Wendy Bisaro

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are addressed to the Minister of Health and Social Services. I want to ask some questions related to housing for physically and mentally challenged residents in the NWT. In general, we talk about assisted living housing for our persons with disabilities and those that have mental challenges. We have a number of different types of housing, I know that, and we have different models of accommodation, but I’d like to ask the Minister whether or not her department, or the government in general, has a policy that addresses this particular housing need...

Thanks to the Minister. Those are the two programs that I was aware of. I guess I would like to ask the Minister, she mentions O and M funding for various NGOs, but the Small Communities Homeless Fund and the other, I think it is Homelessness Assistance Fund or something, they don’t really apply to larger communities, so I would like to ask the Minister if there is any money in the 2011-2012 budget that can assist homelessness programs and needs within the larger communities, regional centres and the city of Yellowknife. Thank you.

Mr. Chairman, thanks for the answer. I wanted to go back just quickly to the Joe Greenland Centre staffing. The documentation that we received, I know it is from the NWT Housing Corporation and Health and Social Services. A little while ago we received a briefing note which indicated that two home support workers would probably be hired. The Minister mentioned up to two home support workers at one point and then a little later on in her remarks she stated hiring of one home support worker, so could I get a clarification as to how many staff are being hired for the renovated portion of Joe...

Obviously things change over months. The business plan stated that the review had been completed, but there we are. I certainly look forward to the review when it’s done. I would hope that the review would come with some sort of an action plan at the time that we get it.

I wanted to also ask the Minister about the staffing for the Joe Greenland Centre. I know the purpose of that facility is changing. It will be seniors housing. Yes, I guess kind of home care assisted housing to a certain extent. There are any number of employees there who I gather will not be able to be employed. My question...

Thanks to the Minister. I totally understand that there are resources that are required. I guess I’m trying to understand why the business plan in September indicated that resources would be available in budget year 2011-2012 to establish five committees and now that money seems to have disappeared.

I also want to mention, and I believe it’s in the Child and Family Services Act review report, that one size does not fit all in terms of child and family service committees and we emphasized in the report that there needs to be flexibility in how these committees are established. In some...

Thanks, Mr. Speaker, and thanks to the Minister for that passionate response. I was not suggesting that there was not will to accommodate these people. I’m asking the Minister to look to the future and to try to envision a different method of accommodating people who need assisted living, and that means supervision for some of those. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, no question.

Mr. Speaker, thanks to the Minister for telling me what I already know. Yes, the department has programs. Those programs, however, are absolutely full. I don’t believe there is any more than maybe one vacancy within the whole of the NWT for somebody who needs to be placed in assisted living. I am trying to get the Minister to think beyond what we know and to go into the future.

We know there are many people coming forward who are going to require independent living, assisted living as adults and we want them to stay in our community. I would like to know from the Minister if she can tell me why...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. To the Minister, I would like to ask again, I’m not asking the department to build houses, I’m asking the department to establish a process to work in conjunction with the Housing Corporation who does build houses -- I agree with you -- but asking if they would set up a process to partner with the Housing Corporation to provide the assisted living housing that we need. Thank you.

I would have liked to have heard the name of the policy, but that’s fine. I’d like to know from the Minister, her department generally manages the programs, the assisted living programs. I’d like to know if we have a policy that looks after housing needs for people who are challenged and who need assisted living. Does the department work in concert with any other department? I would hope they would work in concert with the NWT Housing Corporation, but do they work in concert with any other department in order to acquire and build the necessary housing for assisted living? Thank you.

I don’t believe I said that we don’t get any money, I recognize that there certainly are organizations that run programs and that there are contributions from the Department of Health and Social Services, but I am a little concerned that there is no fund for larger centres that is application-based, which I gather that the Small Community Homeless Fund is. I guess I would encourage the department to try and provide some funding at some point, if it is not in this year’s budget, then consider it for next year’s budget. There certainly are needs within all of our communities for homelessness...