Katrina Nokleby Great Slave

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise to also celebrate Tim today in his retirement. Not only have most of the things I was going to speak about -- even my jokes have been stolen by the other side in that Mr. Mercer was always providing us with advice; I just probably didn't take it very often. So as one of the Members that definitely has had one of the more tumultuous rides here in the Assembly, I first would like to apologize to Mr. Mercer for making his last few years here at the Assembly a very interesting and unpredictable one. I too did not have many interactions with the clerk's office as a Minister, and it was actually -- and I'm going to try to say this without tearing up too much. But it was upon the passing of Haylee Carlson here in the Assembly, who I know was very close to everyone, the staff, and Mr. Mercer himself, and at the same time I had lost my mother one week earlier and it was -- I never had an opportunity with everything that was going on, my siblings, to say good bye to my mom. We didn't do the service at the time. And it was attending Haylee's service and listening to Mr. Mercer speak to that where I was able to actually have some closure myself in what I was going through, and that, I think, was the first moment where I started my friendship with Tim.

Over the years, Tim did try to -- or that first year try to help me smooth over the things that were happening and unfortunately that did not pan out that way. But having moved on to this side, I then got to see the other side of it and have that unique experience of being not only a Minister but also having been a Regular Member and seeing exactly what the clerk's office did and what they brought to the table. And I can't even imagine -- you know, the expression of herding cats, I think if you take that to the millionth degree that's probably what Mr. Mercer had to do with the 19th Assembly. We were all in with a lot of new ideas and probably not so receptive to listening to what might seem to be the old way of doing things, and I want to say that I think that Tim navigated that really well with us, encouraging us to make change and to follow our hearts, but also trying to get us to recognize that there are procedures and things that need to take place.

I believe Tim is a true parliamentarian. He truly believes in the system and that would lead to some interesting debates at times, as I am quite the opposite. However, I have come to really appreciate the level of expertise and knowledge that Tim has brought to the table because I come from no background like that. So I had no guidance. And I really have appreciated the clerk's office. And not only Tim himself, but the people underneath him that you can see are clearly benefitting from his amazing mentorship.

And one of the things that I've always come and struck to is when I look at some of our -- and I don't want to speak for them but they're not Members, and they don't get this opportunity, some of our Indigenous staff in the Assembly have always told me that Tim has been a strong supporter of theirs and that they feel he welcomes them, he encourages them, and he wants them all to succeed. And for that, I think that's the biggest kudos that we could give him in saying thank you for that. Thank you.

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Great Slave. The motion is in order. To the motion. Member for Yellowknife North.

Rylund Johnson Yellowknife North

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Mercer is the Clerk of the Assembly, he's essentially our deputy minister, but the thing I like about Tim is unlike quite a few deputy ministers, when he speaks, I understand what he's saying, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Mercer truly lives the ethos of fearless advice and loyal implementation. I had the honour of chairing caucus through the first half of this Assembly through some tumultuous times and I spent many hours in his office getting advice and discussing things, and he provided me a wealth of direction and options and always after those meetings, I was confident that they would be implemented. I was confident that they would get down to the staff who needed to implement them, which I think is often the hardest part of accomplishing anything in government is making sure it is actually followed up on and I've never had that concern with Mr. Mercer. I truly do appreciate his advice and his ability to give fearless advice, because I know that is not easy, that is not easy for many civil servants to do, to give advice that you simply may not want to hear. And so I just would like to thank Mr. Mercer for all of his help and all of his advice in my time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Yellowknife North. The motion is in order. To the motion. Member for Hay River South.

Rocky Simpson Hay River South

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And, Mr. Speaker, before ever meeting Mr. Mercer, it was immediately upon my successful election to the Assembly that he contacted me to give me advice on an issue that was dogging me. And I knew from that first contact that we, as MLAs, were in good hands. And R.J. said I told you so.

Mr. Mercer's dedication to this Assembly for the past 20 years is very appreciated by myself and I think everyone here today. I wish him all the best in retirement while he works on his class 3 driver's license and his air endorsement. So, Mr. Bassett, you may have a truck driver in the making. Seriously though, Mr. Mercer, from what I know of you in my short time here, your conduct and the service you provided was nothing short of exceptional, and we will all miss that. Thank you.

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Hay River South. The motion is in order. To the motion. Member for Kam Lake.

Caitlin Cleveland Kam Lake

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it's pretty obvious that that first phone call that we received the very next morning after we were elected is a memorable one because it's definitely my first memory of talking to Tim. I had never met Tim before, and I had never spoken with Tim before. And I remember being so terrified on the phone that when I hung up, I realized I had absolutely no idea what he had just told me.

Mr. Speaker, Tim has a lot of passion for his role as Clerk of the Legislative Assembly, and that is very obvious. He has a lot of love for the Northwest Territories, and that is very clear. Tim has a vision for how to build a system that supports and honours consensus government in this territory, and that is certainly loud.

I had the honour, I can say now, of serving on Board of Management as well as some of my colleagues. And Board of Management spent a lot of time together in the 19th Assembly and so we got to know each other quite well. There were times where we didn't want to be in the same room together, but I think at the very end of this Assembly, as we enter into the last days, we realize that there was a huge benefit and a lot of memorable relationships that were created in those moments together and a lot of good work that was done in Board of Management with yourself, Mr. Speaker, and Tim at the secretary position of that and I'm very thankful for that time.

One of the roles that Board of Management had was in interviewing for a new clerk. And I realize that, yes, while we were interviewing for a deputy minister position, that one of my biggest concerns about interviewing for that position was that it's not just another leadership job; it's a leadership job that is to the next level. Because, yes, you want someone that is experienced in management and, yes, you want someone who is smart and knows their stuff, but it's a huge task to deal with the 19 of us and it's one of the -- in my opinion, one of the biggest probably most challenging parts of the role and one of the most important parts of the role is keeping us all in line but also making sure that we are well supported, and that's not an easy task to do. And so one of my biggest concerns was how do you interview for someone's ability to connect with people when you may not know the person that you're interviewing, because it is very clear that connection is such a huge part of the role of the Clerk of the Legislative Assembly.

Mr. Speaker, I can say that one of Tim's greatest strengths is his ability to connect in a unique way with every single person that comes into this House and that is elected in some way, shape, or form. And I was honoured to be one of the people to receive not only that professional relationship but that friendship.

Mr. Speaker, my greatest respect for Tim as a human being, though, and as a person, definitely came through some of the darkest moments of this Assembly. I want to say, Mr. Speaker, I was not prepared coming into this Assembly for some of the relationships and the connections that would be made. The North is a very small place, and while I didn't know Tim I knew people that worked in this building. And I knew people that worked in this building that aren't here anymore, and I was lucky enough to know staff who are here today and who were amazing support systems and at the helm of that is Mr. Mercer. So I wanted to leave Mr. Mercer with this because we all know that Mr. Mercer is a huge sailor.

I'm not afraid of storms for I am learning how to sail my ship, is a very common and well-known sailing quote. And I want to thank Mr. Mercer for helping me build the confidence as a first time MLA to learn how to sail my ship. Thank you.

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Kam Lake. The motion is in order. To the motion.

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Question has been called. Member for Thebacha. Yes, I'll allow the mover to have closing comments. Member for Thebacha.

Frieda Martselos Thebacha

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, when I first got elected to the Legislative Assembly and came here, I found a situation where, you know, like I explained earlier today, that, you know, the slow pace of government and being in private sector for 50 years, I was a bit puzzled at all the processes that we had to follow to get one piece of paper or one little thing. And so after a couple weeks, I paid a visit to the clerk's office and I sat down with Tim. And I didn't really know him that well yet. And the conversation we had was incredible. And, you know, he says, Frieda, just concentrate on the two things that you would really like to concentrate on and work on those and when it becomes positive, you'll see why you're here. And I have a lot of respect for Tim. I had enough respect to stand by him through all the three and a half years because I know good always goes over bad. I've had it happen in my own leadership many times. And as long as you're telling the truth and as long as you stand by what you believe in and you have the compassion for what you do, good always goes over the bad. And with that, you know, I will miss Tim greatly. I respect him. And I've got to know him even more as chairing with him -- chairing caucus with him in the last little while.

I want to thank him for understanding what I stand for. And I also want to thank him on how he interacts with the Indigenous peoples. That, to me, is very, very, very important, and all peoples. He treats everybody that walks through the door equally, and that's a big plus. I know he's going into other things in life and going to enjoy some of the things that he always wanted to do because, I mean, coming here and spending, even in this last four days, like 12 to 15 hours a day was a little bit much, but -- and hopefully he'd be able to enjoy his cabin and enjoy the outdoors that he loves and the barbecues. And I also want to make sure that I extend my personal invitation to him on behalf of my husband and I, and the people of Fort Smith, to come and visit Fort Smith any time he would like. It's been my pleasure, Mr. Speaker, to be working with such a great guy. And I want to thank him very, very much. Thank you, Tim.

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you. Colleagues, before we do the vote, I just wanted to say a few words myself while the staff are here.

Mr. Mercer, I know I could only see the back of your head right now and I know -- you know, this is my 12th year as an MLA, and Tim has been here for the majority of that. I know he took some time off for himself. But, you know, I really value all the -- I mean, I didn't come to his office that much but, I mean, as MLAs, you know, a lot of times, you know, there's pressures we get with this job and our personal lives and it's always good to bounce these issues off somebody, and Tim was that person for many of us. And, you know, it's usually you got pretty good sound advice but a lot of times he just asked you what you thought, and he'd be like ah, pretty much got it. But, you know, I really value that because a lot of times it was the right decisions to make and, you know, that's the kind of sound advice a lot of Members over the years have received. And, you know, that's what -- and a lot of the advice that we do get make us do our job 100 percent. And, you know, that's a role of the clerk, is to be there for the Members 100 percent and, you know, support you in any way they can and, you know, that means a lot to myself. And also the team that he put together. You know, look at the team up there that's seeing him off. I know you're all going to miss him as much as us but, you know, like you said it's a phone call away, but. Or just down the road. But, you know, to leave this Assembly, it's leaving on a good note and I wish him all the best and look forward to the future. And also for Tim, I know I have other words later on today, but I just thought I'd say that while the team is here. It's so important, you know. You know you have a lot of support with our incoming clerk, Mr. Rutland taking pictures. With that, I would just like to thank you all and thank Tim. Mahsi.

To the motion. All those in favour? All those opposed? Sure, it's up to Member for Thebacha.

The Member for Thebacha has requested a recorded vote. All those in favour, please rise.

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

All those opposed, please rise. All those abstaining, please rise. It's pretty close here, but -- I'm just kidding.

The results of the recorded vote: 16 in favour, zero opposed, zero abstentions. The motion is carried.

---Carried

I'm sure Mr. Mercer will be like some former MLAs and always up in the gallery at every session.

Motions. Notices of motion for the first reading of bills. First reading of bills. Second reading of bills. Member for Kam Lake.