Wendy Bisaro

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The 2011-2012 report of the NWT Information and Privacy Commissioner was recently tabled in the House, and I was particularly struck by the references within the report to complaints about the lack of privacy of our medical records. Not a new problem, as many people know. Only this time the problem was not with faxed records but with electronic medical records.

The Information and Privacy Commissioner reported on her very comprehensive investigation of a complaint about access to electronic medical records by health authority staff, a situation which was especially...

Thanks to the Minister. I guess I’m having trouble. The Minister of Health and Social Services is starting to sound like Minister Miltenberger and talking about the fullness of time.

Committee will have to wait with bated breath for this information, which may or may not come in the fall, and I do hope that it does.

A number of jurisdictions within Canada do or are currently now… They’ve either gone through a review or they are currently going through a review of health, of health information acts.

I’d like to know from the Minister whether the work that we are doing on our Health Information...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As the seconder of the motion and deputy chair of the Standing Committee on Government Operations, I would like to speak briefly about committee’s reason for bringing this forward. As my colleague Mr. Nadli has mentioned, the need for a territorial ombudsman has been discussed in this House for many years and I have been pushing it over the last few years that I’ve been here.

I’m sure that all of us believe in commonly accepted principles of administrative fairness, and these include:

the right to be treated with respect and dignity;

the right to speak on your own behalf...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I, too, rise in support of this motion. I would like to thank the mover and seconder of the motion for bringing it forward. I feel that we have long needed an improvement in the provisions across the NWT for emergency services on our highways. We have been making do and we’ve been doing things a bit piecemeal. We have provided a small amount of money but it’s not nearly enough, and it’s time we look seriously at what is required and put in place a system that is going to provide the services that are required.

I’ve advocated in this House many times since I’ve been here...

Another problem that I have encountered, my constituents have encountered and I hear about it by-the-by, is the issue of paperwork and files that are lost or misplaced or incomplete. It’s a huge issue. Clients regularly have all their paperwork in hand, they hand it in, and then they get a call a few days or a week later saying that their paperwork is not complete. I’d like to know from the Minister if he can advise whether or not this is a problem with the software that the department uses. Is it a technical issue, is it a lack of processes for the client service officers that they don’t...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are addressed to the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment and I’d like to follow up on my Member’s statement and ask a few questions about the Auditor General’s report and the report from the Auditor General on Income Security Programs at ECE. One of the things that was identified in the Auditor General’s report was a lack of training for staff. It was identified that this lack of training contributed to part of the problems that were identified within the Auditor General’s report.

I would like to first ask the Minister what exists now in...

My constituent went on to say: Since ECE has taken over, that department has become the enforcer and the two departments, Health and Social Services and Education, Culture and Employment, do not talk to each other. They are in conflicting roles.

The Auditor General’s report didn’t tell me anything I didn’t already know but it does quantify the deficiencies for MLAs, the department and the public. Now as the department formulates its action plan in response to the Auditor General’s report, I hope that the department has the blinders off, and I hope they remain objective and honest about their...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There’s absolutely no question that devolution and its implementation is one of the most important political developments in the history of the NWT. I believe that all residents should be able to be a part of it. We have yet to see any consultation and public engagement plan, as mentioned by Mr. Bromley. As the expression goes, talk is cheap and that’s all we have at the moment. I find that it’s not a surprise and it’s no wonder that people are skeptical about their ability to have input into this Final Devolution Agreement and implementation.

As I said in my statement...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thanks to the Minister. I understand that he doesn’t want to prejudge what may come from the department. I know the staff within the department do their best. I would like them to know that I am not criticizing when I ask these questions. I am looking for solutions to solve the problems. I do believe that there is a great deal of knowledge and experience within the staff of the department on the programs that they run and I’d like to know if the Minister, in looking at the Auditor General’s report, will tap into that knowledge and that experience and the valuable...

Thanks for your indulgence, Mr. Speaker. I thank the Minister, as well, for his answer. One of the things I have understood in my dealings with constituents who have come to me with difficulties and with concerns with income security programs, is that they feel that the staff of the department are handling way too much work. There is not enough staff to handle the work and they have difficulty keeping staff. I’d like to ask the Minister why, if he can advise why, if he has any understanding why the department is consistently short-staffed on both front-line and supervisory positions on a...