Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Minister of WCB indicated in the House that the Board of Governors of the WCB is planning on changing the policy on chronic pain, more specifically that the board is looking at allowing those suffering from chronic pain due to workplace injury to be eligible for permanent partial disability. Mr. Speaker, even though I have to learn this by listening in on the third-party exchange, I feel like ‘Desperately Seeking Susan’. I was so desperate for good news I was jumping up and down for joy because I thought after all these years it was an opening of some sort. Until, of course, I started reading the transcript, Mr. Speaker, and realized that even to this day the Minister, the board and this government continues to dither on making a decision on something that is so clear.

Mr. Speaker, let me tell you once again, it is the law that people with chronic pain cannot be discriminated against as compared to any other injured workers, and this WCB keeps on doing that. The Martin decision in Supreme Court said so and the Valic decision in the Supreme Court of the NWT said that. Instead of changing the policy, which is the job of the council and the Minister and the government, they have decided, the latest as of yesterday, until yesterday, they were going to go back to the same court and ask if the changes they’re making are constitutional. I’m glad they changed their mind on that because I think that was bad legal advice.

Mr. Speaker, I am optimistic that the Minister and the board have finally seen the light of day and that they cannot dither any longer and treat those workers with chronic pain in a discriminatory fashion. Mr. Speaker, yesterday I asked the Minister whether or not any changes to this would apply to all the chronic pain cases and, Mr. Speaker, the Minister indicated, well, there aren’t too many. Well, I tell you, he gave an answer in this House and there are at least 36 workers over the last year with that same condition and while the Minister and the board are waiting, whether or not they have time to meet to discuss something as important as this for the people who are suffering as we speak, this is just, Mr. Speaker, I cannot tell you how upset I got when I started reading this transcription. And there’s no time. There’s no need for the council to consult anymore on something that they are legally obligated to do, and if they do not go do that, I’m going to ask the Minister of Justice for money to go to court myself.

Speaker: MR. SPEAKER

Ms. Lee, your time…

---Applause