Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the board members of the Development Corporation are appointed by the Commissioner, Executive Council. My job as a Minister is to politically ask Members of the Legislature to forward names for consideration by Cabinet for appointment to the board. I have been doing that since my appointment to this portfolio, and Members have not always come up with names. We have waited, sometimes months, for good names to come forward. The president of the Development Corporation, in my view, is the chief executive officer of the Corporation and it is the president that has been advising me over the last few years when we have not had a minimum of seven appointed. Each time that was done, letters were sent out to Members of the Legislature asking for nominees to be put forward.
My understanding is that a breach is considered, at least by the legal advice I have received to date, perhaps too strong a term. Not complying with the act is much more my preference. So we have not been complying with the act in making sure the minimum of seven were, but there is absolutely no doubt there has been a concerted effort on my part to make sure the Executive Council was able to comply with the act by trying to advance names, by soliciting names from Members, and by sending letters out. That has been, in summary, what we have been doing. It is my view that Cabinet is responsible for ensuring that the board is properly constituted at all times. It is not the prerogative of the president or myself as a Minister to advance names, appoint names without politically seeking the support and nominees from the Members of the Legislature, and we also require that the Cabinet endorses and appoints those members. Thank you.