Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Just a few questions on community health programs. First off, I wish the Minister and the department every success in trying to get together a respite program for the entire Territory. I think it’s a big piece of work and something that I think will be greatly appreciated in communities around the Northwest Territories. It think that’s a step in the right direction.
I also wanted to thank the Yellowknife Association for Community Living for the program that they’ve run quite successfully here in Yellowknife for the last number of years. I’ve seen, firsthand, constituents who have had a big impact on their quality of life by accessing the program through YACL. Again, I want to thank the Minister for agreeing to continue with that program here in Yellowknife. So thanks for that.
The other issue -- and I just wanted to touch on this -- just recently there was a report that the Yukon government had a third party do an evaluation of the addictions programming in the Yukon Territory and the findings were that the addictions programs in the Yukon Territory were woefully inadequate. I’d like to just get a better understanding of how adequate addictions programming is here in the Northwest Territories, Mr. Chairman, and whether or not we would stand to gain anything by conducting a third-party, independent, objective review of what addictions programming we have here in the Northwest Territories.
Again, if you look around at the social ills that are out there, addictions certainly plays a huge part in what plaques our communities and our families, whether it’s alcohol or drugs or even gambling, for that matter, and we need to have some safeguards in place that are going to help people get through and deal with addictions problems. I guess that’s the first question I have, Mr. Chairman, is where are we at with addictions? Thank you.