Thanks to the Minister for that commitment. I wanted to ask some questions about inclusive schooling, and I’m going to kind of follow-up where Mr. Hawkins left off. I’m really disappointed to hear the deputy minister say that we cannot fund inclusive schooling by need. It’s a statement that this will not happen. My understanding is we currently fund per capita or per student, but I also have an understanding that there is supposed to be, and I think it’s been about a year and a half now we’ve been hearing about a review of the inclusive schooling funding formula.
So the deputy minister indicated that the report on the inclusive schooling review is supposed to be coming in May, but when I hear a flat-out statement that we can’t fund based on need and that we haven’t got the review yet, that really sends up a flag for me and suggests that the decision has already been made. I have to point out that it may be difficult to fund on need and it may be difficult to establish need in communities, but there are many ways of doing it. You don’t have to have an expert in every community in the NWT. We certainly have planes and we can fly people in and out. We certainly have planes and we can fly children in and out. I need to point out that there are magnet communities in the NWT and those communities with services attract students with special needs and those communities who attract students with special needs do not get funded to the level that they need to be to properly allow for the assistance that are required for certain students.
So I sincerely hope that what I heard is not what has already been decided. I hope that once the report is done that there will be an opportunity for committee to have some input, for school boards to have some input. I would like to just ask the Minister, when this report comes out in May, is it going to be a done deal, or is there an opportunity for input from Members and all other stakeholders? Thank you.