Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I have a point of order on what transpired earlier in the House. Mr. Speaker, I know that the Member for Hay River South is very passionate about the debates we are having, and so am I, but there was something said there that is very troublesome to me.
I would like to ask your good office to review the transcript and see if I have a point of order. Mr. Speaker, I raise a point of order on Rule 23(c), (h), (i), (j), (k), and (n). Mr. Speaker, under the rules of the Assembly, there is a rule against needless repetition or raising matters which have been decided during the current session. Mr. Speaker, I should just point out the words that I am raising a point of order on.
Earlier, during the question period, Mrs. Groenewegen said something to the effect that if she had any support from Yellowknife Members against moving Dene K'onia, that we wouldn't be in this situation today. I have a problem with that, Mr. Speaker, because it is raising an issue that has already been decided in this House. It was in a budget item. The budget was debated. It went into Social Programs debate. The Social Programs committee reviewed it, and the House made a decision. That is one issue.
Another thing is under rule (h) and (i), I feel it is suggesting somehow that Yellowknife MLAs had anything to do with moving Dene K'onia out of Hay River. That is unfair to the people of Yellowknife, and the people of Hay River. We did not do any such thing. That was a government move. The government came to the committee with a merit of why they had to close this young offender facility in Hay River. That was that. It was decided. It was hugely debated. We had a huge debate on that. It was not Yellowknife Members moving this facility out of there. Certainly, I don't think Yellowknife people should, in any way, think that we are being somehow punished because Yellowknife Members did anything against Hay River, because I don't believe that is at all the case.
I want to raise my last point. It says on Rule 23(n) where a Member introduces any matter in debate that offends the practices and precedents of the Assembly... Mr. Speaker, as you can see, and the people can see, we have a lot of heated debates here. We have to feel free to make decisions on whatever decisions we make. We shouldn't have any fear of retribution against our members, or the people that we represent, because of decisions we make. I don't think that the Member had any ill will toward anything, but the way it was said, and the way she looked at us and said, "If Yellowknife Members supported..." I don't think is appropriate. I think, for the good of the debates that we need to have in this House, I would like her to apologize and retract. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.