Item 2, Ministers' Statements. Ms. Cournoyea.

Mr. Speaker, due to some immediate activity and my not having time to give notice, I would like to ask permission to make an emergency statement regarding the mediation on the problems at Royal Oak Mines.

Go ahead with your emergency statement, Ms. Cournoyea.

Thank you. Mr. Speaker, the government has just received copies of an interim report and recommendations made to the federal Minister of Labour by the two mediators who were appointed recently to try to find a solution to the labour dispute between Royal Oak Mines and the Canadian Association of Smelter and Allied Workers.

The strongly worded report states quite clearly that both parties to the dispute must adjust their negotiation behaviour.

It notes that in order to continue the mediation process:

-the employer must restrain itself from taking bargaining positions which it surely must know would be unacceptable to virtually any organization of workers; and that

-both management and union must agree to a lawful process to settle the outstanding dispute surrounding the dismissal or discipline of union workers rather than making it, to all intents and purposes, a pre-condition to the negotiation of a new collective agreement.

The report also notes that the union's position falls short of comprising a realistically concrete proposal sufficient to generate real momentum at the bargaining table.

The report adds that the public fallout from this labour dispute has been enormous and unprecedented in the experience of the two senior mediators. The report states that both sides of the dispute owe it to the surrounding community to take a serious and tangible step toward the resolution of this dispute.

Mr. Speaker, the government is encouraged by this interim report and along with the citizens of Yellowknife and the Northwest Territories, is anxious to hear the reaction of Royal Oak Mines and the Canadian Association of Smelter and Allied Workers.

I will be making copies of the report available to Members of the Legislative Assembly this afternoon. Thank you.

---Applause

Ministers' Statements. Item 3, Members' Statements. Ms. Mike.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise today regarding the point of privilege raised on Tuesday, November 24, 1992 by the honourable Member for Thebacha, Mrs. Marie-Jewell.

Mrs. Marie-Jewell was forced to raise a point of privilege to refute serious and misguided allegations of political interference and influence in the News/North. As an elected aboriginal person from a small community, Mrs. Marie-Jewell has to fend off these serious and damaging allegations in order to perform her duty as an elected Member from that constituency.

Mr. Speaker, this is an unfortunate incident which raises an even larger issue for many Members of this Legislative Assembly. How can they address constituency issues that arise in our small and closely related communities? Mr. Speaker, the kinship patterns of aboriginal people are quite different from those of Euro-Canadians, and that may cause some of the problem.

To give you some background about how I am connected to my region, I will provide you with some examples. My aunt is the executive director of the Baffin Regional Council. My brother is the president of Pangnirtung Fisheries. My cousin is the Mayor of Pangnirtung. My cousin's husband is the Mayor of Clyde River. I do have some relatives and friends within T.F.N. Suffice it to say, Mr. Speaker, that I have relatives or close friends serving on virtually every board, council or agency and participating in every sector of the economy in the Baffin region.

Mr. Speaker, if I cannot raise issues relating to my constituency where it might be perceived on the surface that a conflict of interest exists because my family or friends are directly or indirectly involved, then I could not adequately perform my duties in this House.

Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.

The honourable Member is seeking unanimous consent. Are there any nays? There are no nays, please proceed, Ms. Mike.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker and colleagues. That is both the benefit and disadvantage of serving a riding where you were born and raised. You either know or are related to almost everyone in the community. Mr. Speaker, this has never stopped me from performing my duties in the best interests of my constituents no matter what side of the issue my relatives may be on.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to say the way in which I perceive the logic of the News/North editors, is that the only people who could serve effectively in most ridings across the Northwest Territories are non-aboriginal people who either were born and raised or lived in the north for only a short period of time.

Mr. Speaker, on that note I will bet you that this statement will not get on the News/North. Thank you.

Item 3, Members' Statements. Mr. Dent.

Item 3, Members' Statements, Mr. Bernhardt.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. During the doom session of this House I wish to speak about the decentralization initiatives of this government. My concern at the time was the seemingly unequal distribution of our government program to the regions of this territory, and this remains my concern today. As all members are aware, the majority of benefits from this decentralization initiative will go to the Keewatin, Fort Smith and Inuvik regions. Once again, those in most need, the people of the Kitikmeot have been ignored. It seems that whenever this government proposes a large initiative such as the decentralization initiative, the Kitikmeot does not benefit, and there is always some bureaucratic reason for this omission. During this particular exercise the government stated that there exciting mining activities are taking place in the Coronation Gulf area and that economic development will naturally flow from these developments. I wonder if the Minister of Finance can tell me and the people of my region when these benefits will begin to accrue in the region? When can they expect to see training programs and more importantly jobs from these developments? Will it be sometime in 1993 or 94 or sometime in the next century? I do not suppose that the Minister can give me a reasonable answer to this question, because he simply does not know. I can only assume that people in my region will be doomed to a future of poverty and reliance on the social welfare system until these mining developments take place, if ever. I do not wish to offend the Members of this House. However, I ask all Members to consider the purpose of decentralization. Is it to provide better programs and services or are we simply moving parts of departments to the regions? I hope it will be the former rather than the latter.

Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to continue my statement.

The honourable Member is seeking unanimous consent. Are there any nays? There are no nays. Please proceed, Mr. Bernhardt.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, honourable colleges. I would ask for the support of this House that we agree on basic principles of decentralization and not simply base the concept of decentralization on political agreements or arrangements. Mr. Speaker, if I sound frustrated with this process it is because I am. This government cannot continue to ignore its responsibility to develop the economy of the Kitikmeot region. Economic development issues of this government have to take into account all regions of the territories, not simply the most aggressive. Mr. Speaker, if this government is truly committed to developing the economy of the Kitikmeot region and feels the exploration for minerals in this region will contribute greatly to this development, then it would seem only natural that the Department of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources be considered a prime candidate for decentralization to Cambridge Bay, the regional centre for Kitikmeot. I would expect that this government would give this request due consideration, as it has for other regions of the

territories such as the Keewatin, Fort Smith and Inuvik regions. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I would like to take this opportunity to recognize and to welcome Mr. Jack Kupeuna, the vice-president of T.F.N. Item 3, Members' Statements, Mrs. Marie-Jewell.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise today to speak about the responses given by the Minister of Health to my questions in the House yesterday. In my questioning I was trying to get the Minister to at least think about the consequences of the fact that Dr. Covert remains the president of the Board of Inquiry, which is appointed under the Medical Profession Act to inquire into the competence and ability of physicians while he faces a malpractice suit. I realise that Dr. Covert has stepped aside from one particular inquiry, but he apparently has not resigned from the board itself. Yesterday in response to my concerns about this fact, the Minister says, and I am quoting from the unedited transcript, "that if the law is being met, and if the Members of this House, of this board or any other quasi-judicial board meet the requirements of the law, Mr. Speaker, we need not go any further and question their qualifications or their standing. That would be a task on the integrity and independence of that board." Mr. Speaker, I was dismayed, appalled and shocked at what I heard, but not really surprised. It confirmed that the Minister has not fully considered his responsibilities as the Minister of Health, and it reaffirms to me the duty of ordinary Members to ensure that Ministers do consider their responsibilities. This government Mr. Speaker, was sent a clear message by the Northwest Territories Court of Appeal about appointments to quasi-judicial boards in the case of Doyle versus the Commissioner of the Northwest Territories. Mr. Speaker, this case focused on the charter, which I recognize, but the entire process for handling complaints against judges could have been invalidated if the people who the Minister of Justice was allowed to appoint under legislation, had been members of the judicial council. Even now if the Minister of Justice...

Mrs. Marie-Jewell your allotted time has lapsed.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I seek unanimous consent to continue.

The honourable Member is seeking unanimous consent. Are there any nays? There are no nays. Please proceed, Mrs. Marie-Jewell.

Thank you, and thank you, my honourable colleagues. Even now if the Minister of Justice appoints as many people as that act allows the appointment will be invalid because of the fourth ruling. If he appoints the wrong people, for example senior public servants like deputy ministers, the court has told us the appointment may be declared invalid. In this case my concern is not the charter, but the appointment of this individual who faces a malpractice suit. This does not allow the public to have confidence in a process which must follow the rules of natural justice. I am not suggesting that the Ministry of Health cannot make appointments to the board of inquiries under the Medical Professions Act or that this legislation is flawed. I know that different issues are involved because of the Medical Profession Act inquiry, because this is a civil process and not a criminal one. I am trying to demonstrate to the Minister something that he should already know. There is more to consider in an appointment to a quasi-judicial board or in allowing appointments to stand than what any act stipulates. The matters which may be investigated under the Medical Profession Act are serious ones. The Minister must consider the rules of natural justice and whether the membership of the board might cause the appearance of bias when a hearing is held. I do not definitely that this would happen. Perhaps, Mr. Speaker, no one has raised it in the court yet, but it is an issue that the Minister should consider. I would urge the Minister to take immediate steps to correct the damages to allow for natural justice to be done. Thank you.

Item 3, Members' Statements. Mr. Lewis.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In caucus last week, there was some debate on whether there should be a provision in the N.W.T. Act for the Assembly to dissolve itself and proceed to the electorate for a renewed mandate at a time of its own choosing. I believed that debate should take place in public and I agreed to bring forward a motion.

At present, we have a fixed term of four years. If we wish to dissolve ourselves at any time before that, we must ask the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development for permission to do it. I think this is completely unacceptable. In fact, the current act locks into a fall election which is the worst possible time to begin a new Assembly. It makes it impossible to get a capital budget prepared for a November sitting to deal with it as we are doing now. It makes it equally impossible to prepare an O & M budget for the winter session.

The Constitution of this country allows every legislature a term of five years. Each legislature has the power to dissolve itself and go to the public whenever it feels it is appropriate to do so.

As Mr. Todd has indicated, we have had a rough year. It took a full year for the government to put a budget together, since the previous government decided to let the new government set its own agenda. Yesterday, I gave notice of a motion to request the Premier to ask the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development to change the N.W.T. Act Giving the Assembly the powers it is asking for is a step in the direction of further constitutional development, Mr. Speaker.

The next Assembly which, ominously, will be the 13th Assembly, Mr. Speaker, should not be tied down to a fixed election date established under a federal act. I urge the Members to participate in the public debate on this motion tomorrow.

---Applause

Item 3, Members' Statements. Item 4, Returns to Oral Questions. Item 5, Oral Questions. Mr. Ningark.