This is page numbers 6391 – 6418 of the Hansard for the 17th Assembly, 5th Session. The original version can be accessed on the Legislative Assembly's website or by contacting the Legislative Assembly Library. The word of the day was services.

Topics

Kevin A. Menicoche

Kevin A. Menicoche Nahendeh

Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. My observation is that our current government prides itself on thinking big but often forgets its duty to also think small. All too regularly our small communities are an afterthought when this government plans its big projects such as the Mackenzie Valley fibre optic line. My colleagues across the floor sold this 80-some million dollar project to me and other Members partly on the benefit it would bring to the small communities along the route such as Wrigley. There were promises that a fibre optic line would serve those communities with faster and cheaper Internet, better service and health centre and better learning in our schools. Yet, even as this line is being dug into the ground in the Mackenzie Valley, the government has not publicly laid out its plan for small communities along the route. I haven’t heard about any construction opportunities for them either.

Communities in my riding are concerned about this lack of planning and communication, in particular Wrigley. It’s a sensitive matter. I suggest the government be proactive. In April, Wrigley’s leadership announced withdrawal of their support for the fibre optic line. Land claim issues and lack of progress on the Dehcho Process are big factors in that, but it is a much easier decision to pull support when the government does not see the benefits of this fibre optic project.

Of course, “big picture” interests do see the benefits: the European space industry, federal government departments, big companies like Ledcor, which is building the line, and NorthwesTel. I would like to see some small thinking and see it very soon.

Let’s see some business opportunities and jobs in the small communities along the route of the fibre optic line. Let’s see the details on how the line will serve our health centres, schools, local governments, businesses and homes. Think small.

Like Highway No. 7, this will be my next favourite two words to this government: think small. The result might be bigger than they think. Thank you very much.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. The Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Blake.

Frederick Blake Jr.

Frederick Blake Jr. Mackenzie Delta

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Premier mentioned that this morning we had a number of awards here at the Legislative Assembly today. Of those recognized of the single window service centres, I have three constituents out of those 22 people. Ms. Shandel McLeod, Ms. Diane Koe and Mrs. Maureen Cardinal-Clark were the three GSOs who we have in our communities.

They do a lot of work on our behalf, going visiting elders and people who cannot come out to the offices. They’re a great help to our communities and I hope that as we move forward that this program continues. Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Blake. The Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.

Public Housing Needs
Members’ Statements

Robert Hawkins

Robert Hawkins Yellowknife Centre

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. To my surprise when I opened up page 3 of the Yellowknifer today, I saw and I counted 194 families still in need of some type of shelter.

What it is, is a cry to this government for more housing, more emergency shelters, more transitional space. These shouldn’t be numbers that anyone should be proud of. This government itself should be hanging its head in shame.

Last year the government built just over one house per 33 communities. The actual stat was 1.15, when you do the math. This government has allowed 19 percent of the NWT houses to still have core need. The poverty list isn’t getting any shorter. It continues to go unaddressed, and while housing solutions are being ignored by the lackluster investment, we only have no further to look to either the McLeod government or to the Minister R.C. McLeod and start to wonder where they are fighting at the Cabinet table for more money in housing.

There has never been a session that has gone by that I have not heard “we need more housing.” There is not a week that doesn’t go by when I hear from somebody in our community that needs more housing in Yellowknife, and I know that cry is equal, if not worse, in the smaller communities. People need housing solutions.

I never hear about how people are fighting at the Cabinet table about let’s find more money for housing. I just hear about nothing else at all. As a matter of fact, the fact is that they’re all worried about their own little projects. I wish somebody would take housing on as their individual project and become the champion of it.

So, what we see and what we hear is the defence of the status quo. We hear how CMHC, oh boo hoo, no more money. Well, the fact is I’m sick and tired of hearing that. Why don’t we find new solutions? If we keep blaming CMHC, eventually we’re not going to have anyone to blame but ourselves. Well, I certainly hope that we get to that solution a lot faster.

Better yet, if we wanted to do something, this government could show some real brass leadership by leaning forward and saying, “We’re going to build 20 new homes in every community. Now, we don’t need the money immediately, but we could come up with a plan.” Plans such as it would create a jobs boom; we could re-orientate some of our income support money; we could re-orientate some of our housing money; and there are a lot of other types of ways. We could challenge the private sector to say, “We need 20 new units in that community. How can you step up to the challenge?” Money wouldn’t be needed immediately, but it would be over a trend of a couple years as we did payments.

As my time runs out, I certainly hope the enthusiasm of this government doesn’t run out on this problem. Thank you.

Public Housing Needs
Members’ Statements

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Item 4, returns to oral questions. Item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery, Mr. Dolynny.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

Daryl Dolynny

Daryl Dolynny Range Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Through you, I have the great honour and privilege today to introduce a special group from Range Lake North School, a Grade 6 class of social studies. I got to know this class over the year and they’re an incredible group of students, so it’s my pleasure to have them in the House today here and I’d like to introduce each and every one of them. I have Mathieu Durnford, Matthew Broadis, Genesis Saturos, Rayyane Awan, Ethan Aumond, Naba Osman, Stephanie Walsh, Sarah Campbell, Hannah Downes, Aishah Mohammed, Abbey Newberry and I’ve got Drew Wolfe, and unfortunately, two of their colleagues aren’t here today. I know that they’re very enthusiastic, I got to meet them many times, and that’s Elle Mitchener and Bailey Johnston. I’d be remiss if I didn’t thank their teacher, who’s very politically inclined to learn a lot about that and she teaches a lot of this stuff in her classroom, and that’s Josiane Asselin. Thank you. Of course, I’d be remiss if I didn’t thank my good constituency assistant, Mr. Grant Pryznyk, for coordinating all this. You know, Mr. Speaker, before I leave, these students definitely are our future, and if they are, I can tell you our future is really bright. Thank you. Thanks for coming.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Dolynny. Mr. Ramsay.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

David Ramsay

David Ramsay Kam Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Earlier today I hosted the first ever Mining Industry Advisory Board meeting here in Yellowknife. This was a key recommendation from our Mineral Development Strategy and it certainly is an honour here today to welcome four of the six members of that board with us today, so I wanted to recognize them: Mr. Don Bubar of Avalon Rare Metals; Mr. John Kearney, Canadian Zinc; Ms. Leni Keogh of Olivut Resources; Mr. Rod Brown of Discovery Mining Services. Not able to be with us today and I should mention the chair of the advisory board is Mr. Brendan Bell from Dominion Diamond Corp, and also Mr. Darrel Beaulieu from DEMCo. I also wanted to recognize the

ex officio

members, Brooke Clements, president of the NWT and Nunavut Chamber of Mines, and with Brooke is Mr. Tom Hoefer, executive director of NWT and Nunavut Chamber of Mines. Mr. Speaker, I wanted to thank them for all of their commitment to the Northwest Territories and advancing the interests of mining here in the Northwest Territories.

I also wanted to recognize, if I could, a couple of Pages that I have in the Assembly: Marionne Gacayan from Weledeh School and Umairah Mutoola from Weledeh School as well. I also wanted to thank all of the Pages for all of the hard work they put in for Members during this sitting of the House. Thank you.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The honourable Premier, Mr. McLeod.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

Bob McLeod

Bob McLeod Yellowknife South

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’m pleased to recognize two presenters who assisted with the awards. One was Matt Young from NWT IPAC and also Charles Perron from Canadian Public Sector Leader, Deloitte, for the awards that were awarded this morning. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Mr. Beaulieu.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

Tom Beaulieu

Tom Beaulieu Tu Nedhe

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to recognize a couple of people in the Gallery also. I’d like to first recognize Don Bubar, president of Avalon Rare Metals. I’m hoping that someday there might be a rare metals mine in Tu Nedhe. That’ll be good for the workers of Tu Nedhe, both Fort Resolution and Lutselk’e.

Also, I would like to recognize Tom Hoefer, executive director of the NWT Chamber. Tom and I actually worked together in the ‘70s. That is hard to believe, but true.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. That’s only 40 years ago. Mr. Yakeleya.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

Norman Yakeleya

Norman Yakeleya Sahtu

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would also like to recognize Tom Hoefer. Mr. Hoefer gave me a picture of one of our most respected elders in the Sahtu and I want to thank Tom for that picture. It means a lot to me. Thank you, Tom, and congratulations to the new board on mining development.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. I would like to welcome everybody here in the public gallery. Thank you for taking an interest in our proceedings.

Item 6, acknowledgements. Item 7, oral questions. Item 8, written questions. Item 9, returns to written questions. Item 10, replies to opening address. Item 11, petitions. Item 12, reports of standing and special committees, Mr. Moses.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

Alfred Moses

Alfred Moses Inuvik Boot Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Your Standing Committee on Social Programs would like to read in our report on Bill 47, An Act to amend the Child and Family Services Act. Thank you.

Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Moses. Proceed, Mr. Moses.

Alfred Moses

Alfred Moses Inuvik Boot Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Standing Committee on Social Programs is pleased to provide its Report on the Review of Bill 47: An Act to Amend the Child and Family Services Act and commend it to the House.

Introduction

Bill 47, An Act to Amend the Child and Family Services Act, makes enhancements to the Child and Family Services Act. The bill is a long-awaited response to the statutory review by the Standing Committee on Social Programs in 2010.

The bill proposes to expand services offered to youth, require Aboriginal organizations to be notified in advance of child-apprehension hearings or youth-protection hearings, require the director of child and family services to advise clients of their right to legal counsel, provide for mediation processes, require an application for an apprehension order to include a statement of alternatives that were considered, require a review of the act every five years, include involvement in prostitution as grounds for a child or youth needing protection, and adjust time limits for temporary custody depending on the child’s age.

Bill 47 was referred to the committee on March 3, 2015. The public hearing with the Minister was held on April 20, 2015. The clause-by-clause review was held on June 1, 2015. With the Minister’s agreement, five motions to amend the bill were passed at the clause-by-clause review. These amendments are discussed below.

In its review of Bill 47, the committee heard from many stakeholders, including the family law section of the Northwest Territories branch of the Canadian Bar Association; the Northwest Territories Information and Privacy Commissioner; the Yellowknife Seniors’ Society; UNICEF; the Canadian Equal Parenting Council; the Northwest Territories Human Rights Commission; the Greenland family in Aklavik; social workers, including government employees and those in private practice; community advocates; and dozens of residents from across the Northwest Territories.

The committee held public meetings in Yellowknife, Ndilo, Hay River, K’atlodeeche First Nation, Fort Simpson, Behchoko, Deline, Inuvik and Aklavik. Poor weather prevented the committee from flying to Fort Liard and Tuktoyaktuk as planned. During the two-week itinerary, Members also heard from residents about Bill 44, An Act to Amend the Hospital Insurance and Health and Social Services Administration Act.While there was broad support for the bill’s provisions, numerous ideas for improvements were raised. In addition, scores of stakeholders and private residents pointed out deficiencies in the child and family services system. These matters are addressed in the remainder of the report. The concluding section is devoted to recommendations for additional courses of action.

Echoes of the 2010 Report

The department’s poor track record in the area of child and family services cast a dark shadow over the committee’s review of Bill 47. The 2010 report served as a ready reference document and the bleak results of the 2014 report of the Auditor General of Canada were fresh in the minds of Members, including the report’s conclusion that the department had been failing to meet key legislative requirements. While Members are pleased to see a number of recommendations from the 2010 report reflected in the bill, they noted that nearly five years have elapsed. This lack of urgency demonstrates that the child and family services occupy a low priority status on the government’s agenda. Indeed, many stakeholders are pessimistic about the bill resulting in meaningful change.

In a similar vein, some stakeholders stated that the amendments of the act will not address the core issues at hand because legislation and policies are only as good as the infrastructure, the programs and staff that are in place in the communities.

In keeping with the core findings in the 2010 report, dozens of residents and community advocates called for greater compassion from child protection workers and the system in general. It also called for a collaborative approach for dealing with family members as opposed to an adversarial approach.

Noting the legacy of the residential school system and the loss of so many children due to child protection concerns, numerous stakeholders requested a stronger focus on prevention and early intervention strategies, including parenting skills and help for families who are healing from the impact of trauma, addictions, and intergenerational abuse.

The widespread lack of resources was another prevalent theme. One long-time foster parent said, “When I look around at what services are available, I see nothing. Nothing. Nothing. Nothing.” Dozens of respondents complained about a lack of resources across the board from the lack of funding for respite care to give foster parents occasional relief from the duties to the lack of resources for FASD children and their families and the high rates of staff turnover, which lead to patchy and inadequate service delivery.

Several social workers described their heavy caseloads, noting that the volume, complexity and intensity of work in the North poses greater demands on them than their southern peers. Along with a number of private residents, these overworked social workers called for more effective interdepartmental collaboration, especially in small communities where resources are thin on the ground.

It is worth noting that the Tlicho Community Services Agency reported a number of positive changes flowing from the department’s action, which was developed in response to the Auditor General’s 2014 report.

Mediation

During the review of Bill 47, scores of stakeholders and residents called for a stronger mediation process as an alternative to the adversarial court process. Members recalled this is one of the core recommendations from the committee’s 2010 report, and commended the Minister for including a mediation provision in the bill. However, Members agreed with the stakeholders who asked for the provision to be fleshed out. The committee saw merit in the submission from the family law section in the NWT branch of the Canadian Bar Association and agreed with a number of its recommendations. Accordingly, the committee brought forward three motions:

1. A motion was passed to ensure that the parties entering into mediation jointly agree on who will serve as a mediator.

2. A motion was developed to ensure that communications and evidence gathered during any mediation process will be treated as confidential and not used in court proceedings.

The Minister agreed with these two motions.

1. A motion was developed to authorize a judge to order parties to engage in mediation and to set the terms for such a process and to direct the child and family services to cover the cost of the mediation.

The Minister did not concur with that motion. As it is unlikely that parents involved in child protection proceedings will be able to afford the cost of such mediation, Members urged the department to reconsider its position. The committee noted that mediation support of child protection concerns is very successful in other Canadian jurisdictions. With the help of trained and neutral mediators, parents are brought together with social workers, children, grandparents and extended family members, as well as band representatives, legal counsel and others to identify joint solutions. Successful mediations typically result in agreements about such matters as who will care for the child, who will have access to a child in care, how parents can participate in support services, and how the plan of care will unfold. Mediations build trust through collaboration, and thus foster less adversarial relationships between the parties. Indeed, parents who have participated in successful mediations often report that the process enabled them to “find a voice” and feel empowered to make positive changes. The committee believes that greater use of mediation will, in the long run, result in cost savings by virtue of earlier resolution of matters.

It is worth noting that, in the midst of the review, the committee inquired about the department’s capacity to provide mediation services in each of the 33 communities of the Northwest Territories. In its correspondence, the committee noted that a number of mediators are based in Yellowknife but that capacity would likely need to be developed to ensure that child protection matters can be mediated in the communities where they occur. Regrettably, the Minister did not provide a formal reply to this query.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to pass the report on to my colleague Ms. Bisaro. Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Moses. Ms. Bisaro.

Wendy Bisaro

Wendy Bisaro Frame Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thank you, Mr. Moses.

Alternatives to Apprehension

The committee commends the Minister for including a new provision requiring an application for an apprehension order to be accompanied by a sworn statement listing the alternatives to apprehension that were considered. The provision is meant to curb the frequency of apprehensions and to ensure that child protection workers have availed themselves of the least intrusive measures. All too often in the Northwest Territories, families lose their children instead of getting help.

The committee approached the department about an additional provision which would clearly identify the measures taken to facilitate kinship care, including any provision of financial support, and why those measures proved insufficient to prevent an apprehension. The Minister concurred with this motion at the clause-by-clause review.

In addition, responding to a query from a front-line worker, the committee confirmed that any statement listing alternatives to apprehension would be supplied by affidavit and that the rules of evidence would apply.

Kinship Care

During the committee’s public hearings, residents stated repeatedly their desire for a “family first” approach that will give extended family members, especially grandparents, the right of first refusal whenever a child is in need of protection or care. A companion request was for extended family members to receive financial compensation when they care for children on an informal or temporary basis. According to one wearied grandmother who has fostered several grandchildren, “I’m tired and I’m angry. This government is actually going backward. When are things going to change for the better?”

In a similar vein, community residents strongly and repeatedly expressed their desire to see more children remaining in their families and communities of origin and within their cultures. To this end, the committee noted Section 2(f) of the act, which states that child protection measures must promote family and community integrity wherever possible, and Section 3(c) of the act, which states that determining the best interests of the child must include consideration of the child’s cultural, linguistic and spiritual upbringing and ties.

In an attempt to address residents’ concerns within the scope of Bill 47, the committee sought an amendment to the provision that requires an application for an apprehension order to include a statement of alternatives that were considered. The amendment will require that the statement also include a list of any financial supports provided to extended family members to help maintain the child. It is the committee’s hope that this provision will, in appropriate cases, result in the courts rejecting the application and ordering financial support be provided to family members who are willing to care for the child. Recognizing that this amendment does not mandate the provision of financial support for kinship care, the committee noted that these statements will have extra weight because they must be supplied by affidavit.

The committee feels it cannot overstate the degree of concern over perceived deficiencies of the current arrangements, especially when grandparents step in to care for grandchildren and find themselves drained of their personal and financial reserves. Indeed, the discussion surrounding kinship care led Members to conclude that the Child and Family Services Act should be completely revised in the 18th Assembly. Specifically, Members want to see comprehensive new provisions to address kinship care and family-preservation strategies. Potential amendments could include revisions to the preamble so that kinship care is given a prominent place throughout the act. Another example would be a new provision authorizing the court to place a child with a member of the extended family as an alternative to temporary custody.

Youth Services

The committee recalled one of its core findings in 2010: that young people aged 16 to 19 are disadvantaged in our system, to the point where their human rights are compromised. The gap in services for this age group was first raised in 1977 and remains to this day. The changes proposed in Bill 47 allow the director of child and family services to offer the same services to youth as are offered to children, and to extend the director’s parental responsibility for permanent wards to the age of 23.

Like many stakeholders, the committee was pleased to see new provisions for youth services. However, the committee notes, the provisions are largely discretionary. Members are therefore unconvinced that the department will actually follow through on the provision of these services. As a case in point, a number of discretionary provisions to provide youth services already exist in the act and yet these services have largely been denied to young people as they age out of the system.

The committee noted that youth who have been through the child protection system are at a much higher risk of becoming homeless, developing addictions and mental health issues, becoming involved in crime and committing suicide. Accordingly, Members would like to see a much broader range of services offered to these youth. Multi-departmental teams should be set up to support these high-risk youth, and the teams should be comprised of experts in areas such as psychiatry and mental health, literacy and career counselling, nutrition and crime prevention.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to pass the reading of the report to my colleague Mr. Yakeleya. Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. Mr. Yakeleya.

Norman Yakeleya

Norman Yakeleya Sahtu

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Child and Family Services Committees

The committee’s 2010 report included a core recommendation to set up and fund child and family services committees in every community, as set out in the act. Only one community, Fort McPherson, has ever had a child and family services committee, although provisions were first made for them in the act nearly twenty years ago. The lone Fort McPherson experiment was fragile and short-lived.

During the public review, the Minister clarified that these expanded roles in communities would be performed on a voluntary and unpaid basis. Members were uniformly displeased to hear this and their dismay was shared by scores of private residents. The committee concludes that the unpaid and voluntary status of child and family services committees would be an impediment to laypeople’s involvement and would not make the committees more viable.

In the midst of the review, the committee wrote to the Minister and asked if serious consideration had been given to allocating meaningful resources toward this important community-based work. Regrettably, no reply was received. Concluding that the proposed provision to expand roles is empty of substance, the committee prepared a motion to eliminate it. The motion received the concurrence of the Minister.

The committee wishes to note that the motion to eliminate an expansion of duties for child and family services committees was initially a gesture of protest. Upon further deliberation, however, Members concluded that the model has never proven to be viable. The committee is therefore urging the department to introduce a separate bill to remove all provisions pertaining to child and family services committees in the act and, further, urging the department to investigate viable alternatives for involving community members in the child protection process. The committee notes, for example, that New Zealand and a number of Canadian jurisdictions have had success in their use of family group conferences.

Notifying Aboriginal Organizations

Bill 47 includes a new provision which requires Aboriginal organizations to be notified in advance of an apprehension hearing or youth protection hearing. While the Information and Privacy Commissioner expressed concerns about the privacy implications of this provision and called for tighter restrictions, the committee did not agree, noting that companion provisions already exist in the act.

A number of representatives from Aboriginal organizations expressed confusion over the purpose of the notification provisions and, specifically, what they are expected to do with the information once it is received.

The committee therefore urges the department to establish a protocol with Aboriginal organizations for handling sensitive information. The goal should be to strike a balance between the rights of Aboriginal governments to know what is happening to their children, on the one hand, and the privacy rights of children and family members, on the other hand.

Right to Legal Counsel

The committee commends the Minister for the new provision requiring the director of child and family services to inform clients of their right to legal counsel. However, the committee wanted to see stronger obligations. The Minister agreed to a motion to amend which places a positive obligation on the director of child and family services to facilitate clients’ access to legal counsel and, where appropriate, the services of an interpreter. In the committee’s view, this additional provision merely codifies what should already be happening in practice.

Mr. Speaker, I will now turn the report over to Mrs. Groenewegen.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mrs. Groenewegen.

Jane Groenewegen

Jane Groenewegen Hay River South

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Recommended Actions

The Standing Committee on Social Programs recommends the following courses of action:

1. that the Department of Health and Social Services completely rewrite the Child and Family Services Act in the 18th Assembly, with renewed emphasis on kinship care and strategies oriented toward mediation, prevention, early intervention and family preservation;

2. that the Department of Health and Social Services take stronger measures to keep children within their families and communities of origin, including devoting additional funding for prevention, early intervention and family-preservation strategies;

3. that the Department of Health and Social Services move swiftly and assertively to build capacity in the area of mediation across the Northwest Territories;

4. that the Department of Health and Social Services cover the cost of hiring and training mediators in order to facilitate more collaborative and favourable outcomes;

5. that the Department of Health and Social Services establish a protocol with Aboriginal organizations for handling sensitive information, striking a balance between the rights of Aboriginal organizations to know what is happening to their children and the privacy rights of children and family members;

6. that the Department of Health and Social Services act immediately to introduce a bill to remove all provisions pertaining to child and family services committees in the act;

7. that the Department of Health and Social Services investigate viable alternatives to child and family services committees that will promote community involvement in the child protection process;

8. that the Department of Health and Social Services investigate the approach whereby the problem parent is removed from the home instead of apprehending the child;

9. that the Department of Health and Social Services provide community-based workshops and healing camps to parents and families as a cost-effective alternative to sending people out for treatment or counselling;

10. that the Department of Health and Social Services work toward building people’s capacity to parent effectively and competently; and

11. that the Government of the Northwest Territories engage in discussions with UNICEF to examine whether this jurisdiction is doing to enough to recognize and promote children’s human rights.

Recommendations

Recommendation 1

That the Government of the Northwest Territories provide a comprehensive response to this report within 120 days.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I pass the reading of the report over to Mr. Moses.