Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In follow-up to my Member’s statement today I was talking about the fact that in the Northwest Territories it is natural, it is common, and it is a good thing that family members, extended family members will intervene in a situation where a child may be at risk, a family may be in crisis. It is not always the government that has the opportunity to observe or respond to those kinds of needs. The problem is that when someone does this on their own initiative, it then absolves the government of having to take any responsibility for the situation. The reality is it costs money and takes resources to care for a child.

I’d like to ask the Minister of Health and Social Services what recognition do the policies of the Department of Health and Social Services place on the intervention and care that are provided to extended family members by grandmothers, aunties, cousins, when a child is in need outside of their own home. What recognition does this department give to those care providers?