Thank you, Mr. Testart. Does committee agree?
Agreed.
Thank you, committee. We will take a brief recess and then consider the documents. Thank you.
---SHORT RECESS
Thank you, committee. I will now call the Committee of the Whole back to order. Committee, we have agreed to do Committee Report 30-18(3), Standing Committee on Rules and Procedures Report on the Review of Bill 56, Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act, and Draft Code of Conduct. Excuse me, Members. Keep the sidebar to a minimum. I will now go to the chair of the Standing Committee on Rules and Procedures for any opening comments. Mr. O'Reilly.
Thanks, Mr. Chair. I will keep this very brief. We read the report into the House, I think it was yesterday. The Rules and Procedures Committee held public hearings in three different locations, Fort Smith, Yellowknife, and Inuvik, on some changes that are going to be forthcoming for discussion.
These are changes to the Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act. Just quickly, these will:
modify the oath of office sworn by Members to include obligations;
clarify conflict of interest regime in respect of Members and former Members;
require adoption by the Legislative Assembly of a Code of Conduct;
establish standards for the conduct of Members;
require Members to comply with any code of conduct adopted;
create the Office of Integrity Commissioner to carry out the duties of the former Conflict of Interest Commissioner, as well as similar duties in relation to the Code of Conduct;
clarify the obligations of Members in respect to the receipt of gifts, personal benefits; and
correct consistencies and errors identified in the act.
This is the closing of the loop. The very first thing that we did, actually, as a Legislative Assembly was to refer the Code of Conduct to the Rules and Procedures Committee. This is the end of that process of reviewing our Code of Conduct, and the report that committee has come forward with has a few recommendations that we will get into.
I think that this is very important work that we all undertook and will ensure greater accountability and transparency for future MLAs. Thanks, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. O'Reilly. I will now open the floor to general comments on Committee Report 30-18(3), Standing Committee on Rules and Procedures Report on the Review of Bill 56, Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act and Draft Code of Conduct. Any questions? Mr. O'Reilly.
Thanks, Mr. Chair. Committee did make five recommendations in our report. Mr. Chair, I move that this committee recommends that the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories create a separate section on its website for the Integrity Commissioner and that all documents that must be posted on the register be located on this page. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. O'Reilly. The motion is on the floor and is being distributed. To the motion. Mr. O'Reilly.
Thanks, Mr. Chair. Sorry, in my introductory remarks, I neglected to thank my fellow committee Members for the hard work that they did and the public for the submissions that we received.
To the motion, Mr. Chair, with the changes in Bill 56, we are going to transition the Conflict of Interest Commissioner to become an Integrity Commissioner, and the Integrity Commissioner can deal with complaints by any Member of the public with regard to any possible breaches of the Code of Conduct by future MLAs.
What this is going to do is provide a place where the reports, annual reports and so on, of the Conflict of Interest Commissioner can be found in one place. Also, the public portion of our disclosure statements as MLAs, they would also be found on this website to make them more accessible to the public. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. O'Reilly. To the motion.
Question.
Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? The motion is carried.
---Carried
Mr. O'Reilly.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move that this committee recommends that the 19th Assembly have a public ceremony where each member agrees to and signs the code of conduct. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. O'Reilly. The motion is in order. To the motion. Mr. O'Reilly.
Thanks, Mr. Chair. Very quickly, the code, when it is passed by the House, is binding on MLAs at the time and any future MLAs. There is not a requirement for our future MLAs to actually sign the code in any kind of public way. The recommendation here is that there still be a symbolic signing when MLAs are sworn in just so the public can see that they have agreed publicly to accept the code of conduct and live by it. Thanks, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. O'Reilly. To the motion.
Question.
Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? The motion is carried.
---Carried
Mr. O'Reilly.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move that this committee recommends that upon adoption of the new code of conduct and the coming into force of Bill 56, that a news release be distributed and plain-language materials be posted to the Legislative Assembly website explaining the changes. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. O'Reilly. The motion is in order. To the motion.
Question.
Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? The motion is carried.
---Carried
Mr. O'Reilly.
Thanks, Mr. Chair. I move that this committee recommends that all Members of the 19th Assembly receive privacy training to assist them in protecting the confidentiality of any personal information, personal health information, or other confidential information that comes into their possession. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. O'Reilly. The motion is on the floor. The motion is in order. To the motion. Mr. O'Reilly.
Thanks, Mr. Chair. During committee's consideration of Bill 56, we heard comments raising concerns around "Why doesn't the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act apply to MLAs?" As I understand it, that is not generally the case in other jurisdictions.
There is provision in the code of conduct, the draft as it exists and will be tabled in the House shortly, to ensure that MLAs treat the information they get from their constituents and about their constituents in an appropriate manner. That is how we deal with privacy considerations here and will deal with them in the future.
This motion is to recommend that new MLAs, current MLAs, that they get some training with regard to how to protect personal information about their constituents and that it all be handled appropriately. Thanks, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. O'Reilly. To the motion.
Question.
Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? The motion is carried.
---Carried
Mr. O'Reilly.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move that this committee recommends that the 19th Assembly review the code of conduct to ensure it continues to meet the needs of the Assembly and residents. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. O'Reilly. The motion is on the floor and has been distributed. The motion is in order. To the motion.
Question.
Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? The motion is carried.
---Carried
Thank you, committee. Do you agree that you have concluded consideration of Committee Report 30-18(3)?
Agreed.
Agreed. Thank you committee. We have concluded consideration of Committee Report 30-18(3), Standing Committee on Rules and Procedures Report on the Review of Bill 56: Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act and Draft Code of Conduct. Thank you.
Thank you, committee. We have agreed to consider Bill 56, An Act to Amend the Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act, No. 2. I will ask Mr. Vanthuyne as the sponsor of the bill on behalf of the Board of Management to make opening remarks on the bill.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. On behalf of the Legislative Assembly Board of Management, I am pleased to appear before you in a moment's time today with respect to Bill 56: An Act to Amend the Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act, No. 2. Members will recall that this is the second bill to amend this act during the current session. Whereas the first bill, Bill 55, made a number of miscellaneous amendments to the act, the bill before you is focused largely on part 3, which addresses conflicts of interest. Specifically, the bill makes changes to the oaths of office and allegiance sworn by all Members and adds a third oath, the oath of loyalty. The bill also makes provision for the adoption of a code of conduct by the Legislative Assembly which will be enforceable by an Integrity Commissioner who will also carry out the duties of the current Conflict of Interest Commissioner. Finally, Bill 56 clarifies the obligations of Members with respect to the acceptance of personal gifts and personal benefits.
This bill is the culmination of one of the first actions taken by this Assembly in its first days in office and the direction of this Legislative Assembly that resulted from the excellent work and recommendations of the Standing Committee on Rules and Procedures.
A number of important amendments were made to the bill at standing committee, which I was pleased to support.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I am happy to respond to any questions Members may now have at the appropriate time. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Vanthuyne. I will now turn to the chair of the Standing Committee on Rules and Procedures, the committee that considered the bill, for opening comments. Mr. O'Reilly.
Thanks, Mr. Chair. I have no comments to make at this time. We read the report in yesterday. That is, I think, all we need to do at this point. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. O'Reilly. Mr. Vanthuyne, would you like to bring witnesses into the Chamber?
I would. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Vanthuyne. Sergeant-at-Arms, please escort the witnesses into the Chamber. Mr. Vanthuyne, please introduce your witnesses.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I have, to my left, Christina Brownlee, legislative counsel, and, to my right, Tim Mercer, the Legislative Assembly clerk.
Thank you. I will now open the floor to general comments on Bill 56. Mr. Testart.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I just wanted to speak in strong support of this bill. The ongoing commitment that this Assembly has made to improve its code of conduct and make changes that will allow it to be enforceable and tangible. It gives much comfort to our citizens and those who expect a high standard of behaviour and conduct from their elected officials. I am pleased to stand in support of this important legislation to improve our democratic institutions. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Testart. Any further questions, committee? Seeing none, does committee agree that there are no further comments?
Agreed.
