Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I want to talk about some good news and some still outstanding issues regarding program services and support for persons with disabilities.

First, the good news. I was pleased to participate in an event to mark the start of the demolition of the Dene K'onia Young Offenders building recently in Hay River. It was only good news because the removal will allow the construction of a new assisted living complex in Hay River.

For many years, we have talked about the need to keep northerners who require assisted living in our communities and in the North. These new facilities will provide for that opportunity as well as repatriate northerners currently living in southern placements. I would like to thank Minister Roland for his commitment to this valuable initiative and his support for locating it in Hay River. We look forward to the details for the programming for permanent residents and day program clients.

I have previously spoken in the House about the office which was opened last year by the Committee for Persons with Disabilities in Hay River. This summer saw the start of our first summer day camp program for persons with disabilities and we look forward to more of this programming. Thanks to the many participants and contributors to our first summer day camp. I welcomed the news from the Minister of Human Resources that a position within the department is now dedicated to ensuring diversity in the workplace of the GNWT. Current affirmative action policy supports the inclusion of persons with disabilities who self-identify with priority hiring status during the competition process. The Minister further clarified that a person with a disability had been hired by Human Resources in Hay River on a casual basis. I would like to see more positions created that would encourage participation of persons with disabilities to be involved and supported in work placements.

We are still awaiting progress on the barrier-free access to our medical clinic. We are also looking forward to modifications to the public use washrooms in our hospitals that would make them safe and usable by persons with disabilities. The height of toilets, wide enough doorways, properly positioned handrails and room for help from an attendant in the washrooms are very reasonable expectations, especially in a public health facility.

I appreciated the exercise this summer when some of our health care providers assessed our community infrastructure by getting in a wheelchair and experiencing firsthand the good aspects and the challenges that would be experienced by persons with disabilities.

In follow-up, Mr. Speaker…I would like to seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.

Speaker: MR. SPEAKER

The Member is seeking unanimous consent to conclude her statement. Are there any nays? There are no nays. You may conclude your statement, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Jane Groenewegen

Hay River South

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, colleagues. Mr. Speaker, in follow-up to something Mr. Hawkins raised yesterday regarding a constituent who was unable to work and care for a family member, along that same vein, this government must do more to accommodate employees who are caring for family members with disabilities. More discretionary latitude must be given to managers to make allowances in schedules to consider the possibility of work that could be performed from home to accommodate these employees. It’s difficult to quantify the value to the family’s stability and the real savings to this government when we can do a little to accommodate as opposed to incurring the cost of full-time care, institutional care and when Members are willing and capable of taking care of family members with disabilities.

Mr. Speaker, later today I will have questions about our government’s policy surrounding accommodation of employees who are caregivers for family members with disabilities. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause