Attendance rates are a huge concern. I don't really have the answer to why they are not improving. Everybody, in my opinion, has been kind of blaming everybody else. Everyone is afraid of it. They are saying, "Is it the parents' responsibility? Is it the Aboriginal governments' responsibility? Is it the community's responsibility? Is it the teachers' responsibility?" Those questions are not okay for me.

I have actually brought it up at the Education Leaders, which has all of the chairs and the superintendents from all of the regions' 10 education boards, councils, authorities. I said this is an issue. I had to bring it up twice because I think they were afraid of it. I said, "It is an issue for me, and so I want it on the agenda." I said, "We need to look at possible solutions because it is easy to say, 'If the kids don't get there, it is not our problem,' but it becomes our problem because these children coming later, they might not have the qualifications. They hold up other studies. We have to spend more time. We need to tackle this."

Unfortunately, the last Education Leaders meeting has happened for this Assembly. I have brought it up to them. I asked it to be on the agenda, and I am hoping that the Minister in the next Assembly will carry this forward, because it is not okay that our children are not going to school.