Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Members of the Standing Committee on Rules and Procedures for their thorough work on the options for a mid-term review. Setting up an effective and fair process was one of the first things we wanted to accomplish as an 18th Assembly. The motion before us describes such a process. Most importantly, it is based on actual performance in meeting the mandate we have set for this government. The process proposed is also transparent. It will be easy for the public to follow and it will be supported by information that is public. The Mid-term Review Committee will do its work in this Chamber in public with the TV cameras rolling.
Many of us heard criticism of consensus government during our campaigns last year. I have learned a lot myself about accountability in consensus government since taking office. I know we can improve the accountability of our government as a whole and of the Ministers we entrust to carry out our mandate. This is no slight to them, Mr. Speaker, we are all working within a system and today we are all working together to improve it. The method proposed for the mid-term review is an improvement. I am proud to say that we in this House want to stand up and be accountable for the work we do. I'm proud that we will stand up and explain what we are doing and why. The government, the Premier, and the Ministers are accountable to the Assembly every day of their term in office. The mid-term review will show this is the case. It shows that we, as Members, are all accountable to the public every day of our term not just at election time.
The mid-term review is a way to take stock of what we have accomplished in our first two years of office and to measure our effectiveness. If we are succeeding we will renew our confidence in the government and Ministers and update direction to them for the remainder of our term. But the mid-term review process has to allow for cases when progress is inadequate and provide a method for change if it is needed for this government and future governments. I want to stress that this is a necessary tool in our democracy, not a weapon.
It is important to me that throughout the review process Members and Ministers are free to express themselves; this is part of what it means to be both transparent and accountable. This is especially true of the votes of confidence. The only way every Member can vote freely is to have a secret ballot. That is how democracy works and we should be proud of it, not afraid of it.
Mr. Speaker, I'm proud to support this motion and I am proud to have a hand in helping our consensus government work better for the people of the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.