Robert Hawkins

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Well, seeing how the Minister didn’t answer the question, maybe I’ll ask it this way. Mr. Speaker, if the Minister is hearing me now, when will he consider establishing a new board and would he consider using the existing governance board, called the Joint Leadership Council, and establishing them as the board for Stanton Territorial Hospital in an efficient and in a timely way? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Merci, Monsieur President. Mr. Speaker, it has been three and a half years since Stanton Territorial Hospital last had a board. Since that time, this hospital has been under the direct control of the Minister, the Department of Health and Social Services and through a public administrator. In 2003, the Minister, and I have to say with some credible vision, established a Joint Leadership Council made up by the Minister, the deputy minister, and the chairs of all the health and social service authorities around our NWT. The mandate of this council includes providing advice, general guidance...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Well, I’m not allowed to say I’ve been mislead, but I certainly personally feel as if we’re missing the whole story on this, because the Minister had given me sort of an outline on what the Joint Leadership Council did and it does not govern and it does not have that responsibility. It gets to play a little friendly role where they get to come along and talk about the Stanton Territorial Hospital. So I’m asking today, would the Minister take that strident leap of leadership and appoint this Joint Leadership Council as the new board for Stanton Territorial Hospital?...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I stated earlier today in my Member’s statement, the Stanton Territorial Hospital has been without a board for the last three and a half years. The Minister had established a Joint Leadership Council using the chairs under his leadership and authority since 2003. They have been treating it in an operation governance since. My question to the Minister of Health and Social Services is, today, will he agree to give out his control and formalize the existing Joint Leadership Council and appoint them as the new board for the Stanton Territorial Hospital? Thank you...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Well, I’m not allowed to say I’ve been mislead, but I certainly personally feel as if we’re missing the whole story on this, because the Minister had given me sort of an outline on what the Joint Leadership Council did and it does not govern and it does not have that responsibility. It gets to play a little friendly role where they get to come along and talk about the Stanton Territorial Hospital. So I’m asking today, would the Minister take that strident leap of leadership and appoint this Joint Leadership Council as the new board for Stanton Territorial Hospital?...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I stated earlier today in my Member’s statement, the Stanton Territorial Hospital has been without a board for the last three and a half years. The Minister had established a Joint Leadership Council using the chairs under his leadership and authority since 2003. They have been treating it in an operation governance since. My question to the Minister of Health and Social Services is, today, will he agree to give out his control and formalize the existing Joint Leadership Council and appoint them as the new board for the Stanton Territorial Hospital? Thank you...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Well, it sounds like we’re finally making some headway. So I appreciate that because if they actually have that responsibility his last answer wouldn’t have said working to and working to formalize. That being said, that the Minister has underscored that they are not established with that responsibility, can the Minister point out the time frame of when they will have the ultimate authority and will he appoint the Joint Leadership Council, that he had the vision to establish, as the board for Stanton Territorial Hospital? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I, too, would like to recognize Judith Knapp. She is a wonderful friend and a constituent. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My Member’s statement today is about Caribou Forever. The report tells us that 40 to 86 percent of the caribou have disappeared over the past five years. Are the caribou restrictions addressing the real problem? Or, Mr. Speaker, do we just react rashly to an emergency situation that should have never started? Resident hunters are being singled out, Mr. Speaker. With the lack of numbers on how many caribou are really being taken, are we really solving the problem? We don’t have solid numbers on the wolf population. We don’t know for sure what the real reason is...

I move that this committee recommends that the Executive Council table a comprehensive response to this report within 120 days in accordance with Rule 93(5) of the rules of the Legislative Assembly.