The province’s new justice minister says he is ready to take on the challenges of the role.
That includes the first meeting of the Minister’s Table on Gender-Based Violence, which will happen in November.
Although he is only a few days into the job, Scott Armstrong says he will be ready for their first meeting.
“I can tell you that I will move heaven and earth to educate myself, working with Minister Martin and the officials in my office, as well as [the office of] Status of Women to make sure that I am briefed and up to date,” Armstrong told reporters earlier.
Becky Druhan previously had the job of Justice Minister but became an independent MLA after a cabinet shuffle last week.
Armstrong, along with Lean Martin, Minister responsible for the Status of Women, will lead the table.
According to the government, the goal of the table is to push forward on change that would prevent gender-based violence and offer more support for victims and survivors, connecting the government to survivors, families and community groups, as well as making sure the province is transparent and accountable.
The government revealed the list of 25 members on the table on Thursday. It includes survivors, leaders in the community, service providers, researchers and government officials.
For a list of the members from 2025-2027, click here.
More than 250 people applied to be on the table, which the province says is “a strong sign of how many people care deeply about this issue.”
The table will release their actions and progress updates after their meetings.
“This is not just a women’s issue. The folks at the table, it takes everybody. It takes all genders working on this across our entire province. So to have a strong male leader at the table is also something that we’ve heard is important to the sector,” Martin told reporters Thursday.
But she adds that he also has a lot of valuable experience.
“I’m very confident that with the support of the Department of Justice and with the minister there, we are in great hands with that minister.”
