While the B.C. government is waiting for the results of a formal review into the death of a teen who fell from a hotel balcony in Abbotsford last week while in government care, the agency that oversaw his case is diverting the blame.
The Ministry of Children and Family Development has been under fire after the death of 18-year-old Alex Gervais, who was reportedly placed in the hotel for an extended period of time after the province shut down his group home.
Meanwhile, B.C.’s Representative for Children and Youth Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond said she had been assured by the ministry that none of the young people moved out of the group homes shut down would go to a hotel.
But the ministry maintains hotels are used to house children in care only in extreme circumstances and they are required to be notified whenever it happens.
It does not seem to have been notified in this case.
“The delegated agency made a real mistake or it appears that they did,” said B.C. Premier Christy Clark when confronted by reporters last Friday. “They did not follow policy. It was wrong. It had tragic outcomes and there are going to be consequences for that.”
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Fraser Valley Aboriginal Children and Family Services Society, the delegated agency that was in charge of Alex Gervais, released a statement on Tuesday, suggesting the ministry can’t distance itself from its role in the systemic issues that create devastating outcomes.
“Shifting focus solely to the delegated agency appears to be a political move and is not what is needed at this time. What we need now – more than ever – is leadership, not politics,” said the agency in the release.
Grand Chief Doug Kelly of the Sto:lo Tribal Council was critical of Premier Clark, saying she made ‘ill-advised remarks.’
While he admits there was a failure on behalf of the delegated agency to make a phone call to the ministry in Alex’s case, he does not think it was the lack of a phone call that led to his death.
WATCH: A man who formed one of the BC agencies that looks after at-risk children is angry the Christy Clark government is blaming them for recent tragedies.
The ministry told Global News there are currently 23 delegated aboriginal agencies in British Columbia.
Twelve agencies have full delegation status, meaning they can seek temporary custody orders in court and remove children from homes where there are health and safety risks; seven of the 23 have guardianship delegation status, which allows them to provide services to children and youth under continuing custody orders, and the remaining four agencies have voluntary services delegation, which means they can approve foster homes and provide voluntary services to children, youth and families, including voluntary care agreements and support services.
Last fiscal year, the ministry provided these agencies with the funding to the tune of $96 million. The ministry says Fraser Valley Aboriginal Children and Family Services Society alone receives more than $19.5 million annually.
But B.C.’s Representative for Children and Youth Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond says the agencies are not funded to create therapeutic foster care relationships or support kids in complex needs, which she says was required in the case of Alex Gervais.
“Pointing fingers at the agency is not helpful when, in fact, the focus needs to be on group homes that were shut down,” says Turpel-Lafond. “There were serious financial, health and safety problems at these homes that the ministry was in charge of.”
She notes the government is still responsible for all quality assurance, as well as setting policy, delegating the agency and providing funding.
“The government puts a lot of money into high-level political talk, leaving these agencies scrambling with the kids on the ground. So the simple finger-pointing is not going to cut it,” she says.
A formal review into the case has now been launched by the government.
On Tuesday, Minister Stephanie Cadieux said until that review is complete, the ministry won’t comment on what happened to Gervais.
The leader of B.C. NDP has called for Cadieux to resign saying because the public’s confidence in the ministry has been shaken.
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