Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. The honourable Member for Tu Nedhe, Mr. Beaulieu.

Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. Today I rise to speak on a very important issue in Tu Nedhe. When I speak to addictions counsellors and local health officials, they advise me that the number one cause of health and social problems in small communities is excessive consumption of alcohol.

The Department of Health and Social Services must make the shift from treating people for the causes of heavy drinking to preventing them from drinking. Some of the people are drinking alcohol to a point where it’s affecting their health, their family and their employment, and in some cases worse than that: drinking affects their entire life and in other cases there is even loss of life.

The communities need help and the Department of Health and Social Services should work with local governments and local stakeholders to provide that help. I feel that each community must have an overall community addictions strategy that places the resources and responsibilities at the community level. However, communities cannot do it alone. They need more resources, both financial and human, at their level. They need support from the Department of Health and Social Services to develop those strategies. Moving forward on a strategy with the communities to address this serious issue will have many long-term benefits for both communities and the entire GNWT as far as cost and wellness goes.

A big part of the reason our corrections system is filled with Aboriginal people is the overconsumption of alcohol. I think we all know how much it costs to house one inmate for one day. That is only one example not necessarily directly related to health.

As you can see, prevention work in this area will have long-term benefits for wellness for our communities and huge cost savings for our government, specifically the Department of Health and Social Services and the Department of Justice.

Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. The honourable Member for Great Slave, Mr. Abernethy.

Thank you, Mr. Abernethy. The honourable Member for Weledeh, Mr. Bromley.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Later today I will be tabling the written portion of the petition calling for expansion of the Midwifery Program in Yellowknife and the extension of this programming throughout the Territories. Taken together with the Assembly’s first ever on-line e-petition, of 304 signatures, a total of 377 persons -- 161 from Yellowknife and 176 from outside the capital -- are calling on the government for increased support to midwifery.

We recognize midwifery as a regulated profession through the creation of legislation in 2005. This action only formalized the ancestral tradition of home-assisted birth that has been the basis of child delivery as long as there have been children. Midwives have been honoured community caregivers in Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal society. Demand for this service is in resurgence.

In the NWT Hospital Services 2006 Report, childbirth and pregnancy were reported as the top reasons for hospitalizations, at an estimated cost of $4.4 million per year. The vast majority of hospitalizations were for labour, delivery and aftercare of mothers. Add to this the huge costs of travel, medical, ground transportation and complicated staff services.

As the letter of support for the petition from the NWT and Nunavut Public Health Association says, the GNWT now needs to prove its commitment to the continuation of midwifery services by providing sufficient resources. I fully support the actions called for by this petition. Here’s another case where, based upon the community health and nursing centre delivery model, we have an opportunity to pursue improved care, respond to community wishes and needs, with a prospect of enormous cost savings.

I haven’t seen any departmental analysis of the case for midwifery. This is bad business. It is basic practice when offered the prospect of an improved customer service model that a cost-benefit analysis is performed to nail down the facts. That’s an important piece of staff business we could start today without the devotion of any new resources.

I will also be tabling a written question today, asking for basic information on the cost and volume of hospital and midwifery birthing. I urge the Minister to use this question to kick-start a thorough review of this opportunity. The faster we get this information, the faster we can stop paying operating costs and start putting money into good public health care jobs in the communities. Mr. Speaker, I will be asking the Minister questions on how soon she can start. Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Bromley. Item 4, reports of standing and special committees. Item 5, returns to oral questions. Item 6, recognition of visitors in the gallery. The honourable Member for Thebacha, Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would just like to take this opportunity to thank and acknowledge the two Pages from Fort Smith: Marcus Bourke and Ferron Beamish; and, of course, thank their mother, the chaperone, Ms. Melinda Bourke. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. The honourable Member for Yellowknife South, Mr. Bob McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would also like to recognize two Pages from Yellowknife South: Stephanie Thibault and Monique Chapman. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Item 7, acknowledgements. Item 8, oral questions. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to ask my questions to the Minister of Education today. Over my time as MLA I get lots of inquiries over the Student Financial Assistance program. There’s always been a call to increase it and I understand the department is reviewing it. I’d like to ask the Minister of Education exactly where we are with this process. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. The honourable Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Lafferty.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. We are in the process of conducting an overall review of our SFA program. It’s going to be happening this year and early next year. Mahsi.

It’s not only for those that travel to other communities, even though their needs are just as great, but even in their home communities, those rates, they feel it’s still a little bit low. What is the scope of the review of the Student Financial Assistance program, Mr. Speaker? How encompassing is it? Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, once the review has been undertaken, I guess this year, we want to look at all areas. I want to reach out to the students, to the parents, to the community

members. I want to hear their views, because those are the people who are impacted, those are the students who are impacted. We, as the department, would like to hear directly from them. Those are just some of the work that will be within the frame of the review, but I will be keeping the Members posted on it as we move forward. Mahsi.

I think the Minister is on the right track. He does have to get out to the communities, get to the colleges, get to the community education programs and speak to the students and parents. I believe that there should be a strong communication plan when that work begins, so I’d like to ask the Minister what kind of communication strategy will they have in place before they begin their consultations and review of the SFA. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, once we go through the process, definitely there will be a communication plan, a document that will be going out to the general public, the students, the communities, to the MLAs and the members-at-large. We’re going to have a dialogue with the general public. This is an area that has always been of interest to the general public, so, definitely, those are some of the key initiatives that will be undertaken. There will be thorough communication dialogue with the general public. Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Your final supplementary, Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. The single students, the single-family students, the couple’s students with children all are waiting for this review. The most important question: will it be completed enough to impact students who are going to return to school this coming fall? Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, this particular review, once it’s undertaken this year, will take some time because, as I stated, I want to reach out to the students. We have students across Canada and we have students in the Northwest Territories -- the vast Northwest Territories -- so it will take some time. I can’t guarantee that it’s going to be by this fall, but definitely we will push for late this fall and start working towards next year’s budget. Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. The honourable Member for Weledeh, Mr. Bromley.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Following up on my statement earlier today, I’d like

to ask the Minister of Health and Social Services about her plan for the expansion of midwifery services and extension throughout the Territory.

When we recognized midwifery as a regulated occupation in 2005, we laid the foundation for the establishment of this service throughout the NWT or in the NWT. Initial and important steps have been taken but they haven’t kept up with demand. The Minister points out that midwifery practice is essential to the integrated service delivery model and that there are special requirements for meeting the Canadian standards of care. What is the Minister’s vision for the future of midwifery service in the NWT, a vision that accommodates these challenges? Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Bromley. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Ms. Lee.