Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

2. Privacy Protection

It was stated by members of the public at a public meeting that the urgency of finding missing people is more important to their community than the protection of someone's privacy. There was no concerns on the privacy of missing persons, as long as common sense was considered when taking into account the protection of someone's privacy.

Committee received a recommendation to add third party consent clauses to the legislation, similar to British Columbia's Missing Persons Act. This clause requires the police to gain third party consent first before proceeding with a record access. Committee notes this suggestion but felt that the legislation covers most common scenarios that are seen in the NWT and does not require the addition of third-party consent clauses.

As described in a written submission by the Salvation Army-Yellowknife division, it was recommended that care must be taken when the RCMP is requesting information that could be helpful in a missing persons investigation. It was also recommended that the information requested be pertinent to the case of the missing person. There were concerns on the potential of accidentally providing information to somebody's abuser - which highlighted the importance of protecting a person that may be fleeing domestic violence. When ascertaining a missing person's well-being, the RCMP stressed that they do not provide information that is not agreed upon by consent of the missing person for release.

During a presentation by the YWCA-NWT, it was recommended there be training for justices handling missing persons cases to ensure their approach is trauma-informed when granting access to records or search warrants. They highlighted the importance of being sensitive to the issue of domestic violence and the various dynamics that exist with missing persons cases.

It was also recommended there be training on the Missing Persons Act and its usage for RCMP, non-profit organizational staff, and shelter workers.

Committee takes note of this feedback and presents the following recommendation:

Recommendation 3: The Standing Committee on Social Development recommends the Government of the Northwest Territories establish training specific to the Missing Persons Act and its responsible, culturally-appropriate usage for justices, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, non-profit staff, and shelter workers.

3. Communication

There were public concerns on the difficulty for families and friends of missing persons to contact the RCMP to receive information and updates on ongoing missing persons investigations. It was highlighted that it is critical for the family affected by a missing persons investigation to be updated often so that family members do not have to consistently approach the RCMP for updates. There was a suggestion to create a liaison position to support the families of missing persons, especially with relaying information to and from the RCMP and communication regarding the investigation. Committee appreciated this suggestion, and also heard a large emphasis on ensuring local, trusted people on the ground in communities were being utilized rather than officials from elsewhere, where possible.

As such, this theme of communication with the family of a missing person has been factored in with Recommendation 1 of this report, where a committee is established on the ground in the community of the missing person to aid with communication between the family and the authorities.

Mr. Speaker, I now call on the honourable Member for Yellowknife North to continue this report. Thank you.