Josh MacAlister

Um, so this is breaking news about the regional fostering recruitment hubs.

Now, for the uninitiated, the regional fostering recruitment hubs were Josh MacAlister and the government's answer to the idea that councils could work together regionally w- to recruit more carers if they pooled their resources, sharing their so- so-called, I would say, expertise, and apparently creating a more streamlined recruitment journey.

I mean, their theory was that bigger regional recruitment operations would mean more people recruited more efficiently.

Our take? Well, we know, don't we? Right from the very beginning...

Mm

... form F assessment one.

So 90 approvals across 12 local authorities is abysmal by anyone's standards, especially, let's face it, in the light of Josh MacAlister's 10,000 new placements target.

Well, how's that going, Minister?

Uh, care experienced people are 70% more likely to die prematurely than any other group that we have.

So in, in the, in the words of, um- Josh MacAlister

Mm.

Uh, he, he said in his, uh, care review that, um, it's human rights issue of its time-

It has

... and that's a, a patch that you've frequented.

You talked about Josh MacAlister, who's the local MP, uh, for, um, Whitehaven and Workington, who's just been recently re- reappointed in his ministerial role, Families and Wellbeing.

So he's really run with the agenda to support, hasn't he? 'Cause he's got a, a real understanding of the foster care system particularly.