The current delivery of the Healthy Families Program in four communities has been endorsed by all and provides the basis for rolling this program out across the Territory. We know dollars are short, but the demonstrated, almost miraculous, benefits of nurse-family programs shows this is where we should be staking our resources. Our existing small community nursing station delivery model and our social services Healthy Families programs provides the basis on which to build.

I will be pushing for maximum emphasis on this approach and will be asking the Minister questions on how to pursue this to the fullest.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Last October there was a lot of talk about respite services in the Northwest Territories. We had a gallery full of people who were very concerned about the future of the YACL and their delivery of respite services.

As a result of that -- I believe that the Minister and her department actually heard what the people had to say -- the Minister is moving forward with the development of a comprehensive territory-wide respite program, which I think is fantastic. To that end, the department is holding regional respite care focus groups over the next couple of months, through February, that are going to involve the department and stakeholders and NGOs and people that have children that are in respite. I think that’s a great approach and I hope that information is going to be used in the development of this territory-wide respite program.

I do have one concern and that is the current program in Yellowknife. The development of a respite program is not going to be done by the end of March. We’re still going to need respite services while that program is being developed. I understand that the Minister has been in touch with the families in Yellowknife, as it gave them some assurances that they would continue to receive respite services over the 2011-2012 fiscal year as the department moves forward with the development of this comprehensive respite program. I think that’s great. The families needed to hear that. They needed to know that there’s some certainty there. But I don’t know fully what that certainty means. Later today I will be asking the Minister some questions on what that means for the 2011-12 fiscal year. Does it mean that those 29 families in Yellowknife can expect to receive respite services from the Yellowknife Association for Community Living?

The Yellowknife Association for Community Living has been successful. They have demonstrated that they can provide high quality respite services. Until we do have a territorial respite program, which may change how we deliver respite throughout the Northwest Territories, can we get some assurances that YACL will continue to provide during the 2011-12 fiscal year?

Just for the record, in the development of a comprehensive territorial respite program, my thoughts are we need a program that is flexible, that will address the realities that communities, towns and cities are different and our delivery mechanisms are going to need to be different in those communities. So as the Minister moves forward, my plug is for, obviously, an incredibly flexible program that meets the needs of our residents regardless of where they live and one program does not fit all. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Abernethy. The honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yesterday Canada’s most trusted contractor was here in Yellowknife speaking at a construction conference. His name, I’m sure no stranger to most, is Mike Holmes. He raised many topics of interest in his talk, but one area that was of significant interest to me, which I’ve raised in this very House, is consumer protection for new homeowners.

New homeowners, Mr. Speaker, need consumer protection and it is a growing concern in my constituency, across the North and even in Canada. To be direct, a new home buyer is left to the goodwill of the person they are buying their new

home from. Whether it is a new home bought from a contractor or it is a home being sold to them from another family, the only warranty these people often receive is often joked about in the industry, which is called taillight warranty. When those taillights disappear, that’s when the warranty disappears. As Mike Holmes put it, a person can purchase a car, or even a refrigerator or a coffeemaker today and they receive some level of consumer protection through a warranty. The funny thing is they have better consumer rights than someone buying a new home.

Imagine, Mr. Speaker, a family buying a new home or even just a used home from another family, and that family, in essence, is risking everything they have with both their finances and their dreams and hopes on what most people in the industry describe as a one-time, 15-minute walk-through. They have no guarantees on anything that their new home is built right or that nothing has been covered up for a quick sale to get it out there.

Sadly, this government has no interest to stand behind our constituents or people of the North. I’ve raised this matter to the Minister of MACA, and the department feels that if no one is complaining, then they don’t have an interest on this subject. Why does this government need to wait for a train wreck before it takes interest on a particular issue?

I even went up to Mike Holmes after his talk and explained that this government has little interest on this particular subject. He was shocked when I told him this, as I continue to be shocked, because good families are put in a risky position if a dangerous situation happens and no one is there to protect them. Our government abandons them. I often wonder why the families in Ontario and even Alberta are better concerned or more concerned than our government takes towards our constituents.

Mr. Speaker, this government could do something today. First, it could agree to take action to ensure that there is protection for families out there, to ensure that they are not unnecessarily put at risk. Mr. Speaker, the Minister would be shocked to know that even industry would welcome this: honest safeguards to protect family and people in the industry. Mr. Speaker, people don’t need to get stuck with lemons. I will have questions for the Minister of MACA later today. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I, too, attended the Northern Construction Tradeshow yesterday at lunchtime. As Mr. Hawkins had indicated, Mr. Holmes from Holmes on Homes was in attendance and gave a speech there. I really

didn’t go there for the speech. I actually went there, Mr. Speaker, to congratulate a niece of mine, Ms. Tyra Moses, who got an award for top marks in the second and third-year electrical trade program.

However, the speech did catch my attention, Mr. Speaker. He spoke on many topics, and his experiences and ideas on providing safe and reliable homes to the public were refreshing. It’s true for any of the shows that I’ve watched and I’m sure of our public as well.

One issue that is becoming necessary and even standard in southern construction is mould-free housing construction. In my constituency, as I travel and visit, mould in their homes is raised with me quite often. I have been in the homes and saw the extent of these issues. Constituent homeowners want solutions, Mr. Speaker. The NWT Housing Corporation has several initiatives to combat the mould issues. However, I have learned that we can in future prevent this by building mould-free homes with mould-free materials and construction techniques.

It was said, as well, that mould-free construction will not necessarily impact the cost of construction. So I ask the Minister responsible for the NWT Housing Corporation to begin investigating this and work towards making it a policy of our Government of the Northwest Territories to have mould-free construction in any new home construction. Our constituents and clients deserve safe and reliable homes. The people know that the mould issues are affecting the health of themselves and their children. I will raise this issue with the Minister responsible for the NWT Housing Corporation during question period. Mahsi cho.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Item 4, returns to oral questions. Item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery. Item 6, acknowledgements. Item 7, oral questions. The honourable Member for Weledeh, Mr. Bromley.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services. I just want to start by noting that the Standing Committee on Social Programs did have the courtesy of sharing with the Minister our draft report on the review of the Child and Family Services Act, and we were pleased to do so. I want to preface my questions by noting that it would have been great to see the department’s response to it before it was tabled today. But not having seen it, when is the Minister proposing to get the Healthy Families Program into every community in the Northwest Territories? Mahsi.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It’s a program that we support and we agree with the Members that it does benefit and we would like to see them expanded as the financial resources permit. Thank you.

I hate to waste questions like this, Mr. Speaker. Sorry. I hate to waste questions like this. I asked what the Minister is proposing, not what she’d like to see. I wonder if I could get that answered. And while we’re at it, has there been evaluation of the existing Healthy Families programs? Mahsi.

I do appreciate the Member’s question and I don’t mean to be in any way disrespectful. I just want to simply state that I agree with the Member and we are aware and we share the view that early intervention and working with children and families does help in many different ways, as the Member stated, and it has been a focus of the government to work in those programs. The Member is also aware that the Health and Social Services budget is under pressure, as are all others. We are having to work with a 3 percent growth in the budget, which is almost standstill. So my answer to the Member is that we look to -- and I would like to -- expand the programs, but we can only do that to the extent that the resources are available. Thank you.

Unfortunately, my questions are accumulating here, Mr. Speaker. I’m just not getting answers. I asked, had an evaluation been done of the existing programs. I asked what the Minister is proposing. Apparently, there is a document to be tabled today. Supposedly, the Minister knows that if she’s proposing to do nothing, I need to know that, Mr. Speaker. I will add a third question. Given that major benefits from programs such as the Healthy Families accrue to the Department of Justice, ECE and other departments, including Health and Social Services to get us out from these budget pressures we’re under, this is clearly profitable, preventative investments in people that saves our budget, Mr. Speaker. What is this Minister doing to get those departments involved in supporting these programs? I wouldn’t mind an answer to all three questions, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

As I stated in the opening statement, there were 72 recommendations to CFSA. We are making this report available a month sooner than required because we do appreciate that Members want to take a look at that. As I stated, we are supportive of the majority of the recommendations. We are moving immediately on 22 and there are others that we support but need legislation change and working with other departments. We do provide a detailed response to

those recommendations. I do believe we have ample time to review those. The issue that the Member raised, yes, we are working with other departments to advance those. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Your final supplementary, Mr. Bromley.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Why don’t I get a good feeling here, Mr. Speaker? I guess, if I can try and ask a point-blank question here: would the Minister agree that despite an entire section devoted to prevention, and possibly the highest priority in our report, am I to conclude from the Minister’s remarks that in fact there is no expansion planned for the Healthy Families Program?

No, Mr. Speaker. I think the Member should take a look at the responses. We have very positive responses to most of the recommendations. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Member for Frame Lake, Ms. Bisaro.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are addressed to the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and the Premier. I would like to say to the Premier, having been deluged, I guess, with questions a couple of days ago, many differing opinions on the AIP and people telling him what to do and so on, I’d like to know whether or not the Premier is open to making changes to the communications plan that we heard about the other day. Has he considered making any changes, and if he has not to this date, will he consider making changes to be a little more personal in his approach to our residents? Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. The honourable Premier, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In fact, since responding to questions earlier in the week on the agreement-in-principle, the approach we have looked at we have been revising as we’ve gone forward, taking in the comments made by Members. We are looking towards offering up to go into communities and have a team established that we will be able to go into the communities to explain the AIP, as it is, on top of our communications in Aboriginal languages going into the homes across the North, as well, and on top of that, the householder, as well. We are working on a number of fronts and we’ve revised the letter I said that we would try to get out, and my earlier response to regional leaders, we have changed that letter now and it’s being revised again to offer them an opportunity to meet in the regions with all the chiefs and go into communities as well. Thank you.

I would like to thank the Premier for the response. I am gratified to hear that Members are being heard, that residents are being heard and that there is going to be a change to the approach to getting information out there and educating our residents.

I’d like to ask the Premier, if we are going into communities, and I’d like to state again we need to go to every community. We can’t just hold these meetings in regional centres; every community deserves the right to have a meeting and to hear these explanations. When the Premier and/or his team or a portion of a team goes to a community, what type of community meetings is the Premier planning on holding? Thank you.

We’d be prepared to hold public information meetings with the community, the leadership and residents within the community. It is about trying to get as much information out to people so that they can understand what this document is and what it means as we go forward. Thank you.