Premier announces panel on seniors Office of the Premier - 01 February 2012 FREDERICTON (CNB) – Premier David Alward announced today the establishment of a panel designed to help prepare for the challenges associated with the province's aging population. The Premier's Panel on Seniors… Living Healthy, Aging Well will develop a progressive Living Healthy, Aging Well Blueprint for Seniors in New Brunswick. The visionary blueprint will guide government investments in community development and services that help seniors live active, healthy lives. “Meeting the needs and expectations of our growing senior population will require a new approach that incorporates the concepts of shared responsibility and community involvement,” said Alward. The five-member panel will be chaired by John McLaughlin, president emeritus of the University of New Brunswick. “An aging population offers benefits and opportunities,” said McLaughlin. “The skills and knowledge of our senior population can provide opportunities for younger generations to learn new ideas while at the same time preserving the lessons of the past.” Also on the panel are Jane Barratt, secretary-general, International Federation on Aging; Larry Boudreau, former vice-president, Assumption Life; Pierre LeBouthilier, former chief executive officer, Beauséjour Regional Health Authority; and Aline Saintonge, former deputy head, Culture and Sport Secretariat. The panel will: ●    consider the transforming role of seniors as they, their families, and their contexts change and evolve; ●    aim to understand the social and economic challenges facing seniors, communities and governments; and ●    communicate the choices and supports that seniors identify as needed in order to live independently and remain in their communities. “The panel’s contribution will help us to prepare to meet the needs of tomorrow's seniors while the Department of Social Development continues to focus on the senior population's immediate care needs,” said Social Development Minister Sue Stultz. Project support and administration will be provided by the Atlantic Institute on Aging. The panel's blueprint will be delivered to the premier this summer. “I have confidence in the panel's ability to help New Brunswick plan for the future,” said Alward. “Together, we are working to encourage and enable healthy aging today and in the future.”