Thank you, Madam Chair. Bill 6, the Child and Family Services Act is one of the four pieces of family law legislation currently before the Assembly. This legislation arose from the work of the Family Law Review Committee in the early 1990's. This Act builds on the desire to promote healthy communities that deal with child welfare matters using community standards. The proposed Act has the best interests of the child as its central focus. In the Child and Family Services Act we are proposing a community process for dealing with children. This process is designed to be timely, to keep families and communities involved in finding solutions and to allow people to resolve problems as much as possible outside of the formal court process. At the same time there is a safeguard built in allowing issues to go to the court when they are disputed or when there are concerns that the community-based process may not provide for an open and fair hearing for all concerned.

The Act also allows and encourages early intervention work with families. It provides a means whereby parents can access support services that address difficulties affecting their ability to provide a safe, healthy and happy home for their children. Through the plans of care, this Act ensures that there is a well thought out community-based plan developed for each child who is determined to be at risk. It also ensures that there is regular monitoring and review of these plans and of the child's revolving needs. I would like to thank the Standing Committee on Social Programs for the cooperative approach they brought to reviewing this bill. We have had some very productive discussions on the concerns raised during the public hearings. I believe that the amendments we have agreed to will strengthen the bill as a whole. In addition, I believe that the changes enhance the bill's focus on assuring that the best interests of our children are met by providing the opportunity for greater community involvement. Thank you, Madam Chair.