Mr. Speaker, later today I will table a copy of the 10-year Strategic Plan for the Department of Justice.
Our department envisions a safe society where the rights and freedoms of residents are protected, and residents have confidence in the justice system. The plan identifies values that will guide us:
We will promote safety in homes and communities.
We will deliver services that respond to our clients’ needs.
We will work with others to encourage shared responsibility.
We will pursue excellence, fairness and integrity in all of our work.
Together, this vision and values support this Assembly’s goals of healthy, educated people free from poverty, and sustainable, vibrant and safe communities. We started by determining the most pressing needs and challenges. We did reviews and consulted with MLAs, community leadership and stakeholders. Three strategic directions emerged from our reviews and consultation. We need to improve the justice system's approach to reducing crime. We need to improve access to justice programs and services, particularly in small communities. We need to build and maintain a strong foundation of financial, human and technology resources to support our core programs and services.
These three strategic directions form the foundation for our long-term goals and actions. They are the basis for a five-year implementation plan that will be brought forward this fall.
We are sharing the strategic plan with our partners and stakeholders. Our business plan identifies our priority activities: improvements to policing services, advancing a Community Safety Strategy, developing effective programming and access to health and social services for offenders, improving services for victims of crime including victims of family violence, and improving supports to families, children and youth.
We can’t do this work alone. We need to partner with other departments who work with families and individuals at risk or in personal crisis. We will continue to be involved in government initiatives to address poverty, homelessness, addictions and other social issues.
Mr. Speaker, a strategic plan is an essential planning document at any time, but particularly during a time of fiscal restraint. There are real constraints and pressures, some that are externally driven, like the federal government's restraint measures and tough-on-crime legislative agenda, and some that are our own. We need to be strategic about where we place our resources so that we are meeting our legislated and operational requirements while keeping our clients and staff safe.
As the Minister of Finance said when presenting the budget for this year, our government's approach to making improvements is more like a marathon than a sprint. The strategic plan is the document that will help us to build capacity within the justice system over the next 10 years so that we can continue to deliver quality services and supports. We will make innovation the cornerstone of our work over the next decade so Northerners have access to justice and so the rights and freedoms of all are protected. We will make strategic adjustments as lessons are learned and the environment changes. I will provide regular updates so Members and the public can see our progress.
Mr. Speaker, the 2012-13 fiscal year is the first full year that the 17th Assembly can truly shape the actions of government to respond to Caucus priorities. The business plans and proposed budget are key documents to put these priorities into action. It is my hope that this strategic plan will assist the Department of Justice to contribute to the goals and aspirations of this Assembly. I look forward to working with Members and communities as we build a more responsive and accessible justice system for the residents of the NWT. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Abernethy. The honourable Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment, Mr. Ramsay.
