Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In the 16th Legislative Assembly I believe
my colleague Mr. Bromley put forward a motion that was seconded by the Member from Frame Lake, which asked us to begin research and examine options for potential benefits of the introduction of a mental health court. Since we’ve come back as the 17th Assembly, I’ve had conversations with my
colleague Mr. Bromley, but also my colleague Mr. Beaulieu about this particular opportunity.
The Minister of Health has indicated that they wish to be moving forward with more prevention and treatment options within the Department of Health and Social Services, and we’ve agreed to work together to come up with a response on whether a mental health court would be the appropriate tool to use here in the Northwest Territories. But in addition, we also want to talk about integrated case management, having the departments of Justice and Health and Social Services work together more closely. We want to talk about front-end diversion to community programs and supports that could be done by the RCMP and other organizations before people are even charged, and we want to talk a lot about specialized courts.
Will a mental health court be the exact one that is laid out in the end if it is deemed to be appropriate? I can’t say. There are other options like a wellness court used in the Yukon, but it is certainly something that we’re exploring at this point in time.
We need to look at the social indicators of crime in the Northwest Territories and we need to all work together. I’m excited to say that the Department of Justice and the Department of Health and Social Services are going to be working on this and will, hopefully, come to committee and Members with some options which may indeed include a diversion-type court yet to be determined. Thank you.