Mr. Speaker, trust is a fragile and powerful thing. What can take decades to build can be broken in one action.

Surveys show that the professions trusted most by Canadians are scientists, nurses, doctors, and teachers, while politicians, unfortunately, are found at the bottom of the list. Today, only 13 percent of Canadians trust politicians. This is important because we know that, in order to truly work together, all Northerners need to trust each other.

I recently read an article which implied that the public's lack of trust in politicians is based on the sense that an "old boys' club" is maintaining the status quo to serve its own interests. Last October, northern voters changed the face of politics. I believe that this transformative change was at least partially motivated by a rejection of the old boys' club. I stand in a gender-balanced Assembly, where more than half of the Members are Indigenous, but that doesn't automatically mean that, as a government, we have changed how we operate, how we staff, do business, or our trustworthiness.

People sense three kinds of trust, Mr. Speaker: competency, emotional, and ethical trust. Competency trust is earned, and it reflects the knowledge we have and how we use it. We get this trust in steps, but we also lose it in steps. Emotional trust is based on how we make people feel. We earn it by making people feel safe and typically lose it gradually, a little at a time. Ethical trust, Mr. Speaker, is the hardest to earn and the hardest to keep. It is earned through principled actions and decision-making and can be lost in an instant.

Building trust takes the work required to understand the unique challenges of our people, the curiosity and empathy to care, and the courage to do what is right. Trust is a feedback loop of not only gaining trust, but also giving it, both inside the House, within departments, other levels of government and community organizations, and within our own neighbourhoods. Trust allows us to have each other's backs, work side-by-side, and advance with confidence towards a common purpose.

The Greek word "democracy" literally means "ruled by the people," and its definition is a system of government by the whole population. By that definition, to truly govern, Mr. Speaker, we need to build all three kinds of trust.

As we work to evolve governance and decision-making by welcoming everyone to the table, I hope that, over time, we can collectively rebuild our trust accounts. Northerners need to trust that their words, concerns, and passions for the North are reflected through our work here. We, as politicians, must respect all voices and be humbled by the capability of our actions when we trust each other. To govern justly, with both love and power, it is up to all of us to start rebuilding our trust accounts. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.