Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Recently, there was a convicted sex offender – that’s a predator, the way I view it – on the loose in Yellowknife, and they were on the loose in Yellowknife without the public’s knowledge. That means women, children and even some men were at risk while this predator stalked their next prey. It was my understanding that the police knew that this person was on the prowl and that this predator was looking for their next victim, but the public was not informed.
My question for the Minister of Justice is: When does the public’s interest start to matter enough that they are informed that their personal safety may be at risk and the fact that we should finally be taking a stand that personal safety of the potential victims should matter more than the predator’s confidentiality?
Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The Minister of Justice, Mr. Ramsay.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. That is a line that, of course, the RCMP makes the decision on. They have to weigh a number of factors before they consider notifying the public. Perhaps we could engage the RCMP if Members want a briefing on how this works. I’d be happy to have the RCMP sit down with the Standing Committee on Social Programs and we can go over the hows and whys of public notification.
I certainly recognize the answer, which was, really, let’s find someone else to take responsibility and let’s pass the buck.
My question for the Minister is: What is he going to do to ensure that this policy is updated so the public’s interest, the public’s safety is protected over these types of predators who are let loose and prey upon the women, the children and even some men in our community?
Of course, I take the safety of our community very seriously. I will continue to work with the RCMP to ensure that communities across the Northwest Territories are as safe as they possibly can be.
I appreciate the Minister’s quick reply of saying nothing. It hasn’t said anything to the fact of what is the Minister going to do. That is the issue.
What is the Minister going to do to update the policy to ensure the public’s safety matters enough that we’re going to protect them with the right information so they know and can be vigilant knowing a predator is out there stalking them? I want to hear what the Minister is going to do, not pass it on to somebody else.
Whether the Member likes it or not, it is the responsibility of the RCMP. We will continue to work with the RCMP to ensure our communities are safe.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.
Mr. Speaker, what’s the point of having a Minister if the Minister just says we’ll leave it up to the RCMP? Maybe the Minister can describe his accountability line with the RCMP when we work to ensure that our public safety is put first.
We have a contract with the RCMP. That is their job. That is their role. We respect the role that the RCMP plays for us.
Again, I will reiterate, we will continue to work with them to ensure that the best practices are in place to ensure that our communities are safe.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, Mr. Moses.
