Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciated the Minister of Health and Social Services’ commitment almost a year ago when we passed our resolution on the Anti-Poverty Strategy for her department to play a key role in an NWT-wide Anti-Poverty Strategy. I realize the Department of the Executive is the lead, but I am wondering how the Minister is directing her department to play a key role on this strategy and what sort of work is happening towards that. Mahsi.
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Ms. Lee.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As the Member is aware and as the Premier replied earlier this morning, since that statement that the Member read out, there had been a workshop and there was very comprehensive representation from all sectors of our society and all departments across the government. It involves Justice, Education, income security, Health and Social Services and Housing. Anti-Poverty Strategy, the scope of the work has expanded considerably and it goes across the government. Because of that, the Executive, and with the entire Cabinet, has taken on the work of responding to that.
Mr. Speaker, this has become a government initiative and the Department of Health and Social Services and I, as a Minister, and work through my staff, one of our directors is part of the steering committee. We are involved in responding to this initiative, as the Premier indicated earlier today. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the Minister’s comments there. I think they are essentially what I had said as the introduction to my question, that I realize it’s the lead of the Department of the Executive. I was referring the Minister’s commitment to play a key role.
Mr. Speaker, the consequences of a failure to address poverty are that people fall more and more into poverty and start getting into social issues and eventually mental and physical health issues. I know that this Minister’s staff has a huge amount of experience in this area. On that basis, I am asking how the Minister is drawing on that vast amount of experience to contribute to this strategy. Mahsi.
Mr. Speaker, this is an across-the-department approach and our director of policy is part of the steering committee. We provide our input, our expertise, our information into that group and obviously being involved in the...and the response and coming up with this response to the workshops and conferences and the interest that the Members in this House as well as the public have indicated to us as to the need to come up with this strategy. Thank you.
Thank you, Ms. Lee. Time for question period is expired; however, I will allow the Member a supplementary question. Mr. Bromley.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will keep it short here. This is my last question. I guess I would ask the Minister to be prepared to give the Standing Committee on Social Programs, perhaps, a briefing on how the department is fulfilling that obligation the Minister made to Members. Mahsi.
Mr. Speaker, absolutely. I am always happy to go before the committee and have discussions with them. Thank you.
Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.
Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to return to item 5 on the orders of the day, recognition of visitors in the gallery. Thank you.
---Unanimous consent granted
