Merci, Monsieur le President. I’m going to return again to the issue of a child and youth advocate for the Northwest Territories, an issue my colleague from Kam Lake reports has been raised almost 900 times in this House since 2003. I’ve raised it a number of those times, yet we appear to be no further ahead today.
To be clear, a child and youth advocate is an officer established at armslength from the government to ensure that the rights, interests, and viewpoints of children and youth are considered when decisions are made that will affect their wellbeing.
In addition to a general oversight function, the advocate will stand on behalf of individuals engaged in the child and youth family services system and to promote transparency and accountability.
The offices are commonplace. Yukon has had a child and youth advocate since 2010; Nunavut since 2014. Both these offices produce annual reports for public review. We are the last place in Canada without a child and youth advocate.
The last time I raised this issue was almost two years ago in the review of the health and social services budget. At that time, I was told that the department was looking actively at options for establishment of that role. A jurisdictional scan was underway. We were told that in moving to proposed models, the unique circumstances of the NWT needed to be analyzed, both in terms of national changes in child welfare and to address the need to build and share accountability with Indigenous governments. Needless to say, all of this work is needed more than ever in light of the 2018 Auditor General of Canada’s report on child and family services, and subsequent recommendations from Indigenous governments and key stakeholders.
But here we are again in 2022, and I see us no closer to creation of an advocate. I see no references to an advocate in the child and family services quality improvement plan activities now underway, nor any updating of the almost decade old Building Stronger Families Action Plan. What I do know from reading of other jurisdictions' successes, and in my work with constituents seeking the authority of an arm'slength authority, is that the time for a child and youth advocate is now. I’ll have questions for the Minister of Health and Social Services on the status of a Northwest Territories child and youth advocate. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member for Frame Lake. Members' statements. Member for Nahendeh.
