Wendy Bisaro

Thanks, Mr. Chair. I just wanted to ask a question here with regard to the women’s advisory, and there’s also a women’s initiatives grants on the next page. The women’s advisory office does a number of things. One of the things that I understand it does is to work to try and give a greater profile across government to sort of gender-based analysis. Could I just start with that question? Is that a function of the women’s advisory office to try and enhance the understanding of gender-based analysis across all of government? Thank you.

In March 6, 2009, Hansard, then Minister of Health Sandy Lee stated, “Our program also provides for non-medical escorts where a patient needs assistance for physical support or even mental support for those who are in particular situations. Anyone over 65 is eligible for even non-medical escorts and for interpretation.” Yet, the GNWT Medical Travel Policy makes no reference to this provision, and my constituent was denied funding for something approved by two ministerial statements. So just what weight does the Minister’s word carry?

I will have questions for the Minister of Health and Social...

Thank you. I’m just trying to understand and I have, unfortunately, the same sort of opinion as Mr. Bromley does, that there’s a large percentage of half of our population who don’t have an opportunity to be “consulted,” what I see, in my mind, as consulting. So it sounds to me as though 50 percent of our population is not going to have the ability to say yes or no to this agreement. I guess I would just like to know from the Premier if he thinks that’s an accurate assessment. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thanks to the Minister and the DM for the information. I just want to say that I appreciate the fact that the department’s been working really hard and the Auditor General also has been working with the department really hard to try and improve the process and to get the public accounts out a lot earlier. I’ve seen an improvement and I just hope we can maintain that. Good on you for working so hard.

Thanks, committee. We move to page 9-32, Justice, activity summary, corrections, grants and contributions, contributions, $179,000.

Thanks, Mr. Chair. I have to ask a question here with regard to the NGO Stabilization Fund. This amount for this fund has stayed the same, certainly for these three years that we can see, and I don’t think it’s been increased since its inception. I think the Minister is well aware, and I think the department is well aware, that there are huge demands from our NGOs for extra funds over and above what they either fundraise for themselves or manage to get from various and sundry program grants or other grants elsewhere.

I’d like to know, first of all, whether the Minister considers the demands for...

Thanks to the Premier for that. So if the consultation is only being done because of a legal requirement for Aboriginal governments, am I right in assuming, then, that non-Aboriginal peoples will not be consulted? They will simply be provided with information. Is that correct? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Just two questions here. One has to do with the Audit Bureau. We have, in my experience, been struggling to fully staff the internal Audit Bureau for a number of years now. I just wondered if I could get an update. Do these numbers in this budget reflect a fully staffed Audit Bureau?

Thanks Minister. Mr. Moses is done, I have nobody else on my list. We’re on page 9-31, committee.

Just a comment here, I guess, in response. To the Premier, I would suggest that you seriously consider making it a public document. We talk about wanting to be transparent, we want to be accountable to residents and so on, and there’s this sort of perception out there, rightly or wrongly, that the government is a great big bureaucracy, and inefficient, and wasting money and time and effort and so on. So this may be one way that we can show NWT residents that, yes, we are actually efficient and these are the things that we’re looking at. Again, it may be an opportunity for us to get something...