EdinburghNLP/nunavut-hansard-plusplus huggingface dataset:
“Eventually, we do plan to have some people in Rankin Inlet trained in assessment to be able to take direct admission, but we are not there yet.
It’s part of the training that’s ongoing and that’s going to be coming up.”
In his report, the Auditor General stated that during the 2013-2014 fiscal year, the average length of stay for inmates at the Baffin Correctional Centre and the Rankin Inlet Healing Facility was 75 days and that inmates within the sample of the audit had to wait an average of 13 days to be assessed.
The Standing Committee emphasizes the importance of completing inmates’ assessments in a timely manner to enable staff to develop and utilize case plans that will guide inmates in their rehabilitation.
The Standing Committee notes that performing initial assessments will require more trained staff and encourages the department to provide the necessary training to its current staff at the earliest opportunity.
During the Standing Committee’s hearings, the Auditor General stated that:
“[W]e found that serious case management deficiencies at the Baffin Correctional Centre and the Rankin Inlet Healing Facility limit the department’s efforts to rehabilitate inmates and prepare them for release back into the community.
For example, none of the inmates sampled had a completed case plan to guide their rehabilitation.
In addition, access to rehabilitative programs and mental health services was inadequate, and limited planning was done to help prepare inmates for release.”
In his report to the Legislative Assembly, the Auditor General notes that staff at the Rankin Inlet Healing Facility were not trained to complete case plans and that all plans were completed at the Baffin Correctional Centre.
The Auditor General also notes that case plans developed at the Baffin Correctional Centre were incomplete and lacked critical elements such as goals to address inmate’s need and recommendations for programs and services to fit those needs.
The audit also found that there was “a lack of monitoring of inmates progress against inmates’ case plans and limited planning for inmates’ release.”
The Standing Committee notes that the development and review of case plans for inmates is essential to ensuring inmates’ needs and risks are identified and that progress can be effectively assessed throughout the duration of their stay at a correctional facility.
Comprehensive case plans specific to each inmate allow both staff and inmates to identify measurable goals and benchmarks for success.
Regular, documented reviews of inmates’ case plans also allows for staff and inmates to track inmates’ progress and to adjust programming and services as inmates’ needs and risks evolve during their stay at a correctional facility.
The Corrections Service is responsible for preparing inmates for release and reintegration into the community.
In his report, the Auditor General states that his office “found that the corrections directives contain little guidance on ways to plan for an inmate’s release, despite indicating the importance of such planning.”
Further, the Office of the Auditor General found that a release plan had been completed for only one of the twenty-one files sampled in its audit.
During the Standing Committee’s hearings, Members asked a number of questions concerning the corrections division’s specific guidelines for preparing release plans and planning for an inmate’s reintegration into the community.
While government witnesses made a number of references to programming and indicated that staff members discuss inmates’ release in undocumented conversations, Members did not receive clear information on specific actions that correctional staff must take in order to prepare inmates for their release from a correctional facility.
During the Standing Committee’s hearings, Members also asked a number of questions concerning the division’s specific process and timelines for preparing inmates for their release from correctional facilities.
“My understanding is that there’s no regulated time period and there’s no regulated framework, but rather, the transition into the community starts from the very day the individual comes into our facilities, is assessed, a case management plan is ideally put in place, and we start offering the programming to the individual, including working with the elders and the counselling and the mental health services, all of those things.”
The Standing Committee recognizes that planning for an inmates’ release is embedded within the case management process.
However, the corrections division must ensure that it is providing clear guidance for staff concerning required documentation and actions that must be taken in preparation for inmates’ release from the correctional facility and that release planning is effectively preparing inmates for their reintegration into the community.
The Standing Committee notes with concern that ineffective case management may prevent inmates from accessing rehabilitative programs, such as anger management or substance abuse, and therefore prevents inmates from receiving support that may have assisted them with successful rehabilitation.
The Standing Committee also notes that the compliance-oriented position that the department intends to create will also be responsible for conducting “annual audits on the completion of assessments and case management plans.”
Issue: Rehabilitative Programming
Under the Corrections Act, the department is responsible for providing programs to inmates within the correctional system to aid in their rehabilitation and reintegration to the community.
In his report, the Auditor General states that the rehabilitative programs offered to inmates are intended to “minimize the negative effects of imprisonment, help their personal development, and prepare them for successful reintegration into the community. “
During the Standing Committee’s hearings, government witnesses made reference to a number of rehabilitative programs that are currently offered within Nunavut’s correctional facilities, including programs to address substance abuse, spousal abuse, anger management, educational upgrading, counselling and the outpost camp program.
In his report, the Auditor General indicates that his office found that “inmates did not have adequate access to rehabilitative programs at the Baffin Correctional Centre and Rankin Inlet Healing Facility.”
According to the corrections directives, correctional facilities must have program plans that clarify program schedules, space, resources and costs and establish goals and objectives which provide measures for success for each program.
In his report, the Auditor General states that “without a program plan, including financial and human resources to provide programming to inmates, it was difficult for facility staff to monitor access and delivery.”
During the Standing Committee’s hearings, Members asked a number of questions related to programs offered within the territory’s correctional facilities.
In response, departmental officials indicated that programs are offered based on the needs of inmates within the facility and differ throughout the course of a year.
However, the Standing Committee notes with concern that the department did not provide clear information on how the department determines program schedules, and financial and human resources required to operate programs.
During the Standing Committee’s hearings, Members asked questions concerning the department’s efforts to assess the effectiveness of its programs.
The issue of recidivism has been raised in the House on a number of occasions.
The Standing Committee notes with concern that the department still does not have the capacity to measure the rate at which offenders reoffend.
In his report, the Auditor General states the following:
“We also found that the Department had not assessed whether it was addressing the needs of the overall inmate population with its programming, nor had it reviewed the programs that it offers to see how much they help to rehabilitate inmates.
Currently, programs at the Baffin Correctional Centre are based on existing programs or materials from external sources, but it was not clear how these have been tailored to inmates’ backgrounds.”
The Standing Committee recognizes that recidivism, as a concept, is difficult to define and that clearly and comprehensively measuring recidivism may require a significant allocation of time and resources.
However, the Standing Committee strongly encourages the department to determine a method by which it can assess its rehabilitative programming to ensure that it remains relevant to the inmates and that any gaps in the corrections division’s current programming are identified and addressed.
In order to adequately evaluate the current programming that is being delivered, the corrections division must also ensure that it is keeping comprehensive documentation related to programming schedules, attendance and inmates’ progress.
The Standing Committee notes that in response to recommendations made by the Auditor General concerning mental health services, the department has indicated that it has been preparing a request for proposals “to assess current programs and services in relation to incarcerated Nunavummiut’s risks and needs in Nunavut correctional facilities.”
The Standing Committee looks forward to ongoing updates on this initiative.
Issue: Mental Health Services
As a part of its mandate to provide treatment and rehabilitation to inmates, the Corrections Service is responsible for providing mental health services to inmates when necessary.
In many cases, the criminal behaviour of offenders is related to underlying mental health issues.
In these cases, the inmates’ successful rehabilitation relies on the correctional services’ ability to identify and address inmates’ mental health needs.
During the Standing Committee’s hearings, Members raised many concerns related to the corrections division’s efforts to provide mental health services to inmates.
In response, departmental officials indicated that the corrections division provides mental health services through psychological services, counselling from correctional staff and elders and a number of rehabilitative programs.
During the Standing Committee’s hearings, Departmental officials indicated that the corrections division has one psychologist at the Baffin Correctional Centre and that the department provides training for all correctional staff in Mental Health First Aid for Northern People.
Departmental officials also indicated that the division currently does not have the resources to provide adequate mental health services to inmates in the territory.
“We found a program in place at the Baffin Correctional Centre for inmates with higher mental health needs.
Despite this, we found that inmates whose files we reviewed did not receive adequate access to mental health services.
Of the 12 inmates in our sample who were identified as requiring psychological services, only 2 received referrals to the psychologist and 2 had access to a psychiatrist on one occasion.”
In his report, the Auditor General noted that inmates at the Rankin Inlet Healing Facility “did not have access to the psychologist but could use community supports.” During the Standing Committee’s hearings, Members asked a number of questions related to the specific counseling supports that are provided at the Rankin Inlet Healing Facility. In response, departmental officials indicated that local elders and support groups, such as the regional men’s support group, Angutiit Makigiarngningit, often provide counseling to the inmates.
Departmental officials recognized that the division needs to improve its documentation and tracking of mental health services currently provided to inmates and indicated that it is currently planning to perform an analysis of its mental health services in all correctional facilities.
The Standing Committee notes that the division is working with the Department of Health’s mental health division to identify ways to improve services for inmates during their stay in the correctional facility and after their release.
The Standing Committee recognizes that mental health is an ongoing concern for individuals and groups throughout the territory and encourages the department to ensure that inmates’ mental health needs are identified and to explore ways to improve its delivery of mental health services within the corrections system.
Issue: Staffing
The Office of the Auditor General found that the department has been inadequately managing its staffing of the Baffin Correctional Centre and the Rankin Inlet Healing Facility.
Specifically, the department did not have a fully trained staff complement and is relying on casual employees and overtime, while failing to manage and monitor overtime usage.
The Rankin Inlet Healing Facility officially opened in January 2013; Makigiarvik has been open since January of 2015.
In his report to the Legislative Assembly, the Auditor General indicates that the department did not perform comprehensive staffing analyses to prepare for the opening of the new facilities.
As a result, the Rankin Inlet Healing Facility was opened before it were fully staffed and before staff was fully trained to undertake the duties required of their positions.
To address the staffing shortages in each of these facilities and the staffing challenges at the Baffin Correctional Centre, the division has had to rely on casual employees and overtime, at a great cost to the department.
In his report, the Auditor General notes that the department received $2.8 million in funding to “cover a shortfall in salary expenses for overtime and casual staff in the 2013-2014 fiscal year.”
During the Standing Committee’s hearings, Members raised a number of questions concerning the department's failure to fully train its staff in its correctional facilities.
In response, departmental officials indicated that the initial staffing of the Rankin Inlet Healing Centre and Makigiarvik were undertaken without the time or resources normally required of staffing a correctional facility due to the overcrowding and mould remediation at the Baffin Correctional Centre.
In fact, during the hearings, departmental officials indicated that the department had not yet completed its recruitment for staff at the Makigiarvik centre.
The department also indicated that it is currently facing high rates of turnover that require the department to provide ongoing training to new employees.
The Standing Committee notes with concern that the Auditor General’s report has highlighted a number of inconsistencies between the corrections directives and the division’s daily operations, including requirements related to segregated confinement and case management.
The Standing Committee recognizes that the department is currently working on a comprehensive review of its legislation, policy, directives and operating procedures.
The Standing Committee strongly encourages the department to ensure that its directives are relevant, detailed and comprehensive, so as to provide staff with clear direction on the division’s expectations and operating procedures, especially given that it is currently facing challenges with staff turnover.
The Standing Committee also strongly encourages the division to ensure that correctional staff receive the necessary training to fulfil their mandated responsibilities under the corrections directives.
In his report, the Auditor General notes that the division has recently developed a new training regime that required all correctional staff to take newly mandated training. As a result, many correctional staff had not completed the key mandatory training.
The department has indicated that it may take up to two years before all correctional staff members are fully trained.
The Standing Committee notes that the department is currently implementing a new electronic system to track training that has been completed by its correctional staff. The Standing Committee emphasises the importance of ensuring that all correctional staff receive the necessary training to undertake their duties in a way that provides a safe and secure environment for inmates and staff within correctional facilities.
The Standing Committee recognizes that the department has recently issued a Request for Proposals for a Staffing, Overtime and Organizational Review of the Nunavut Corrections Division and that the purpose of this analysis is to identify the underlying causes of staffing challenges within the division and determine solutions to address these issues.
The Standing Committee looks forward to ongoing updates on this work.
During the Standing Committee’s hearings, Members also raised concerns in relation to the division’s current initiatives to increase Inuit employment within the division.
In response, departmental officials indicated that the department has undertaken a number of recruitment events within the communities.
The Standing Committee encourages the department to explore ways in which it can improve its efforts in this area.
In recent years, Members of the current and previous Legislative Assembly have asked a number of detailed written questions to the Minister of Justice, requesting specific information related to the corrections division’s staffing, programming and services.
It is important that the government provide detailed and updated information on its actions and initiatives to fulfil its responsibilities as mandated by territorial legislation.
This transparency is especially important when the legislation has been created to protect and serve vulnerable sectors of society.
For example, under the regulations of the Family Abuse Intervention Act, the Minister is required to table an annual report that must contain information on applications received, recommendations for counselling, summary reports of the government’s initiatives to address and prevent family abuse and outstanding needs of the communities.
Given that inmates are wards of the territory and are protected under the Corrections Act, it is equally important that the Minister of Justice provide detailed and updated information on the actions that his department undertakes to fulfil its responsibility to safely house inmates and guide their rehabilitation and successful reintegration into the community.
4th Legislative Assembly of Nunavut  June 2015
The mandate of the Standing Committee on Oversight of Government
Operations and Public Accounts is to:
• Consider main estimates, capital estimates, departmental business plans and corporate business plans; and
• Consider any other matter referred by the House.
The Standing Committee has oversight responsibility for the following Government of Nunavut departments, territorial corporations, Crown agencies and other entities:
• Department of Executive and Intergovernmental Affairs;
• Department of Finance;
• Nunavut Business Credit Corporation;
• Nunavut Development Corporation;
• Qulliq Energy Corporation;
• Workers’ Safety and Compensation Commission;
• Human Rights Tribunal;
• Inuit Uqausinginnik Taiguusiliuqtiit;
• Legal Services Board;
• Liquor Licensing Board;
• Qulliit Nunavut Status of Women Council;
• Utility Rates Review Council;
• Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit Katimajiit; and
• Unless otherwise specified in the terms of reference for any other Standing Committee, all other boards and agencies of the Government of Nunavut.
• Considering the Public Accounts of the Government of Nunavut and the reports of the Auditor General of Canada;
• Considering the annual reports of the Chief Electoral Officer of Nunavut;
• Considering the annual reports of the Information and Privacy  Commissioner of Nunavut;
• Considering the annual reports of the Languages Commissioner of  Nunavut;
• Considering the annual reports of the Representative for Children and  Youth;
• Considering the annual reports of the Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit Katimajiit;
• Considering the annual reports on the status of Inuit culture and society that are prepared under Article 32.3.4 of the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement; and
• Considering issues related to the Government of Nunavut's obligations with respect to the implementation of the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement.
• Consider legislative proposals;
• Consider Bills referred by the House after Second Reading, pursuant to the Rules of the Legislative Assembly;
• Consider regulations that are proposed and/or passed by the government;
• Make recommendations to the Government of Nunavut concerning the integration of Inuit Societal Values and Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit into the  laws of Nunavut; and
The Standing Committee has oversight responsibility for the following  Government of Nunavut departments and Crown agencies:
• Department of Culture and Heritage;
• Department of Education;
• Department of Family Services;
• Department of Health;
• Department of Justice; and
• Nunavut Arctic College.
The mandate of the Standing Committee on Community and Economic  Development is to:
• Department of Community and Government Services;
• Department of Economic Development and Transportation;
• Department of Environment; and
• Nunavut Housing Corporation.
• Consider the operation of the Rules of the Legislative Assembly of
Nunavut; and
• Consider any other matter referred by the House with respect to the Rules of the Legislative Assembly of Nunavut.
The Standing Committee recommends that the Department of Justice provide, in its response to this report, a comprehensive and detailed action plan that includes timelines and specific actions that it will undertake to address each of the recommendations made in the Auditor General’s 2015 Report on Corrections in Nunavut.
The Standing Committee recommends that the Department of Justice provide, in its response to this report, detailed information on the specific actions that it is taking to prepare for the territory’s projected capacity needs.
The Standing Committee further recommends that the Department of Justice provide, in its response to this report, detailed information on the options that it is currently considering to address the lack of maximum-security beds in Nunavut’s correctional system, including any related cost estimates.
The Standing Committee further recommends that the Department of Justice provide, in its response to this report, detailed information on any of its ongoing or planned reports and reviews related to Nunavut’s correctional facility needs.
The Standing Committee further recommends that the Department of Justice provide, in its response to this report, detailed information on the oversight measures that it will implement to ensure all necessary emergency evacuation drills and inspections at the correctional facilities are performed until such a time as the new compliance-oriented position is created and filled.
The Standing Committee further recommends the Department of Justice provide, in its response to this report, a detailed timeline for the completion of the mould remediation project at the Baffin Correctional Centre.
The Standing Committee recommends that the Department of Justice provide, in its response to this report, the oversight measures that it will implement to ensure that all correctional staff are performing and documenting the required justification, authorization and regular review of segregation placements, until such a time as the new electronic system is fully operational.
The Standing Committee further recommends that the Department of Justice provide, in its response to this report, the oversight measures and tracking methods that it will implement to ensure that correctional staff are performing and documenting regular searches of cells and tracking incidents and types of contraband entering the correctional facilities.
The Standing Committee further recommends that the Department of Justice provide, in its response to this report, a detailed timeline by which it will undertake an analysis of trends related to contraband within the correctional facilities.
Standing Committee Recommendation #4
The Standing Committee recommends that the Department of Justice develop facility-specific visions and operating procedures at the earliest opportunity and provide, in its response to this report, a detailed timeline by which it will develop and implement these visions and operating procedures.