Minister of Human Services responds to OCYA Report

Dec 16, 2015

Minister of Human Services Irfan Sabir issued the following statement in response to the Child and Youth Advocate’s Investigative Review:

“I was very saddened to hear about the trauma and hardships of the youth detailed in this report. I believe we must do everything in our power to help young people impacted by trauma and mental health issues, and provide needed supports. As a government, we are aware that the state of mental health services in our province needs to be looked at after years of underfunding by the previous government. That’s why we launched a Mental Health Review that is being led by Danielle Larivee, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Minister of Service Alberta, and Dr. David Swann, MLA for Calgary-Mountain View.

“We also recognize that fewer placements are crucial for a child’s well-being and should be the goal whenever possible. We accept the recommendations provided in this report and will work with the Child and Youth Advocate to see how they can be implemented. Our government values the input of the Child and Youth Advocate and his work towards our shared goal of protecting Alberta’s children.”

Media inquiries

Aileen Machell

780-292-0154

Press Secretary, Human Services

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