Child welfare reforms in Ontario not strong enough, youth advocate says

Irwin Elman speaks before committee looking at new bill to overhaul the children’s aid and youth justice systems

Thestar.com
March 30, 2017
By Kristin Rushowy

MPPs considering changes to a child protection bill received a heartfelt message from the province’s youth advocate, who told them “you can’t legislate love, but you can legislate the conditions in which love can flourish.”

From making sure kids who are removed from their parents’ home have a say about their care and are informed when they are being moved, to restricting the use of solitary confinement, Irwin Elman said Bill 89 - while “historic” - needs a number of changes.

“There is no more important work you will ever be involved in,” he told the standing committee on justice policy Thursday morning, flanked by three youth who spent time in foster care or group homes.

Bill 89, an act that overhauls the children’s aid and youth justice systems, is a positive move, he said, and begins by committing to making sure children have a voice - especially those from marginalized communities - but that’s not reflected in the rest of the legislation, the first of its kind in 100 years.

“It’s so important that we get it right this time,” added Paul Chapman, 25, who was removed from his mother’s care when he was 9 years old. He later told MPPs that “we are your children.”

Children and Youth Services Minister Michael Coteau told the Star that the bill is “one of the most comprehensive pieces of legislation that this government has ever put forward,” and that amendments will be made. “We are listening to everyone.”

He added, however, that a lot of what will change will come through directives and regulations once the bill is passed.

“We don’t want to build legislation that’s so rigid that every time we want to make a change, we have to go through the same process again. People need to realize if the legislation passes, that we will move forward directly with regulations.”

Coteau said the use of solitary confinement or restraints is a difficult issue because when situations get violent, “things have to de-escalate and sometimes isolation does that.” However, he added, isolation can’t be used as a form of punishment, restraints can’t be used as a form of punishment. I think that’s inhumane.”

Oversight is also necessary to determine how long a person can be kept in solitary, and who makes that decision. “The guards need to be watched.”

A Star investigation into the child protection system found that of 23,263 serious incidents in 2014 involving children in care, about 9,000 saw staff resort to physically restraining them. In Toronto group homes alone, police were called about 40 per cent of the time.

In its preamble, the new legislation says “the Government of Ontario acknowledges that children are individuals with rights to be respected and voices to be heard” and that it is committed to a child-centred approach. It also means that children who want to remain in the system after age 16 can do so for two more years, and that services like including foster care and post-secondary tuition be offered past age 18.

However critics have said law, while groundbreaking in its opening statement, does not follow through.

Elman’s office has also called for minimum education levels mandated group home staff.