Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, last year Cabin Radio reported on allegations of unsafe conditions and mismanagement at the sobering centre. I asked then WSCC minister about the centre's inspection frequency went and how the allegations would be addressed. Minister Thompson responded that there had been seven contractorinitiated inspections since 2019 in response to incident reports, and that there were no outstanding issues with the sobering centre.
Mr. Speaker, this was in stark contrast to what a then employee described after contacting my office. It was surprising to me that the centre was only being inspected when the contractor identified a problem as it's across the street from WSCC. Private companies are subjected to random inspections yet an operation serving our must vulnerable during a pandemic doesn't warrant the same attention?
When asked about measures being taken to investigate the allegations, the Minister put the onus back on minimumwage employees to raise issues under the Safety Act to their employer. One year later and the RFP to operate the centre has been issued late, causing a sixmonth gap as the current contractor declines to extend, something HSS says they learned of recently, with no explanation for such poor planning.
Last year it was asked if the issues raised by the whistleblowers would be investigated and at that time Minister Green said, and I quote, "I want to assure you that this matter is being taken seriously and is being actively investigated by the Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority." However, a year later, we find out from media that the authority in fact did no such thing and instead asked RCMP to investigate the whistleblowers against whom no charges were ultimately laid.
The Minister knew we wanted the concerns investigated but looked to punish those brave enough to speak instead. This government talks about informed decisionmaking and change but instead chooses to punish those who raise the alarm. My own time in Cabinet is a good example.
Mr. Speaker, how much is this reactive response going to cost us? How much is it going to cost our vulnerable sector as services are disrupted and shifted?
The Minister says that service levels will be maintained and monitored with the ability to expand capacity if required. But how will she know if the onus is on employees to come forward with issues to their employer? WSCC doesn't think it's their role to proactively monitor but only react when the operator reports something. And now that the operator is the WSCC Minister’s colleague, how much will they be really held to task again when issues are raised? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member for Great Slave. Members' statements. Member for Kam Lake.
