Mr. Speaker, since I received this responsibility, I have had extensive briefing sessions with senior managers in the Department of Health. I want to assure
the honourable Member, that I raised this issue as a concern, and that I want to do something about it.
I have talked with the department about initiating a process which is going to lead to strategic planning in the Department of Health, including the setting of goals and priorities. One of the goals and priorities is going to be to improve the participation of northern residents in the management of the Department of Health.
So I am proceeding in that fashion, Mr. Speaker. I think that what I have to do first is set the priorities of the department, and that issue is going to be one of the priorities. I have taken no other concrete steps, but I do want to assure the Member that it is an area in which I want to make progress, but I do not think -- and I think the Member will agree -- it is not an area in which one can instantly fix the program, there has to be a strategy, and that is what I am working on now.