Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I was a little bit surprised when the Standing Committee on Legislation made the recommendation for Bill 33 to come forward. I know that the Standing Committee on Finance had recommended a bill that would allow the Premier -- for technical reasons that we saw -- to dismiss Cabinet Ministers. I had not expected that in
addition to that bill, we would now be talking about Bill 33 which would allow the Premier to select Cabinet Members.
Mr. Speaker, three and a half years ago when this first came up in the House during the Territorial Leadership Committee, I spoke in favour of allowing the Premier to select Cabinet and, given the opportunity to do it again, will speak in favour of it again. I think over the last three years I have seen increasing evidence to support the idea that our government would in fact be better if we were to allow the Premier to select the Cabinet Members.
As I see it, Mr. Speaker, our system has a weakness; it doesn't foster a cohesive team approach right now. Over the past three and a half years, a number of times an individual Member of Cabinet, in my opinion, has been left by his or her colleagues dangling and twisting in the wind.
Mr. Speaker, I think we need something that will foster a team approach so that a comprehensive plan of action can be proposed and there's a sense of discipline in government. Rather than constantly shifting priorities as a response to political pressures, we need, especially as funds get tighter and tighter, leadership which can take a global look at problems, set the course and then provide the leadership so we can stick to it.
Mr. Speaker, I believe that discipline requires allegiance. When Cabinet Ministers are elected by other Members, to whom do they owe their allegiance if not directly to those people who elected them?
Mr. Speaker, I would like to compare the Premier to the coach of a sports team. If a coach cannot enforce discipline, how do they ensure the team will perform as it should? We've all seen sports teams where the coach has benched or fired a so-called superstar because they weren't contributing as part of the team. Sometimes you have to be able to do that.
Some suggest that this move would be a step towards party politics. Mr. Speaker, I would argue that allowing the Premier to select Cabinet would actually slow down the drive towards party politics because it would increase accountability. The lack of accountability is something that I think has been a major issue the last three and a half years among the people of the north.
I would also point out, Mr. Speaker, that our system is, in many ways, already operating in a system similar to party politics. We have the different caucuses: Western Caucus; Nunavut Caucus; Ordinary Members' Caucus. Members form and have allegiances to different groups at different times. But, because these shift, it means that the priorities of this House tend to shift much more quickly than is usually the case in government. Government needs to have some stability. The only way we can achieve that stability is if we have some longer term allegiances built up.
I think we have to remember that one of the biggest safeguards we have in our system is our Legislative Assembly works very similarly to a minority government. The Cabinet doesn't have enough votes on its own to set a certain course of action and stick to it. There has to always be enough support from ordinary Members so Cabinet can achieve a majority in this House.
Mr. Speaker, I would also argue that allowing the Premier to select the Cabinet need not be tied to a territories-wide election for the Premier. I think, in fact, that idea leads us down the road towards a Republican style of government, ones we've seen in other parts of the world; the closest one to us being, of course, the United States. I think that form of government, where you have one very, very powerful leader, is one that is even more foreign to the peoples of the north than the style we now have, which I think can be modified to deal with northerners' concerns.
I think, Mr. Speaker, in fact, all the people of the Northwest Territories have a say now in who the leader is in the Legislature, because they speak through their representatives. I was elected to represent the people in my constituency and I don't have any problems voting for the Premier. But I have a real problem with the way our system works after that, Mr. Speaker, because it doesn't lend itself to the team approach.
I think the only way we're ever going to get real accountability, to the point where the Premier is the person this House can look to for a statement of government principles, is to allow the Premier to select the Cabinet. The plan of action would come out during the campaign for Premier during the Territorial Leadership Committee meetings. Those promises and plans would then be on the record and would be something that Members could hold the Premier accountable for, and make sure he or she has a team working with them to achieve those goals.
So, Mr. Speaker, I support the principle of this bill and would urge other Members to do likewise. Thank you.