Thank you. May I have some order, please.

---Laughter

We have a motion on the floor. We can save that for later. We have a motion on the floor. The motion is in order. To the motion. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Antoine.

Thank you, Mr. Antoine. To the motion. The honourable Member for Frame Lake, Mr. Dent.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I was very pleased to be able to second the motion on this expression of gratitude, and I would like to assure you, Mr. Speaker, that I'm going to speak to the motion but I may need some latitude. It will become more apparent as I go that I am actually speaking to the motion as we go along.

Mr. Speaker, superheroes are able to do many things that us mere mortals cannot do. Things like leaping tall buildings, flying through the air, stopping speeding bullets and so on. Although we may not realize it, superhuman traits have been observed in this House. We have in our midst a superhero who can move at the speed of lightning to stop villainous acts generally, of course, of Cabinet Members...

...or calm an irate MLA. But, Mr. Speaker, like Clark Kent, our Legislative Assembly superhero keeps a low profile. LA Man, as I like to call him, moves with lightning speed to the Speaker's Chair whenever there is question on procedure or protocol in the House. His presence at the Speaker's side is always quiet and calm. But you'll notice if you observe closely, that LA Man always has his hands in his pockets and his cape flowing out behind him, always ready for further trouble that will require him to take flight through the gallery and soar around to save the day.

His lilting Scottish tones have been known to soothe many troubled minds after a particularly rocky session in the House, and some have wondered whether or not he has hypnotic powers, as well.

Mr. Speaker, his table at the foot of your chair appears to be just a regular desk, but I think if we were to look more closely we would see an electronic control centre with devices that rival those that you would find in Canadian military command centres. Actually, I suspect that he may be better equipped than any Canadian military command centre.

Of course, Mr. Speaker, I'm referring to Mr. Hamilton. When I first arrived in the Legislative Assembly in 1991 I was greeted, as Minister Antoine, with many pieces of paper, reports, binders, regulations, rules, procedures, schedules and various other pieces of information. Any of you who've walked by my office will know that they're mostly still sitting on my desk. I needed help to sort through that information and get on my feet as an MLA. That help came from the Clerk's office, specifically most often from Mr. Hamilton.

Mr. Hamilton can take a flurry of paper and the complexities of Beauchesne's Parliamentary Rules and Procedures and make them easy to understand. He can always find a way to get something done within the rules.

Mr. Speaker, I've watched Mr. Hamilton over the years deal with many difficult situations. He's always handled them with skill and professionalism. We're going to miss his expertise and strong presence in this House. Mr. Speaker, with that, I urge all Members to vote in favour of this motion. Thank you.

---Applause

Thank you, Mr. Dent. To the motion. The honourable Member for Hay River North, Mr. Delorey.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'm going to speak in favour of this motion as well and I'm not going to be able to speak as having known Mr. Hamilton for as long as a lot of Members in this House, I know. I guess the first time I spoke to Mr. Hamilton was during the election campaign during the last election. He was involved in the election, of course, and I needed some advice in a number of areas and found him to be very informative and easy to talk to and very helpful.

In speaking to some people in Hay River that had worked with Mr. Hamilton in the past and knew him quite well, I was told, well, when you get over there and start working in the Legislative Assembly don't try and do anything without David Hamilton knowing about it because that's his domain over there. So I was a little leery to come over here and start working with him on a personal basis.

Like, Minister Antoine, when I came over here to this building, it can be a little intimidating the first time that you come in here and knowing that you're going to be working in here until you get to know everybody. I must take this opportunity to thank Mr. Hamilton for all the help that he has given me since I came into this House and there was no reason to fear him. I found that out. He has been extremely helpful to me over the past in helping me do my job and sorting through all the papers that go along with this job.

So I definitely am proud to stand up today in favour of this motion and I certainly want to wish him well in his future endeavors and look forward to having him around the House whenever he can make it here. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause

Thank you, Mr. Delorey. To the motion. The honourable Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it won't be the same around here without Mr. Hamilton. As someone new coming in the House in the 13th Assembly and new to politics, especially territorial politics, it was a real eye opener, especially trying to understand tons of rules and regulations and policies and procedures that we have in front of us and trying to weasel your way through the day-to-day operations. I was able to always depend on Mr. Hamilton to teach me the ropes, the tricks of the trade around here because it is a tricky process trying to figure out how you can get around certain aspects of the rules of this House.

So it's all his fault.

---Laughter

But it was definitely a real learning process. Then I think becoming the Deputy Speaker of this House was also a real challenge to try to figure out what you do when you sit up in the big chair up there. I try to keep my emotions to myself and not to interfere with people that are talking too long or are just not answering the questions because for me it's pretty hard to do.

I think it was an important thing knowing that Mr. Hamilton spent some time in the Mackenzie Delta, especially the community of Aklavik. People still talk about David's stay in Aklavik. I think that people will also be sad to see David leaving and not realizing there's somebody in the Legislative Assembly who had a presence in Aklavik for some time.

So on behalf of the people of the Mackenzie Delta I would like to just wish David all the best and wherever you go, whatever you do, I know you'll be close by and always there in case I need some more tips. Thank you.

---Applause

Thank you. To the motion. The honourable Member for Weledeh, Minister Handley.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In case anyone was wondering, I wanted to let you know that I'm speaking in favour of the motion.

---Laughter

Mr. Speaker, I had the pleasure of knowing Mr. Hamilton when he was Deputy Clerk, going back to the early 1980s, late 1970s, when he was there. There has been a lot of change in this Legislative Assembly since then. I was always intrigued with that little Scotsman running around everywhere. Those were the days when the Legislative Assembly used to travel around to communities and he had the task of making sure that everything got to where it was supposed to be and so on. I was always amazed that we were able to do that in those days.

He also had to put up with a lot of other kind of changes. This Legislative Assembly, before it had all of these rules that Mr. Hamilton brought to us, was a much more rocking and rolling place. He had to deal with cups flying across the Chamber, people getting up and smacking somebody because they didn't quite like the response they gave and so on. There have been a lot of changes.

Mr. Hamilton has also certainly shown himself to me in the last four years to be a real encyclopedia of knowledge on rules, on Beauchesne's, on precedents that have happened in the House in previous years and so on.

He certainly has not lost his energy. I get a lot of amusement sitting here watching him and watching his body language, watching his eyes and so on as things are going on in the House here. He's keeping track of everything that's going on. I also watch him move around. When I see him coming down that hallway upstairs with a furrow in his brow, I get out of the way because there's something happening here and I just hope that he's not coming into my office.

I have learned to appreciate David's support, David's help to all of us in this House and his ability, as someone else has said, to be able to calm us down, bring order back into the process when it's necessary. I, too, want to express my appreciation for his support and do welcome him back into this Chamber when he's back in Yellowknife. Thank you.

---Applause

To the motion. The honourable Member for Yellowknife South, Mr. Bell.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I, too, after much deliberation will have to, I think grudgingly, support this motion.

---Laughter

Like so many other Members who come here for the first time after an election into this awe-inspiring building, it truly is a mysterious parliamentary process and I think David's been there for all of us, to help us in demystifying that and to make sure that we know a lot of this ends up being smoke and mirrors. If we truly in our hearts did what we thought was most important and best for our constituents, then the rules and the procedures and those things really would find their way and we'd find our way through that maze and he'd be there to help and guide us.

I know so many of us on this side of the House have been to David's office to consult on procedural advice, usually trying to find some way to ever so carefully stick it to the government, if that's a parliamentary phrase. I'm not sure, Mr. Speaker. I apologize if it isn't. David's always been there with procedural advice and always cautioned us that he'd be giving exactly the same advice to Cabinet on the matter should they be coming and knocking on his door. I've always respected that about David, Mr. Speaker.

I know that he's one of the longest-serving Clerks in the country. He's well regarded around the country. In other jurisdictions, people have a lot of respect for him and certainly appreciate his efforts over the years. There's clearly a lot of love for David in this room and in this building. He will be truly missed, but I suppose, Lisa, Judith and Kate, we're giving you your father and your husband back, but make sure that you allow him to come and visit. We've got a spot for him here. Thank you.

---Applause

To the motion. The honourable Member for Nunakput, Minister Steen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I too want to express my support for this motion and take the opportunity to express my gratitude to Mr. Hamilton for the services and assistance he's given me as a Member over the past eight years. I'd like to express my appreciation for the advice he's given us, in Caucus, as a committee member and in this House. I know that it's helped us to arrive at some very controversial decisions and it's helped us, as well, to make some very wise decisions. I also would like to express my gratitude to my constituents for helping me help them. Thank you.

---Applause

Thank you, Minister Steen. To the motion. The honourable Member for Great Slave, Mr. Braden.

Mr. Speaker, my earliest days around here were largely coloured by my rash decision or volunteerism to take on the duty as chair of Caucus. I volunteered for that. Well, I thought, I've run a few meetings. I think I can run a meeting. Guess what? I found out that I really didn't know how to run this kind of meeting with 18 of my colleagues here, all of us chomping at the bit to get going. If I hadn't had Mr. Hamilton's steady, guiding, cool hand it would have been a much more terrifying experience than it was. With you, I shared his good counsel and I've appreciated it very much, Mr. Speaker.

David and I also shared a Sunday morning habit, not every Sunday on my part, but he was frequently working here on Sunday and this was when I would like to come in and he always had a few minutes for me to come down and sample his coffee. We would get into some meandering discussions now and then on various, marvelous points of philosophy, but we also found ourselves getting right into the nuts and bolts of what was in front of us that day and very often, I think, making some good plans or some good starting points. I'll miss that Sunday morning coffee.

Mr. Speaker, what I would like to really highlight is Mr. Hamilton's unerring ability and that gift, I think, that he has for treating every one of us equally and giving us all the grace of his fullest attention. I note his tolerance, I'm sure, at times, but he never discounted me or any of my ideas or any of my inquiries or any of the worries that I took to him. I've seen him in the hallways and the meetings here. I don't know of anyone that he has not given his fullest attention to. In this environment, I think that's, as I say, a rare gift and one that I've tried to learn by.

Mr. Speaker, this is not good-bye. It is certainly good luck as we in this Assembly and, I think, the people of the Northwest Territories will continue to enjoy and benefit from Mr. Hamilton's experience because he continues on as the Chief Electoral Officer for the Northwest Territories. So, in that sense, indeed it is not good-bye, but it is very much good luck and thank you, David.

---Applause

Thank you, Mr. Braden. To the motion. The honourable Member for the Sahtu, Mr. Kakfwi.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'd like to also thank Mr. Hamilton for his service and the dedication he's shown to his job and certainly to this legislature. As the Premier, I'd like to thank him on behalf of the Cabinet for his service and dedication.

I would also like to thank him as the MLA for the Sahtu for the brief few weeks when I was elected in 1987. Because I was new I depended a great deal on, as other Members have, the information and advice that Mr. Hamilton gives to each and every one of us when we're first elected and come into these Chambers. So as the Sahtu MLA, I'd like to thank him for his service and support to not only myself, but to every new MLA that's ever come into this legislature during his time.

Mr. Hamilton has served us during a time in our history when there was a lot of change and excitement going on around him and he's been dedicated to making sure that this machinery of government, the legislature, continued to operate, as onerous as that might be. It's his life work and I'd like to tell him I think he should be proud of it and God bless. Mahsi.

---Applause

Mahsi. To the motion. The honourable Member for Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I will also be speaking in support of the motion. I followed territorial politics fairly closely, but my first real personal encounter with David was when they were having the opening of this beautiful facility. I wasn't an MLA yet and he was overseeing all of this and was trying to make sure that nobody crashed the party. I was trying to figure out a way to crash the party for the opening because I thought I should. Anyway, I did, but I remember he wasn't too impressed. I regarded him with a large role, actually, in the establishment and upkeep of this very beautiful facility that we work in. He has an appreciation for very fine things and I think that is very much reflected in the way this building is and the way it looks and continues to look even after being in service for this number of years.

The first night I arrived in Yellowknife -- coming in here was pretty scary, as my colleagues said -- one of the Deputy Clerks picked me up. I can't remember, I think it was David Inch. He picked me up and we had a big party at the Hamilton's for all the new Members coming in eight years ago and it was very nice. We got to know everybody on an informal basis and they have extended that hospitality to the Members of this legislature over the years.

David has provided continuity. Politicians come and go, but there has been a continuity. Sometimes we get into meetings where we're all over the map and we're not sure what we're doing. Some pretty outrageous things are flying around. Then David walks into the room and brings a voice of reason to help us somehow crystallize and articulate what we want to do and what we want to say.

So, as some of the Members have mentioned, I'm sure that Mr. Hamilton has seen it all. I must tell you, when I first came here, for about the first five years, I always called him Mr. Hamilton and I'm not sure why because he's actually about the same age as all the rest of us. Except maybe Brendan...

---Laughter

...who's only been an adult for eight years.

---Laughter

There has certainly been a kindness there and support and encouragement that's helped me do my job. I also wanted to say, thank you for the kindness you've extended to my family, to my children, to my husband when they've come here to visit. They've really appreciated that. As you go on to the next chapter of your life, Mr. Speaker, I'd like to wish our Clerk all the best. Thank you.

---Applause

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. To the motion. The honourable Member for Thebacha, Minister Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I, as well, would like to rise to speak in favour of this motion. This Legislative Assembly, as we all know -- as we prepare to launch off on elections, some of us, and some on to the rest of our lives -- is a place of change and transition. For the last 20 years Mr. Hamilton has been a fixture, but now it's his turn to make the move out the doors of the Assembly into the real world to become a semi-civilian once again.

In his time he's seen dozens of us come and go, but there's only been one Clerk. So this is change. I know he's working hard on his Master's degree, he just has to finish his thesis. I also know he staying on as Chief Electoral Officer and from my own personal experience as MLA, especially in the 13th Assembly, I know that the Chief Electoral Officer has a lot of influence and can play a very important role in an MLAs life. So he will be keeping his finger on the pulse.

I'd like to wish him nothing but good health and happiness in all the things that he does after here and thank him for putting up with me and for all the assistance he's provided over the years. Thank you.

---Applause

Thank you. To the motion. The honourable Member for Tu Nedhe, Mr. Nitah.

To the motion. The honourable Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes, Minister Allen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I, too, will support the motion. It is often difficult to follow up on so many accolades that the Clerk has received. I think it's important for me to let you know that I have a special note framed in my mother's house in Inuvik that says that two Aklavik boys have come a long way and certainly, prior to David's arrival in Aklavik, I was escorted out to school so I didn't get a chance to know him in those days. When I did get elected for the first time in 1999 and first came to the Assembly in 2000 I, too, was intimidated and in awe of such a special place and special time in my life as the newly-elected Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes.

Mr. Hamilton, on behalf of my constituents I want to say this has been a special and very gratifying experience for myself and I want to convey my congratulations on behalf of my riding. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause

Mahsi. To the motion. The honourable Member for North Slave, Mr. Lafferty.

That's probably one wish he doesn't want to keep. To the motion. The honourable Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I, too, will be voting in support of this motion. Like many, it's been a number of years that I've had the opportunity to work with David. I thought, when I first came in, that I would turn this government on its ear and make some drastic changes and became somewhat disappointed as I slowly figured out the system doesn't move quite as fast as one would wish from time to time. I would be disgruntled and sit back and wonder what we are doing here. He would stop in with a few words to say: "hold the course", "you are doing the right thing for your constituents."

There were times when I sure wished to be the fly on the wall when he's heard of Members who wanted to make a certain motion or the government would come out with a bill. I'm sure there were some antics and some words that were best left behind the doors as his advice might have been a little more stern than some of us would let on. But he has helped many of us as we walked through the doors of this Assembly. I, too, when I walked through here, was very green to territorial politics. I was open minded about what would happen here, but as for the actual rules, Robert's Rules and so on, of different meetings and how we conduct ourselves, Mr. Hamilton's quiet advice would help steer the meeting and bring to a conclusion what we thought was total madness at times.

Many times I've had to explain to people, they'd ask about this Assembly and they'd ask, who was that man that sits at the table in front of the Speaker? As I've come to learn, now I say to my constituents who ask me, that is the man who steers the government direction. Although we think we're the power of this Assembly, I've come to learn that the Clerk position and Mr. Hamilton in particular has an awful lot of authority that many of us thought we wielded. He's taught us that he is one that can make things flow or he can plug things up as he saw the rules and explained them.

He has helped us and helped the North in more ways than many people can say. I guess, as we look at things and the season of change that would come upon us, and we know that the snow is once again, as on an annual basis, coming around, so too would another time of elections and new Members coming through the door. Members who've been around would leave and take on another life. Mr. Hamilton will, I'm sure, be paying much attention as he's seen this territory grow from its infancy, from when Members were elected, to a certain degree, to where we're a full governing body making rules for our people and the Territories.

There are times when he would go to a Member who would stand on their own, as I have, in this Assembly from time to time and felt that the difference we make here may be very minimal and wonder if it is time to look at greener pastures. Again, that quiet voice would sit down in his office, he would tell you that you are doing what's best for your constituents and don't be afraid to stand and take the heat if it is that situation. Or maybe it's time to sit down and be quiet about something and let the will of the House rule the day.

So it has been my extreme pleasure, and I'm sure as he's seen the picture in the paper, when I was first elected, along with many of the others. I'm not sure where they got that picture from. I know that many comments made by my colleagues about the, who is this guy from Inuvik? Look at that guy. Is he a terrorist?

---Laughter

I wasn't sure, but I'm sure Mr. Hamilton, as he saw many of us come in here, knew that he would at times have his hands full with Members coming in here and what we would do. He would steer us gently in a way that was best fitting for us as Members and for our constituents. I said I came in here as a very green Member to territorial politics. I guess I can say somewhat that I am seasoned now. I have gone from my dull grays to my colourful purples and grapes, as one of my colleagues would say. Along with that, I have grown as a member of the Legislative Assembly and hopefully, with the advice and calming influence of Mr. Hamilton, be able to serve my constituents in the future remembering his guidance. There are times when the business of this Assembly is first and foremost, but there are times when his ability to talk to Members aside from the politics of the day and talk to you on a personal note and let you know you are doing a good job. So I'll miss you.

---Applause

To the motion. The honourable Member for Range Lake, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I, too, stand today to speak in support of the motion. I appreciate the fact that Mr. Hamilton announced his retirement earlier and I think part of it was so that we would all get used to and prepared for a life without him. I think that we all know that it's just not going to be the same.

With his announcement of retirement and some of the announcements in the House and outside of the House of some of the long-serving Members, yourself, Mr. Speaker and Minister Antoine, Minister Kakfwi and Minister Ootes leaving, it really feels like this is definitely the end of an era and we are starting anew. I think I am one of the younger ones here, contrary to some other Member's statement. I really am feeling like it's not time for me to have to grow up more and be able to be more self-sufficient.

Mr. Speaker, it really seems to me like I have known Mr. Hamilton forever and I can't remember the first time I met him, but Minister Antoine's statement about him being appointed as Clerk in 1983 reminded me that I had a brief presence in the old Assembly, the old Yellowknife Inn, where they had a youth assembly where they brought two youths from every riding in the country and I was one of the ones chosen in Yellowknife Centre. I remember making presentations, along with now Chief Jerry Paulette and Sabrina Dragon when we were 18-years-old pretending to be MLAs. That must have been when I first met Mr. Hamilton inside of this setting. But, of course, he's been a member of the community of Yellowknife for a long time. I know him through the United Church. I have a unique background that I have been an employee of the Legislative Assembly. I came here in 1989. I submitted a resume to Mr. Hamilton fresh out of university with my fancy degree in political science. I had a call from him not too long after that and started working as a research officer with Rick Bargery, who is now the deputy minister. The names sort of flow around here.

So I have had the honour of working as an employee here and then working in Ministers' offices and then going to school again and coming back as a Member. Mr. Speaker, I have to say that Mr. Hamilton truly is one of a kind. I don't think he's replaceable in this House or in the government. I know the senior management of the government relies on him a lot and in our city of Yellowknife and the entire community.

He is truly a very gifted person. He's about the only one who I know who absolutely knows everything, not just about what's going on in this chamber. We know what goes on in this Chamber is a small part of what goes on in the whole Legislative Assembly. But he also knows what's going on in the whole government. He actually knows what's going on before you know it. He knows what you are thinking even before you speak it.

---Laughter

He has a plan for you to go ahead with it or to stop the plan before you get into too much trouble. I know what Members here have already spoken about. Every time I go into his office, I can just feel the stories that must go on in that office. I have been one of the Members who have benefited from his advice. I have noticed two things about Mr. Hamilton. One is the success that he's had and his ability to have served in this House and serve the Members for 20 years, that is not a small thing. I don't know how anybody can do that. He should be very proud of having achieved that. Members who are in this House, we are very determined. We have strong beliefs. We come here with lots of issues and convictions that we want to fight on and it cannot be easy for him to give advice, but he has a gift of quick mind. Whenever I suffer from difficulty with making a decision, whether it's procedure or whether I should make this statement or that or should I go one way or the other, you could have suffered it for three hours or three days and you talk to him and he will know the answer in one instant.

Another gift he has that made him a success in this House is that no matter what advice he gives you, he always makes you feel like he's your friend. Even if he's changed your mind, you walk away thinking that you have your way or you are winning. He has that. Not too many people have that. Even if he changes your mind, he makes you feel like you've won anyway and you've made your point. I hope I am doing justice to recognizing the gifts that he has, which is his quick mind. That's not always easy to find. We second guess ourselves and about things we want to do and it's a tremendous help when you are struggling with your decision to just talk to Mr. Hamilton. It doesn't have to be very long. You just talk to him for a few minutes and he has an answer for you. Whether you take it or not, you go away with it feeling much better.

So I just want to recognize him for that. Also, I don't know how he has time for other things but he's been developing himself personally. He has lots of involvement outside of the community and I know he will do really well. As Mr. Bell has mentioned, I have travelled with him around the world, he is highly respected all across the country and all around the world by a lot of parliamentarians and clerks who know his work and who have had a chance to work with him. So I have had no doubt that he is going to have a full and illustrious career in his retirement in whatever way he chooses.

I don't want to say good-bye and I don't want to be sad about it, but I am really mindful of the fact that this is the beginning of a new era. We are going to have a totally different place and if it's any comfort to you, Mr. Hamilton, know that you've done a good job. You've gone through a lot of changes in this Assembly, guided the political and constitutional evolution through and that you are leaving us in good hands. Please feel free to come back and visit and all the best wishes to Kate and your entire family. Thank you.

There are no other people wanting to speak and as Speaker, I don't normally speak to motions nor do I get to vote on motions, except in a tie situation. The chair doesn't anticipate a tie vote here.

---Laughter

However, if I were allowed to say something, I would say...

---Laughter

...I would say that I support everything that has already been said around the table and add, if I were allowed to say, it's been a big part of my political life being a student of Mr. Hamilton right from November 8, 1988 when I was first sworn in and that from this position in the last four years, I have gained a lot of respect for the knowledge that this gentlemen has of the parliaments, not only here but nationally and internationally. I say that because I have attended international conferences and national conferences with Mr. Hamilton. He is very well respected in this country and in international circles as well. His presence will be missed here as our esteemed Clerk. I think what we are doing today here is giving us an opportunity of not saying goodbye, it is just saying farewell temporarily. Should the occasion arise, you are proposing to have a chair here so that this gentleman can come and be in our presence, so we can act wisely and speak wisely on behalf of our constituents.

The honourable Member for Nahendeh has the last opportunity to speak to this motion. The honourable Member for Nahendeh.

There being no further debate on the motion, the House is ready for the question

Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? Thank you.

In the chair's opinion, the motion was carried unanimously.

---Applause

Item 16, motions. Item 17, first reading of bills. Item 18, second reading of bills. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Antoine.