Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Today, I am pleased to present the Department of Justice's main estimates for 2003-2004. The Department of Justice's proposed main estimates for 2003-2004 is $75.256 million. This is an increase of seven and a half percent or $5.672 million from the 2002-2003 main estimates.
The capital acquisition plan budget is $14.092 million. This is a reduction of 33 percent or $4.754 million from the 2002-2003 fiscal year. The estimated revenues for the department are $9.803 million which is an increase of $3,000.
I will now highlight the major changes in the main estimates from last year's budget. In 2003-2004, an additional $200,000 will be made available so that 10 more communities can hire a part-time justice coordinator. This is the second year of a three-year program that will provide all communities with the opportunity to receive this funding. These additional funds for communities are new spending.
The following changes to the department's budget are all as a result of forced growth.
To address a concern brought forward by the Canada Labour Code, regarding the safety of RCMP officers in single-officer detachments, three new RCMP positions will be funded. These positions will be added to the detachments in Wha Ti, Holman and Paulatuk.
The Department of Justice is spending an additional $293,000 to improve services to the public. Three positions in the maintenance enforcement office will now receive funding to meet the current workload of the office. This will help ensure that those families who are owed financial support receive it.
Legal registries will also receive a new position to meet an existing increased demand for service. However, the revenue from increased registrations will offset the cost of the position.
To improve security in the courts, four new deputy sheriff positions will be funded. The deputy sheriff will now be based in the courts in Inuvik and Hay River. Two additional deputy sheriffs will be assigned to the Yellowknife Courthouse.
On April 1, 2003, the Youth Criminal Justice Act comes into effect and replaces the federal Young Offenders' Act. This new legislation has resulted in forced growth of $361,000. Part of this increase can be attributed to a new sentencing approach under the act. Youth convicted of Criminal Code offences will now be required to serve the last third of their sentence under supervision in the community. The department will fund three new probation officers based in Fort Providence, Norman Wells and Inuvik. These positions will add to existing probation officers located in Inuvik, Tuktoyaktuk, Fort McPherson, Rae-Edzo, Fort Good Hope, Deline, Yellowknife, Hay River, Fort Smith and Fort Simpson.
I will now update committee members on issues raised during the review of the business plan.
On the issue of policing, the department received a resourcing request from the RCMP at the beginning of February. We are reviewing the proposal and will meet with the RCMP to discuss resourcing and funding levels for policing services in the NWT. We anticipate these discussions will be completed with in the next two months and plan to come forward with an additional request for additional resources by June.
As I recently said, in the Legislative Assembly, addressing family violence is a priority for the department. In response to recommendation six of the Social Agenda, the department is working with the local office of Justice Canada and the CMP to find ways to collect data on family violence in the NWT.
As a Member of the Coalition Against Family Violence, the department is supporting the development of an action plan on family violence. This plan will improve the way that governments, communities, departments, agencies and service providers work together to reduce family violence and serve the victims of family violence. This reflects recommendation two of the Social Agenda.
The department is also looking at other ways to reduce family violence. We have completed the first phase of our research into family violence legislation and plan to begin public consultations as soon as possible. The department plans to use the results of these consultations as the basis for legislation that we plan to introduce during the June session.
Meeting the legal aid needs of northern residents remains a challenge. Funding legal aid is a problem across Canada. All provinces and territories agreed to a national review of legal aid and we expect the results of the review this spring. In October, I met with the federal Minister of Justice and raised with him the unique issues and costs facing legal aid in the North. The recent federal budget did include additional funding for Legal aid. How much money the GNWT will receive should be known within the next three months.
I mentioned earlier the federal Youth Criminal Justice Act. The existing Northwest Territories Young Offenders Act was based on the federal Young Offenders Act that will be repealed April 1, 2003. The department is developing territorial youth justice legislation based on the federal Youth Criminal Justice Act. New territorial legislation is required to ensure that a consistent approach is taken to young offenders for both territorial or Criminal Code offences.
The upcoming fiscal year will be the first year of full operations at the North Slave Young Offender Facility. We will also see the opening of the adult facility in the spring of 2004. The majority of our capital budget for the upcoming 2003-2004 fiscal year will support construction and completion of the adult facility.
These new facilities will make our communities safer by providing the level of security and programming necessary to assist offenders with their rehabilitation and reintegration back to their home communities.
Mr. Chairman, the activities described in the main estimates will help fulfill the roles identified in our business plan and in Towards a Better Tomorrow. These activities will help the department fulfill its mandate of administering justice and maintaining safe and secure communities. I look forward to reviewing the main estimates with members of the committee. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.