Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  You're going to get large increases and lose more and more culture, and you'll lose more and more children to the system. That's the end result, if you don't take care of it.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  You talk about comparability. Just take the words “off reserve” and “on reserve” off, which is an assimilation policy from INAC. We as Indian people even use it against our own people. We say “We can't help you because you're off reserve”. Or we say “We can't help you because you're on reserve”.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Ron Pollock has been with the ministry of social services for 38 years. It's a great honour to have Ron sit as my chairperson; we got some backing.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  According to the panel review you're talking about, no matter what changes the Province of Saskatchewan makes—there were 12 recommendations that came out of it, and Howard was a part of that—no matter what kinds of risk models or safety models.... You talk about things being “culturally appropriate”, but you still have staff by the province, which is under unions.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  We have to eat it, yes.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Thank you. In Saskatchewan, we had at least three months' notice, so we have to more or less buy in to the program.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  No. In Saskatchewan we have 18 agencies, and I think 17 agencies have bought into it. It's to enhance what we already have through the operations, but it more or less caps our maintenance. If we as an agency happen to apprehend more than 50 children, we don't have the maintenance to cover that.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I'll just introduce myself. I'm the executive director with the Beardy's child and family services. It's an honour to sit in front of you and to share again what Howard has said. I echo everything. I appreciate the attention. Gitchi-Meegwetch.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I'm glad you mentioned that and asked, “What do we need to do?” Every year we have to bring it again before Treasury. We've set out a five-year plan through the enhancement project, but again, as Howard was mentioning, it's reprofiling those moneys; there are no real new moneys to change.