to allow. Problems with the criteria that they have, be it on the non-insured health benefits side or under the medical services for Indian and Inuit people. So, yes, we have people working on this. It’s a political issue. It’s a structural issue...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this is a very important issue and an important discussion. The reality is that, yes, there are drug addiction problems, but the alcohol abuse and the addiction problems caused by alcohol dwarf the drug problems. We are struggling to deal with the addiction issues related to alcohol. Are we trying to deal with the drug addictions? We are, as well. Are we prepared to look at that? Yes, within the fiscal limitations that we have. We have some plans already in place and if you quantify, the actual problem is going to be the first step, and then we have to...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the programs we have are geared to the issue of addictions; mainly alcohol, but drugs as well. I would suggest that on the degree and actual specific issue we’re dealing with or degree of issue we’re dealing with, that the services we have here are a starting point. If it’s a situation where a person is thoroughly addicted and is into some kind of withdrawal program as opposed to dealing with the issues that may be assisting or feeding or causing her to support her addiction -- the family issues, the other issues that may be there -- then we have to look at...

Mr. Speaker, we have group homes, we have foster homes, we have arrangements. We have two facilities of our own as I have indicated: Trail Cross and the Territorial Treatment Centre here in Yellowknife. We have arrangements with a number of facilities in Alberta and in Saskatchewan. The issue that provoked this debate was the Member’s statement and vandalism and what happens when children in the community are out of control. Their family is the first starting point.

We as a department have learned a hard lesson where if we just arbitrarily reach in -- because there’s a concern and we yank...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Member raises an issue that there is no clear answer to. If she’s talking about how do you deal with a near adult that is still 17 or 18, then I can tell you that it’s not the normal practice to apprehend. If they are involved in a drug bust, if they are from out of province and they are found doing crack cocaine in their hotel room, then I would suggest the issue that the Member raised is one that is not clearly a child welfare issue and that there are other factors. If it’s a situation where they are from out of province, then it is another...

Mr. Chairman, the issue of this funding, first let me just say this, that we have just started to see the forced growth pressures of fuel costs and we haven’t even really budgeted for it in any fixed number. But with the price of oil at $55 a barrel, before winter’s end our costs are going to be going up significantly as a government. In the case of the Inuvik facility, it was a new facility, there were estimates in terms of what it was going to cost and we had to prove what the costs were going to be to get funding. Normally funding is not given out on projections. Normally it’s based on...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we can have the debate on where we should be putting a facility if, in fact, there was agreement to build one. If the Member is suggesting that we should scrap any further development at the community level and use that money for O and M for example, I think that would take some discussion. If he's suggesting that the Legislature is prepared to vote Health and Social Services new money, of course we would greatly accept that. But the debate on should we have more institutions as opposed to community infrastructure is one debate that we've already had...