Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We are spending a lot of money in regard to foster care, like I mentioned. It increased almost a million dollars from last year. We’re spending almost $7.6 million in this area. I’d just like to ask the Minister: do you have a program in place that allows families to be reunited with their children so that we can reinvest this money that we’re spending, the $7.6 million, in trying to keep families together, reunite them, and be able to keep the children in their home communities?
The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Ms. Lee.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate the Member’s question. The million dollar increase that the Member mentioned is part of our new initiative funding in the budget which increases the rates that the foster parents receive. I could also advise the Member that in his communities of Mackenzie Delta, Aklavik, Fort McPherson and Tsiigehtchic, there are currently, as of March ’08, 36 children in care. The vast majority of them are with either the families or with extended families under various arrangements that makes it possible, with agreement from the government and the parents and the children involved.
Mr. Speaker, can the Minister give me a breakdown on the cost for the number of children who are in care and also the cost associated with the children in care in my riding?
I don’t have that level of detailed information, but I’d be happy to get the information for the Member.
In my statement I made a reference to the Auditor General’s report in assessing children who are being apprehended on reserves in southern Canada. I believe that also affects us in the Northwest Territories. Has anybody in the department looked at the recommendations of the Auditor General and at exactly what alternatives and options we can look at to try to stem the flow of children being put into foster care and find solutions to those problems?
I do agree with the Member that if it’s at all possible we should try to keep our children in our communities and with extended families. This is information the department keeps close tabs on. Currently in the Territories there are about 620 children in care. The vast majority of them are with extended families. Back in 1999 there were only 100 children who were with the parents or guardians or extended families. This year, as of March 31, 264 children are with parents retaining guardianship, and 316 children are with extended families. Many of them are in their communities. I think we could make a very strong case that we are improving, but obviously, it’s an area we continue to work on.
It’s good to see numbers going down, but I think there are a lot of children who have fallen through the cracks, who have now ended up in institutions such as our jail systems, our young offenders facilities. I’d like to ask the Minister: do you track the children who are in care, and exactly where do they progress? What happens to these children after the age of 18?
I don’t have the information as to what happens to children after 18, but I could see if I could get that information. For the children who are under 18, there are currently 18 children in care outside of the Territories: two children, because they have a specialized medical condition; four children moved out to be with extended family; two moved south with their extended family; and ten children have moved to go with a formal foster family, because it was thought to be in the best interest of the children that they stay in the family they know for now. But in terms of the numbers, this is quite small in comparison to over 600 children who are in care.
Final supplementary, Mr. Krutko.
Again, Mr. Speaker, 600 children are too many children to be in care. I think that, if anything, it is the trend that started off with residential schools, where children were taken away at a young age, put into residential schools and came into that cycle. I’d just like to remind the Minister that we have to do everything we can to get out of this cycle. I know there was the Plan of Care established under legislation. I fought long and hard to get that in my constituency. I’d just like to ask the Minister: what are we doing to ensure that all elements of the Child and Family Services Act are being implemented, especially in the area of the Plan of Care committees in communities.
I agree with the Member that we need to do more work on that. I appreciate the work the Member did on that Plan of Care provision of the Act that we amended. I supported that as a member of the committee. Regrettably, we do not have as many Plan of Care committees set up as we would like. The department is working with any committee that acts interested in it, to give them workshops and to help them set them up. That is something we need to do a lot more work on, which I am planning on doing more rigorously as we move forward.
The honourable Member for Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen.
