Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’ve got questions today for the Minister of Health and Social Services getting back to my Member’s statement from earlier today and the one I had previously during this sitting of the House. It gets back to the respite care program and the decision to cut $250,000 out of that program.
Now, the Minister, and I find it really hard to believe, who was so supportive of this program coming into existence… I worked alongside of her here with other Members in this House on getting this program established. It’s been running now for four years, and somebody made a decision to cut the $250,000 from the program. I’d like to begin by asking the Minister whose decision it was to cut the $250,000. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The honourable Minister responsible for Health and Social Services, Ms. Lee.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Member knows he’s asked me lots of questions about the deficit of our department. I’ve indicated many a time that we have a health and social services deficit. It’s in the multi-millions. We are not able to expand any programs. The respite care program was a pilot project and it was time limited. Thank you.
The Minister didn’t really answer my questions. She can stand up in the House, but, obviously, I’m talking about some responsibility and accountability. Somebody made the decision to cut the $250,000. I want to know who it was so we can direct our questions to them. If it’s not the Minister, can the Minister please tell me who it was? Thank you.
We can speak about responsibility and accountability, and the Member, on the same discussion, speaks about lack of accountability in balancing the budget, dealing with the deficit, how are we going to deal with it, and in the same breath he brings me all kinds of additional program money that I need to approve.
Mr. Speaker, everybody here knows the Department of Health and Social Services has a multi-million dollar system deficit. I have to work with the budget we have. We are making foundational changes to deal with the system, and the respite program was time specific. It was a three-year pilot project. We have no money to enhance that program.
Mr. Speaker, I understand this is a program that is near and dear to everybody. We are doing everything we can to see how we could assist YACL. But, Mr. Speaker, the Members here have to...they are speaking about accountability and responsibility. We get the money from the same pot. We cannot keep increasing spending when at the same time they criticize for not dealing with the deficit. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, the fact of the matter is that funding was supposed to extend until 2012. There was funding. This government had the funding to see the respite program continue to 2012, Mr. Speaker. That is the bottom line. We shouldn’t have been talking about this program and in the next year we should have been coming up with a plan to fund that program. However, Mr. Speaker, the Minister and this government has decided to cut the program, take the $250,000 and put it somewhere else. Mr. Speaker, what I would like to know is where is that $250,000 going. The Minister didn’t know it the other day. Does she know it today, Mr. Speaker? Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, the Member is quite incorrect in saying $250,000 is there for 2011-12. The budget for THSSI for 2011-12 has not been decided, so I don’t understand where he is getting that information from. The supplementary appropriation we approved yesterday is for 2010-11, because even though we have the funding from the federal government, as a government we are dealing with it as a supplementary appropriation. We have a budget in the books for respite care, but that is not, and $250,000 that we approved is for 2010-11. We don’t have a budget for 2011-12. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Ms. Lee. Final supplementary, Mr. Ramsay.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I thank the Minister for the lesson in semantics. Listen. The bottom line is the money was there. It is not there. The Minister didn’t answer my question again, Mr. Speaker. Where is the $250,000? If it is not being spent in respite care, where is the Minister proposing that that $250,000 be spent? Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, it is not semantics. It is not semantics. I am not changing the wording there. Mr. Speaker, I hear the Member and I tell the Member now, there is no money for respite care for 2011-12. The money we approved yesterday for $250,000 is for 2010-11. Yellowknife Health and Social Services Authority was proactive in approaching YACL to say that there is no money there up to March 2011 and can we work together to come up with a plan.
Mr. Speaker, having said that, I am willing to work with YACL to see how we can transition. They were given six months’ notice to tell them that we do not have money to fund additionally. The money we received from the federal government is to change the way we deliver our programming and to fund our nurses in small communities, nurse practitioners and midwives in Fort Smith, and physicians. Mr. Speaker, we are dealing with limited resources. We need to work together on how we spend our money. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Member for Great Slave, Mr. Abernethy.
