Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Standing Committee on Agencies, Boards and Commissions has on occasion received requests from Cabinet Ministers to comment on certain government initiatives. This is very much in keeping with the spirit of the consensus style government which offers greater opportunity for a collaborative approach between the Executive Council and standing committees of the Legislative Assembly.

The standing committee priorities for the current fiscal year were established early in the first session when it tabled its work plan on Committee Report 3-12(1). In addition to these, however, the standing committee also agreed to respond during the third session to requests from the Executive Council for input respecting the proposed elimination of three boards. The current report comments on the standing committee's review of a plan advanced by the Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment Programs, to eliminate the Student Financial Assistance Board.

Further reports will deal with the request for input regarding the Denendeh Conservation Board and the Board of Directors of the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation. The Standing Committee on Agencies, Boards and Commissions received correspondence on January 8, 1992, from the former deputy minister of Education indicating the department's intent to dissolve the Student Financial Assistance Board and requesting committee consideration of these plans. The standing committee met on March 24, 1992 and agreed to review the Minister's initiative.

Throughout this review the Standing Committee on Agencies, Boards and Commissions has focused on the following aspects: the history of the development of the Student Financial Assistance Board; the rationale for considering elimination of the board; and, the development of an alternative framework for ensuring appropriate levels of community and particularly student input into student financial assistance policies and decisions. The Standing Committee on Agencies, Boards and Commissions completed the review of this matter on its meeting of October 27, 1992. The committee wishes to acknowledge the cooperation received from the Minister and his officials in responding to requests for information over the course of the review.

The Standing Committee on Agencies, Boards and Commissions was aware that there has been a long history of the use of management and advisory boards within the Student Financial Assistance Program. These have been established under the Student Financial Assistance Act and regulations made under that act. Between 1982 and 1989, four regional boards held statutory duties to review applications for student financial assistance to determine the eligibility of applicants and to make recommendations to a central review board. This system proved cumbersome and inefficient, and decisions were often delayed on students' applications that had arrived after the formal meetings of the boards.

The former Minister of Education, the Hon. Stephen Kakfwi, introduced amendments to the Student Financial Assistance Act which were granted assent on April 11, 1989. The former Minister provided the Committee of the Whole in the 11th Assembly with the following explanation of the proposals and rationale of these amendments, "The amendment will eliminate the regional student financial assistance boards and the Student Financial Assistance Review Board. It will establish a Student Financial Assistance Board, which will be an advisory to the Minister on all matters related to Student Financial Assistance Programs. The board will not be involved in the day to day operations of the program."

While it was felt at the time that this new board format would provide advice to the Minister and departmental administration, the fact is that it has met only once since the members were appointed in July, 1990. Although the members of the board have maintained a continuing commitment to their responsibilities, the advisory input from the board has actually been very limited. No specific recommendations have been forwarded to the Minister and the Minister has made no formal requests for board comments. This may be due to the fact that the Student Financial Assistance Program has now been in place for ten years and there have been plenty of precedents and policies accepted and approved by the Minister which already provide effective guidelines for administration of the program.

The department has recommended to the Minister that the Student Financial Assistance Board should be disbanded and that the Student Financial Assistance Act and the regulations should be amended to delete the board.

In reviewing this proposal, the Standing Committee on Agencies, Boards and Commissions was originally concerned with the need to ensure that appropriate mechanisms were in place to ensure that the department receives community input on the student financial assistance policy. Recognizing the special challenges often faced by northern students who decide to pursue a post-secondary education, it was felt that a priority should be placed on ensuring that the student financial assistance policy is developed in the clearest and most effective terms. This cannot take place, in the view of the standing committee, without ensuring the appropriate representation of regional interest.

At the request of the standing committee, the Minister provided additional information which demonstrated that other channels of communication have already opened up which offer more effective input on student needs or policy deficiencies that the Student Financial Assistance Board has not been able to provide. These include direct contact with the growing number of student associations on southern campuses and at all Arctic College locations. Individual students have demonstrated that they are comfortable in bringing forward concerns and policy questions to departmental personnel, the Minister or the M.L.A.

Recommendations about any necessary program management revisions can be generated by the Standing Committees on Finance or Public Accounts, the Auditor General of Canada and/or the territorial Audit Bureau.

The Standing Committee on Agencies, Boards and Commissions recognizes that the existing board structure is not performing its essential advisory function and it is not the most effective mechanism for providing community level input at the present time. As such, the standing committee agreed to the Minister's proposal to eliminate the Student Financial Assistance Board.

Therefore, the committee recommends that the Minister proceed with the proposed elimination of the Student Financial Assistance Board and, further, that the Minister should introduce the corresponding amendments to the Student Financial Assistance Act during the Third Session of the 12th Assembly.

The Standing Committee on Agencies, Boards and Commissions was also of the opinion that the Legislative Assembly should continue to be advised of the department's progress in this regard.

Therefore this committee recommends that in accordance with rule 90(4), the Executive Council table a comprehensive response to the recommendations contained in this report to the Assembly within 120 days of the presentation of this report to the House. Mahsi.

Motion To Move Committee Report 7-12(3) To Committee Of The Whole

Mr. Speaker, that concludes our report on this matter now. Therefore, I would like to move, seconded by the honourable Member for Inuvik, that the report of the Standing Committee on Agencies, Boards and Commissions, on the proposed elimination of the Student Financial Assistance Board be received and moved into Committee of the Whole for further consideration.