(June 3, 2013) - Mr. Speaker, we all know the terrible toll that addictions take on our people and our communities.  Widespread addictions are one of the biggest barriers to achieving the vision and priorities of this Assembly – it is a driving force behind family breakdown, incarceration, homelessness, and developmental delays in children.

As a government, we have invested millions of dollars into tackling this issue, and commissioned numerous reports but we haven’t seen much improvement.

This is why I convened the Minister’s Forum on Addictions and Community Wellness.  I believe that our communities and our people have the answers.

Mr. Speaker, at the appropriate time today, I will table the Report and recommendations of the Minister’s Forum.  I want to thank the members of the Forum and acknowledge their efforts, and I especially want to commend Mr. Paul Andrew, who chaired the Forum and provided leadership to this important initiative.  The Forum members have produced an excellent and comprehensive report.

The Forum’s conclusions and recommendations are consistent with what we have heard in other consultations over the past several months.  Communities are telling us that their top priority is for more investment to support on-the-land programs for community healing.  A second priority is more programming for youth.

Mr. Speaker, the Forum’s recommendations on improving addictions treatment in the Northwest Territories are consistent with what I have heard from MLAs.   Communities told us they want to see residential treatment improved, but more importantly, they want to see a greater emphasis on aftercare and detox programs.

Over the summer, I will work with other Ministers to develop a detailed response to the report that will be coordinated with other action plans like Early Childhood Development and Anti-Poverty.  But we will not wait until that response is finalized to take action.

This year’s budget includes new funding to address some of the Forum priorities, including enhancing on-the-land programs, improving residential treatment programs and aftercare, and focusing on youth addictions.  That important work is already under way and will continue.  Through the business-planning process we will target priorities for increased investment throughout this government.

The recommendations of the Minister’s Forum will help us to build on the commitments in our existing Mental Health and Addictions Action Plan, and help us to target priorities for increased investment.  Thank you, Mr. Speaker.