Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have questions today for the Minister of Justice and looking at how we can work on preventing and controlling substances that go into the communities, but also what can the RCMP staff do when they are in a community to assist the community and some prevention and training programs.
My first question for the Minister of Justice is what has been done so far. I know there have been a lot of good alcohol and drug busts of bootleggers in the Sahtu region, for example, and up in one of the communities of Beaufort-Delta, but what has been happening within the RCMP “G” Division in terms of working the point of entry for alcohol and drugs going into the small communities? Obviously, we have high incidences in the small communities of alcohol and drug use. It’s getting in there somehow. What is the Department of Justice and the RCMP doing to control that? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Moses. Minister of Justice, Mr. Abernethy.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In the individual communities, we have community policing plans where the community leadership and the RCMP get together and set their priorities. That helps them focus their particular area in areas the community wants. But it does take cooperation with community members to stop alcohol from coming into the community. We do have the Crime Stoppers number where individuals can phone in and not give their name but identify if they believe there is alcohol coming into the communities. That has been a valuable tool and the RCMP continue to promote that, that 1-800 number, so that individuals can call.
It doesn’t always necessarily result in bootlegging charges, because if you are apprehended with booze, it wouldn’t actually fall under bootlegging. You actually have to be arrested during the act of bootlegging to be charged with bootlegging, but we are getting people with possession. I have shared with Members a significant number of photos that have come in over the last year, where the RCMP has been able to get out there with tips from communities and stop the alcohol from coming in. A lot still needs to be done. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I do agree a lot more needs to be done in this area. With the RCMP staff and with the community program planning, community plans, is the RCMP trained on the Mental Health Act and the provisions in the Mental Health Act when dealing with clients that might be under the influence? Are they trained fully and understand the provisions where they can have somebody possibly admitted under the Mental Health Act that might be dangerous to themselves or to others? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I know that Members are aware of the Mental Health Act. As far as their specific training, I can’t say, but I will confirm to get that information for the Member. Thank you.
Continuing with working with the RCMP in terms of going into the schools and into the communities, I know the RCMP has a successful DARE program. Are there any other types of campaigns or teachings or education that the RCMP can do, not only in the school setting – I believe that’s only for Grade 5 students – but outside of just the Grade 5 classroom, is there something that the RCMP can do in the community in terms of education or some promotion and prevention in terms of bootlegging and drug and alcohol use? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, as I indicated earlier, every community has their own individual community policing plan and some communities have put more attention on that exact topic than others. Regardless, it is something that’s important. I know that RCMP officers from across the Territories have been working with youth on many different levels. We have the DARE program, as the Member mentioned. I also know that in many communities, the communities themselves, the youth themselves have engaged with the RCMP on the Not Us! campaign and other campaigns, which is about education, awareness and working with the youth to help them begin that abstention from alcohol and drugs. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Abernethy. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Moses.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’m glad the Minister brought up the Not Us! campaign because that was my final question. I know there is a lot of funding out there for communities to access the Not Us! campaign. Some use it very wisely and very effectively; others use it in other areas that might not be as effective in getting to the problem of dealing with the drug dealers or the bootleggers.
Would the Minister commit to possibly looking at a stronger campaign that focuses on the bootleggers that access our small communities? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I understand the Member’s point. Just for the record, the program is a program by the community for the community, designed for the youth to meet the needs that they’ve identified. I think it is really important to empower the youth to design their own program, but we are certainly willing to provide them with examples from other communities where it is actually hitting the exact topic that the Member is talking about. We would like to leave it up to the communities and to the youth in those communities to set their own priorities as to how they want to use these dollars to promote avoiding alcohol and drugs and how they want to address it. We are happy to share the information, but we would like to leave it up to the community youth. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Abernethy. The honourable Member for Deh Cho, Mr. Nadli.
