Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise today to voice the concerns of the ordinary Members' caucus over the flippant attitude of cabinet members in responding to questions or concerns from MLAs on this side of the Assembly. Mr. Speaker, I would remind my honourable colleagues that each and every MLA in this Assembly was elected to represent his or her constituents to the best of his or her ability, not to merely follow a course charted by the Members of the cabinet. I would like to remind my honourable colleagues that when an ordinary Member asks a question, or raises concerns, he or she is doing so on behalf of the citizens of the Northwest Territories. In doing this, it deserves a prompt, complete and informative answer, not a hollow, flippant joke.

When a Member such as Mr. Lewis voiced concerns over a government slogan which he felt was inappropriate, as he did yesterday, his concern deserves consideration by the Minister or cabinet, not a trite comment such as Mr. Whitford's remark, and I quote: "You would find fault with the Lord's Prayer."

I could go on at length, Mr. Speaker. Members of cabinet have provided many more examples in the past few weeks. Instead, I would urge honourable colleagues to keep in mind that all MLAs represent the people of this land, and our concerns are not to be dismissed out of hand.

--- Applause