Supplementary, Mr. Lewis.
Debates of March 30th, 1993
Topics
Return To Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1267
The Speaker Michael Ballantyne
Supplementary To Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1267
Brian Lewis Yellowknife Centre
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Family Law Review report was tabled in the House by the Minister as Tabled Document 122-12(2), on October 2. Since that became a public document on that day, has there been any public reaction or written submissions received by the government?
Supplementary To Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1267
The Speaker Michael Ballantyne
Mr. Kakfwi.
Further Return To Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1267
Stephen Kakfwi Sahtu
Mr. Speaker, there has been some response to the report, I think the Status of Women may have been one group which responded and were generally in support of the recommendations. As I indicated to the House in a Minister's statement earlier, the report contains 256 recommendations but very little substantiation for the recommendations themselves in large part because I think the contractor originally started to put together the research and materials necessary to help the working group make some recommendations based on specific research. What has happened is there are general recommendations made in this report but the research itself is a huge appendix on which the recommendations are based but is not anywhere near finished. The Department of Social Services and the Department of Justice have, over the last few months, tried to substantiate the basis for the recommendations which were made in the report. That is one of the reasons there is no definitive response to the extensive recommendations at this time.
Further Return To Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1267
The Speaker Michael Ballantyne
Supplementary, Mr. Lewis.
Supplementary To Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1267
Brian Lewis Yellowknife Centre
Thanks, Mr. Speaker. Judging from what the Minister has said, what we have is a review which has 256 recommendations based on background material which is supposed to be the appendix but in many cases is not there, and that the department now has to try to figure out how these recommendations were made. It seems as if this group was never able to come to grips with the material and really never was able to agree amongst themselves as to what should be in the report. My question to the Minister is, what is the process now that this has been tabled a second time. It is an inadequate review full of holes, inconsistencies and recommendations which are not based on any obvious research material. What is the intention of the Minister in putting together another document? What will that document tell us that was not available in the original review?
Supplementary To Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1267
The Speaker Michael Ballantyne
Mr. Kakfwi.
Further Return To Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1267
Stephen Kakfwi Sahtu
Mr. Speaker, it is our intention to try to honour the recommendations, which were made in good faith, as they have some merit. It is up to us to shift through the research and appendix material to organize it in a way that, when we release our consultation paper, the public and groups which will be reviewing this will have some organized material which will substantiate and give backup to the recommendations which are contained in the report. It is an awkward piece of work and not one we have had time to do justice to, but it is our intention in any case to see what we can do with the recommendations. On the surface they seem like good recommendations, we just need to be able to give some background material and rationale for them. Thank you.
Further Return To Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1267
The Speaker Michael Ballantyne
Item 5, oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Lewis.
Supplementary To Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1268
Brian Lewis Yellowknife Centre
This process was begun in 1988, Mr. Speaker, so I would like to ask the Minister, what can the Assembly expect to be completed by the end of the 1993-94 fiscal year, assuming the consultation report is finished within that time frame and that the legislation people are able to do the work they have to do? What can we expect to see by the end of 1993-94?
Supplementary To Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1268
The Speaker Michael Ballantyne
Mr. Kakfwi.
Further Return To Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1268
Stephen Kakfwi Sahtu
Mr. Speaker, I would hope within a month or two to be able to give the Members and the public some idea of a definitive schedule when a consultation paper based on this report could be made available to the public, when, for instance, certain questions and recommendations contained in the report which require legal or constitutional clarity can be provided. At this time we have no way to respond in a substantial form about how soon we can give, to the public, a document which would have in law some basis through attached research and rationale. The basis for the recommendations and whether some of the recommendations are constitutional, what the constitutional basis for them would be, what type of legislation required to be repealed, what time frame we are looking at and length of work would be required to undertake to draft some of the pieces of legislation which are contemplated in this report. It would be a few months, I would say. Thank you.
Further Return To Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Question 640-12(3): Status Of Family Law Review Working Group
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1268
The Speaker Michael Ballantyne
I would like to recognize in the gallery, Rose Okpik, the chair of the Inuit artists' association from Pangnirtung.
---Applause
Item 5, oral questions. Mr. Dent.
Question 641-12(3): Proposed Child Day Care Policy
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1268
Charles Dent Yellowknife Frame Lake
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment Programs. Mr. Speaker, on March 2 the Minister said he would put a high priority on development of a permanent child day care policy. However, we received no definite commitment to a timetable. Would the Minister agree to table a proposed new child day care policy during the November session?
Question 641-12(3): Proposed Child Day Care Policy
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1268
The Speaker Michael Ballantyne
Mr. Nerysoo.
Return To Question 641-12(3): Proposed Child Day Care Policy
Question 641-12(3): Proposed Child Day Care Policy
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1268
Richard Nerysoo Mackenzie Delta
Mr. Speaker, yes.
Return To Question 641-12(3): Proposed Child Day Care Policy
Question 641-12(3): Proposed Child Day Care Policy
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1268
The Speaker Michael Ballantyne
Item 5, oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Dent.
Supplementary To Question 641-12(3): Proposed Child Day Care Policy
Question 641-12(3): Proposed Child Day Care Policy
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1268
Charles Dent Yellowknife Frame Lake
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am pleased to hear that the Minister will agree to do that. Also, on March 2, the Minister said he needed an opportunity to review the interim child day care policy to identify problem areas before setting on a consultation process to come up with the new one. I was wondering if the Minister has now had a chance to review the interim policies and determine an appropriate consultation process.
Supplementary To Question 641-12(3): Proposed Child Day Care Policy
Question 641-12(3): Proposed Child Day Care Policy
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1268
The Speaker Michael Ballantyne
Mr. Nerysoo.
Further Return To Question 641-12(3): Proposed Child Day Care Policy
Question 641-12(3): Proposed Child Day Care Policy
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1268
Richard Nerysoo Mackenzie Delta
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. On the matter of personally reviewing the policies, no I have not personally reviewed them. What I have done is asked the department to review the matters with regard to existing policies, firstly, to improve access. Secondly, to ensure we accommodated parents who were involved in school programming whether it was upgrading, literacy programs or training programs. Thirdly, we wanted to review the matter of ensuring young parents who still had the opportunity to complete high school would have access to day care funding. As well, whether our capital dollars which were put in place under capital policies were being accessed by the communities. Also, whether the O and M funding which we had was enough to accommodate the requests which would eventually come from our communities. Those are the issues at this particular juncture which I have asked the department to review.
Mr. Speaker, I want to ensure the public gets involved in the process. I have already a written letter to the council for the Status of Women. I have indicated I would like to speak to them about the particular policy and I have requested we meet. I want other members, those who are involved in providing day care services, either privately or publicly, to participate in the review process. Once we have an analysis of all of the programs and services which this government offers I will submit for public review to the Members of this House and to those organizations and those individuals who provide day care so they can advise me on how I might better improve the policies on day care for the Northwest Territories. Mr. Speaker, it would be only fair if I allowed the public to be involved in this particular process and the Members of this Assembly.
Further Return To Question 641-12(3): Proposed Child Day Care Policy
Question 641-12(3): Proposed Child Day Care Policy
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1268
The Speaker Michael Ballantyne
Item 5, oral questions. Mr. Antoine.
Question 642-12(3): Scof Recommendations On Key Result Indicators
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1268
Jim Antoine Nahendeh
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have a question for the Minister of Health. The Minister is aware that when the Standing Committee on Finance completed its review of the 1992-93 budget, it indicated the Department of Health provide the following data when it brought forward its 1993-94 budget: mortality and sickness statistics and trends; public satisfaction of health programs and services; backlog statistics; local employment in health care; health costs containment; and,
health facility utilization. Can the Minister indicate how many of these statistics are available today? Mahsi.
Question 642-12(3): Scof Recommendations On Key Result Indicators
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1269
The Speaker Michael Ballantyne
Ms. Mike.
Question 642-12(3): Scof Recommendations On Key Result Indicators
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1269
Rebecca Mike Baffin Central
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will take the question as notice and get back to the Member.
Question 642-12(3): Scof Recommendations On Key Result Indicators
Item 5: Oral Questions
Page 1269
The Speaker Michael Ballantyne
The question has been taken as notice. Item 5, oral questions. Mr. Lewis.