Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’m going to speak again today about Stanton Territorial Hospital. Yesterday I spoke about the fact that the hospital has built up an accrued deficit of $11.5 million over the past few years. I questioned the Minister yesterday in regard to what plan the government had to address the deficit, and she mentioned the fact that it will be coming before the House under Supplementary Appropriation No. 4 during the life of this session. I look forward to her disclosing what the government’s plan is at the appropriate time.
I want to talk today about what I see as a lack of accountability and a lack of due diligence in the oversight and operation of what is supposedly the flagship of our health care system. Mr. Speaker, not only has the hospital amassed this huge deficit of $11.5 million, the Minister stated yesterday that FMBS has been paying the payroll at our hospital for the past 12 pay periods — roughly equivalent to six months. If FMBS is paying the $4 million to $4.5 million in payroll every month, what is the hospital doing with the money that was budgeted or allocated for salaries? If FMBS is paying the payroll, how could they ever get that money back? We’re talking about in excess of $20 million and counting. Where is that money going to come from, especially in this lean time of reductions?
Mr. Speaker, the employees are going to continue to get paid at the hospital. That’s a certainty. It’ll come from somewhere. However, what this leads me to believe is that, again, there are some very serious problems in the governance, management and direction that the hospital is being operated under. The Minister said yesterday that she has hired or appointed a public administrator who would have a very broad mandate to look into everything from management to programs, the development of a master plan, human resources and the deficit. Thankfully, the Minister admits there are problems there. But how are these problems going to be addressed in a three-month time frame? The problems run deep.
At the appropriate time today I will have some more questions for the Minister of Health and Social Services. Mahsi.
The honourable Member for Nunakput, Mr. Jacobson.
