Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are from earlier today in my Member’s statement, to the Minister of Health and Social Services. Since the Minister promised last February to appoint a health board to the Beaufort-Delta, what steps have been taken to actually reinstate the board? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Blake. The Minister of Health and Social Services, Mr. Beaulieu.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I guess aside from having some contact with the MLAs from the Beaufort-Delta, we have not discussed reappointment of a health board with the Aboriginal governments or the other municipal governments in the Beaufort-Delta. We have continued to work with the public administrator in the Beaufort-Delta.
In speaking to some of the members that sat on the last board, I know one of the major concerns is to have financial experience at the table. With that said, I’d like to ask the Minister what issues stand in the way of getting this board reinstated and why is it taking so long. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The previous board was disbanded. It was for reasons that I’m not totally familiar with at this point. However, one of the requests from the Beaufort-Delta, in speaking to some of the leadership, there was an indication that if we are going to reappoint the Beaufort-Delta Health and Social Services Board, that individuals sitting on that board should have some knowledge, good knowledge of sitting on a board, good knowledge in being able to read financial statements, having some skills to sit on that board, and they’re able to effectively report the workings of the board back to the communities. They said, don’t just pick people to sit on the board; pick people that are going to be functional, that are going to be effective, that are going to improve health services in the Beaufort-Delta. That’s why it’s taking some delay to be able to bring those types of people together.
That leads me to my next question. When can the region expect to see a new board appointed?
The process of appointing a new board is going to start immediately. We are looking at the governance. In 2011 we had a report done by a consultant. The conclusion was that the system, as it is, is not sustainable. We are working with a Joint Leadership Council that includes all the chairs and all the boards looking at a sustainable government system first. Once we have a good system that we think that we are comfortable with right across the Territories, we are going to put the board in place. We also recognize that we were waiting for the CEO to come in. That has happened, so we can start the process. In fact, I’ve had one discussion with one leader about starting that process. We are also possibly looking at if the governments would allow an advisory board and some other structure. But again, I will consult with the four MLAs from the Beaufort-Delta before I start to move on reappointing the board in the Beaufort-Delta.
Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. Short, final supplementary, Mr. Blake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to ask the Minister, will we see this board in place during our term here?
I hope to have the Beaufort-Delta board in place, whether it be an advisory board or a management board, before the end of this government.
Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. The Member for Range Lake, Mr. Dolynny.
