Thank you, Mr. Krutko. The motion is on the floor. The motion is in order. To the amendment.
Question.
Question has been called. The motion is defeated.
---Defeated
To the original motion. The honourable Member for Range Lake, Ms. Lee.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to just add a few words to the debate today.
Mr. Speaker, I, like many others here, did not know what would be included in this report. I spent some time on the weekend reading this report and I must say I had to read it a few times. I know Commissioner Hughes. He was our Conflict of Interest Commissioner. He used to walk up and down the hall. I loved finding moments here and there to talk to him. He’s a wise, well-learned, highly respected and a reputable man in the legal world, but also for a lot of work that he has done. I think we are lucky to have a man of his calibre who chose to take this project.
Mr. Speaker, in reading this -- and I think this is my own interpretation -- I think we often get asked the question, if you could spend time with one person, maybe have dinner, have coffee, who would you chose? I would love to spend some time with Commissioner Hughes to see what his thinking was -- because what I have to say is just my own opinion about what I’m reading -- I think what he’s trying to do in this report is give us a chance to have a big group hug. I don’t mean to make light of this, but this is what I’m seeing. He took pains to show that he listened to all of the six Members who filed the complaint. He made it clear that the Members had the right to file those complaints, and for those who are concerned that those Members were not represented by counsel, I don’t think there should be any worries about that.
He quoted all the Members. He found a lot. He got a lot out of the testimonies of the Members unrepresented. Any lawyer who practices in the legal world, we are always scared of appearing before non-represented lawyers because a good judiciary listens even more carefully to those who are not represented. So I’m glad, Mr. Speaker, that the report found that the Members had the right to bring those issues forward. As has already been stated, the Commissioner looked at all of the facts and really, basically, came down to say, okay, you’re right to raise this complaint, yes, there was a breach, but this really comes down to a man’s judgment.
On page 37 it says, and I quote, on the bottom of the paragraph, “The emotional strain that he had been through” -- referring to Mr. Roland -- “was evident when he gave his evidence.” He says, the Commissioner says, “There is neither a book nor a set of guidelines to follow in order to determine when to make the disclosure of such a relationship. As he said, he and Ms. Bisaro concluded in their discussion ‘there is no real right time to do this.’ In my assessment finding the answer to that dilemma all comes down to the application of one’s own judgment.” Commissioner Hughes is saying that it’s on man’s judgment, there’s not a book, there’s no rule or regulation that says when is the timing good. Yes, he made an error in judgment, but it was made in good faith. He’s telling us you had the right to raise the issue, but it was done in good faith and on the last paragraph he’s sending a message to us, on page 38, “I would hope”, and this is the message that I’m working with and I think this is the message the Commissioner is sending me, this is just my own interpretation, maybe if I have dinner with him 10 years from now he will say I got it wrong. I read this a lot and I think he is sending us all, the whole House a message. I think that’s a message that a lot of us want to live with today and he says on page 38, I quote, “I would hope that the tone of that debate will reflect the civility which prevailed at this hearing, and that when the Assembly opens in the New Year it will be for an amicable and productive session.”
Mr. Speaker, I just want to say that we had one of the most renowned and reputed legal minds that looked at our question, he took our questions very seriously, he looked at all the evidence and he said at the end of the day it comes to one’s judgment. He could have done better, maybe worse, but it was made in good faith and get on with your work. That’s how I read this report, I believe that’s what the people say. I believe Mr. Roland said right at the beginning of the year, when he said he has to answer to his family and his God and that he will do that for the rest of his working life and personal life.
Mr. Speaker, as many Members have said, we have so much work to do for the remainder of the two years, I do hope that this is a closure. I don’t like the word closure, I think it’s an evolving process, but I think that this is a good point to move forward and to try to get the work done for the rest of the term for the people of the Territories. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Ms. Lee. To the motion. I’ll allow the mover of the motion closing remarks. Mr. Ramsay.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I would like to thank all of my colleagues who chose to speak to the motion today. As I said earlier, Mr. Speaker, I will accept the result of this inquiry and I respect it as well. This motion is the end of this matter for me and I think and I hope that I speak for all the complainants when I say that.
I want to quote, if I can, Mr. Speaker, one final section of Mr. Hughes’ report, which stood out immediately for me when I read it, and I quote Mr. Hughes from page 35 of that report: “The fact is he” -- the Premier -- “did not make the disclosure until he was satisfied that his relationship with Ms. Russell had cemented into a permanent one. What of course was wrong with that was that his primary responsibility to his colleagues in the House, the democratic institution they serve and the maintenance of public confidence and trust of those he was elected to lead took second place during that period of time.”
It is true, Mr. Speaker, that this process has taken some of our time, it’s taken some of our resources, but I want the public to know and I take issue with what some Members had to say that work hasn’t been done by Members of this Legislative Assembly over the past year. Work has certainly been done, Mr. Speaker, and a tremendous amount of work has been done both by my Cabinet colleagues across the floor and Regular Members of this side of the House who go to committee meetings and do the work on behalf of the people of the Northwest Territories. Good work has been getting done. Unfortunately, this issue has clouded things somewhat. It’s been a black cloud that’s been hanging over the building and I’m certainly glad that the report is here, that we can put this to rest and, as many Members have said, move on.
Mr. Speaker, I accept the fact that the Premier’s breach of the act and his error in judgment were conducted in good faith. There are no winners that emerge from this process, and other Members have talked about that, only damage to the integrity of our institution and public confidence in the leadership of this Territory. We all need to make sure that we all take the steps that are necessary to restore that integrity and that confidence that the public has in this institution and this government.
As this matter draws to conclusion, only the Premier can determine the way forward and I’d like to thank the Premier for offering up an apology earlier in these proceedings and I accept the Premier’s what I believe was a heartfelt apology to the people of the Northwest Territories and to the Regular Members on this side of the House and to his Cabinet colleagues as well, Mr. Speaker. I thank him for that. Only he can determine what needs to be done to ensure that the people we represent in the institution we serve no longer take second place to anything.
Mr. Speaker, I just want to make it abundantly clear that we have to work together, and, as was mentioned by other Members, the actions of any Member have an impact on all the other Members of this House as -- I believe it was Mr. Krutko alluded to it -- we all get painted with the same brush. So I just want Members to realize that when something’s happened and you make decisions or you take an action, it could potentially have a negative impact not only on your colleagues, but on the institution in general.
So I wanted to make sure I mention that, as well, and, again, there has been much good work done by this government, by the Regular Members here over the past year while this has been out there, and I wanted to again publicly thank Mr. Hughes, the Premier, his counsel, the complainants who signed the initial letter and, like I said earlier, my constituents and the residents in the Northwest Territories who have lent their support to me throughout this process and to my family. This is a trying thing on everybody, Mr. Speaker. I spent all weekend thinking about today and it certainly is draining. I’ve obviously got many other things I can be doing at home other than thinking about this motion coming up today and trying to put some closure on this and move this forward.
So, again, I just wanted to thank everybody that’s involved. I know it’s been trying on everybody and I do believe we have lots of opportunity here to work together and to move this operation forward in a positive direction. Again, I wanted to say thank you as well, Mr. Speaker, for your work as well. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. We’re ready for the vote. The honourable Member for Kam Lake, Mr. Ramsay.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’m sorry, I failed to request a recorded vote. I’d like to request a recorded vote on the motion. Thank you.
