Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have a question for the Minister of ECE on the Languages Commissioner. I’m wondering: given the report that we’ve seen, where budget wasn’t spent and communities weren’t visited, what kind of oversight does the Minister have? What sort of oversight role does he play in the performance of the commissioner’s duties?
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. The honourable Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Lafferty.
Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. That commissioner has their own role, to implement the operations of the Languages Commissioner within the communities and regions. My understanding is that she is a statutory officer. With our ECE department we work closely with her as well. I believe there have been some recommendations brought forward, and we are working on those recommendations, so she is in that role. Mahsi.
I’m wondering what sort of accountability here…. As I understand it, this commissioner hardly visited any communities. To me, as just a member of the public and so on, I saw very little profile for the Languages Commissioner. I think back to a few commissioners ago when it was huge, in the news all the time; it was a big part of…. To me, this is a really important role, so I’m wondering what sort of accountability…. How does this commissioner get feedback about the job she’s doing and so on, to make sure things get happening as they should?
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. Before I go to the Minister on this one, the Languages Commissioner is a statutory officer answering to the Legislative Assembly and the Board of Management. I would suspect that would be the avenue to approach regarding areas of accountability about statutory officers, so I’m going to rule that question out of order right now.
Thank you, Members. The honourable Member for Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen.
