Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it really is good to see you back here. I'm not embarrassed to say that I missed you a lot while you were gone. Mr. Speaker, I think I can title my statement today as general lament to the Cabinet Ministers.

Mr. Speaker, on Friday, a Minister stated that he was insulted by remarks that he wasn't doing his job. I thought about this over the weekend and wonder how insulted he would feel if he were trying to advocate, on behalf of his constituents, bringing forward gaps in laws and regulations with evidence that supports the need for a change, only to be told over and over again a big fat no. What's worse is the rationale for the no's is always because things are the way they are and they cannot be changed.

Frankly, Mr. Speaker, I've seen this approach from all or most Ministers. The latest performance by a Minister on amendments to the Territorial Parks Act were deplorable. What about the incoherent answers by Ministers on harmonization? Pushing papers and going to events and going to meetings cannot be an alibi for inaction or an excuse for non-action. If they really thought about it, Mr. Speaker, they would know that behind every issue we bring forward, there are real life stories with real suffering or real injustice being done by the government's action or inaction. People are being excluded from programs when they should be included.

So I have some advice for all Ministers, and I want them to know this in their heart; it is not their job to be the protector of the status quo or to be the mouthpiece for the departments' policies and guidelines. If everything was fine and dandy the way things are, why should we meet in this Assembly, Mr. Speaker? Ministers have to get out from under whatever albatross they've put themselves under. It is their job to know and to follow the policies and legislation under their stewardship, I agree with that. I believe, Mr. Speaker, it is more important that they remain open-minded about the shortfall in their rules, and they should open up to the advice from the Members of this House and the constituents at large that they serve, and be strong enough to change them if necessary.

I say this, Mr. Speaker, because I'm absolutely fed up with answers that say things are the way they are because that's the way they have been before me and they will always be the same after me, no matter what. This has been the case with the whole array of questions I've been asking about the shortfalls in the SFA. I could go on and on and on and I don't want to repeat everything, Mr. Speaker, because I think I will get a chance to ask that question. I really would like the Ministers to consider that everything we are bringing up here has a point and a meaning, and we deserve respect as much as they do themselves. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause