Julie Green

I think there's a misunderstanding here. The Minister knew about these problems in 2009. He knew about them in 2014. He's been reminded about them this week. My question is: when is the Minister going to show leadership on this issue? It is he who fights for the budget and argues over the spending priorities. Why, over all these years, has he been unable to make the business case to adequately finance Child and Family Services?

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services. When he was a member of the Social Programs Standing Committee, he and his colleagues made 70 recommendations on the Child and Family Services Act. The committee report says: "We also recognize that some of our most important recommendations will require investment. The committee believes very strongly that the future of the NWT children and families warrants this investment." That was nine years ago. What happened to those recommendations? Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, the Government of the Northwest Territories has supported the YWCA with a grant in kind by making the Rockhill Apartment available through the Transitional Housing Program, and it is my understanding that this grant in kind has been deleted because the building burned down. Could the Minister confirm that is the case?

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, under Community Health Programs, I see that there's an expenditure to provide funding for an extension of a grant in-kind related to the renewal of the lease with the Young Women's Christian Association for the Rock Hill Apartments. Can the Minister give us an update on the status of that grant in-kind, given the fact that the building has burned down? Thank you.

This work is so important that, in the last three years, the budget has increased by 5 percent or $172,000. On what basis is the Minister treating this crisis as a crisis?

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services. The report I mentioned in my statement today reported to a Ministerial committee on spousal assault in the Assembly of the day in 1985. This committee brought together a wide range of service providers, officials from government departments, the Status of Women, and others whose work included family violence. What would it take for this Minister to treat this crisis as a crisis and re-establish this coordinated approach to the issue? Mahsi.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker:

"Spousal assault in the Northwest Territories is a social problem of grave proportions. Wives, husbands and lovers have their eyes blackened, their teeth knocked out, their ribs and legs broken, their bodies bruised, and their lives disfigured by violence as a result of assaults which occur daily in the Northwest Territories. For many victims, beatings are regular and frequent."

"Spousal assault strikes at the heart of family and community life. It reaches every part of our society. Many of those who assault were raised in families where spousal assault has taken...

Thank you for that confirmation. I don't really have any further questions on this point. I have a comment that there will need to be, I think, some help for the YWCA to continue the Transitional Housing Program, but I realize that it is not covered in this supp. Thank you.

That's a trick question because the page now looks different.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, when the barges are in crisis, there is money to be found immediately, and the problem is on its way to resolution. Now that we are in the fourth year of this Assembly, the Minister is making a business case for more resources for family violence. I can't say it's too little, too late. Everything is appreciated, but the fact is that this area needs serious attention. It needs new initiatives, and I'm looking for a commitment for the Minister of action, not just talking. Is he able to make that commitment? Mahsi.