Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move that the Department of Health and Social Services provide quarterly updates to the Standing Committee on Social Programs on improvements to child and family services; and further, that these updates replicate indicators associated with Exhibits 3, 4, 5, and 6 of the Auditor General’s report pertaining to the following areas respectively:
conducting investigations;
addressing confirmed child protection needs;
attending to children in care of the director; and
screening and reviewing foster care homes.
Thank you, Mr. Nadli. Mr. Nadli, there was a small typo, and we’re just going to circulate the proper motion here to committee.
The motion is in order. To the motion. Mr. Nadli.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Reporting is a key function of any organization, so having peer audits and, in this case, quarterly updates to the Standing Committee on Social Programs is essential in terms of monitoring the progress of how it is that the department will address a lot of the concerns that the Auditor General has articulated, including the recommendations from the Standing Committee on Government Operations. So it’s essential that we all understand that from here on we need to at least communicate and the system reporting has to work very effectively to ensure that at all levels of the organizations people are aware in terms of the discussion, perhaps in the analysis and, hopefully, as we go forward in addressing the concerns, that this will become an integral part of the relationship with the standing committees.
Thank you, Mr. Nadli. To the motion. Ms. Bisaro.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I just wanted to speak briefly to these four indicators that are identified in this motion. Members and the public will see that these four indicators are referenced in quite a number of recommendations as we go through. These four areas of conducting investigations, addressing needs, attending to children in care and screening of foster homes, they’re four basic indicators which the department can use over time to show improvements or lack of, and committee feels very strongly that these have been very well identified in the Auditor General’s report and that they are a very good tool for us, as Members, to keep track of the progress or lack of that is being made on behalf of the department in this area. These four exhibits are referenced quite often because we feel that they are a very good tool for us to gauge progress.
Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. To the motion. Mr. Bromley.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I notice foster care homes are on there, the screening and reviewing. One of the biggest opportunities we have are grandparents. They are such an incredible mechanism out there for looking after families and keeping families together and so on, and yet we continually fail to support them to the degree that they may be part of these exhibits. Mrs. Groenewegen I heard in the House just the other day speaking to this. I think all of us have spoken at one time or another. I have current issues with constituents where, because the children are not formally adopted, we’re not supporting them and they’re trying to raise these kids, often numerous kids, on a pensioner’s income. We could be saving an incredible amount of pain and issues down the line for children if we were to just do this simple mechanism of supporting grandparents.
Again, I don’t see a specific recommendation on this, but hopefully it’s part of this and the Minister is listening. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. To the motion. I have Mr. Yakeleya.
Just a comment there. Again, it goes back to the measurements of the reporting and how these are crucial in the small communities with the appropriate organizations. The Auditor General has made a scathing report on this section here, also, in terms of his findings. It’s so needed when you have children involved in the small communities. Of the thousands of children that are apprehended in the Northwest Territories, 95 percent are Aboriginal. I look, I guess, to see how these four indicators are going to improve the system in the communities with the people who are doing the work and see how we could eliminate a lot of heartaches that don’t need to be there. Those are my comments.
Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. To the motion. Minister Abernethy.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. With respect to recommendation number six, I agree that all these indicators obviously require more improvement and improved monitoring. I would be happy to sit down with the Standing Committee on Social Programs to identify some appropriate formats and timing that would work for them and the department so that we can continue to provide these updates.
Thank you, Minister Abernethy. To the motion.
Question.
Question has been called. Motion is carried.
---Carried
Ms. Bisaro.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I have a series of motions as well.
