Robert Hawkins

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want to once again return to the Minister of Justice, because from what I was hearing on this particular side of the House is that clearly it sounds like he’s defending the status quo by doing nothing.

I’m asking the Minister maybe to explain the communication and accountability line between the Department of Justice and the RCMP. Because if we have no authority to provide policy guidance to them, what’s the point of having a Minister of Justice? We should have the RCMP member sitting there answering questions. Thank you.

I appreciate the Minister’s quick reply of saying nothing. It hasn’t said anything to the fact of what is the Minister going to do. That is the issue.

What is the Minister going to do to update the policy to ensure the public’s safety matters enough that we’re going to protect them with the right information so they know and can be vigilant knowing a predator is out there stalking them? I want to hear what the Minister is going to do, not pass it on to somebody else.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Recently, there was a convicted sex offender – that’s a predator, the way I view it – on the loose in Yellowknife, and they were on the loose in Yellowknife without the public’s knowledge. That means women, children and even some men were at risk while this predator stalked their next prey. It was my understanding that the police knew that this person was on the prowl and that this predator was looking for their next victim, but the public was not informed.

My question for the Minister of Justice is: When does the public’s interest start to matter enough that they are...

It’s completely fine. I didn’t spell it out. I was just more talking about community access programs. I’m just trying to find a way to help small NGOs, as a matter of fact, or those types of organizations that try to work with the communities, and maybe NGO is the right descriptor we should use in this particular case.

Does the Minister see some ability there for them to apply for things like community access vans in order to help the folks such as I mentioned, seniors and those in the disabled community to be more involved in community initiatives? I had a great conversation with a resident of...

I appreciate that. That will make things most helpful.

Just changing gears here on a particular matter, I was speaking to some folks in Hay River and I brought this up with the Department of Health the other day. I think it sits under this particular operation, community operations, but that said, if the department feels the need to direct me to another page, I’m happy to wait as well.

That said, the issue was about a community access van and sometimes the challenge, of course, is being able to afford to purchase one. Some of the smaller communities have to raise money for a long time in order...

If it does say anything regarding fluoridation, would MACA be interested in updating the public as to why it is used and some of the comments provided on both sides? As I said earlier, I am in support of fluoridation and that’s not the issue, but there are many people out there concerned with its risks, so the public is informed a little about the argument on both sides and allow them to pursue their own. I think it’s in our best interests to provide good education to people on both sides of this argument and one should never be afraid to hear an opposing point of view.

I actually support the principle of fluoridation so it’s not a question of mine, but it is driven by a constituent concern, and I think it comes up every couple of years, so it’s always good to remind ourselves of this. Fluoridation is known as a potential carcinogenic element that we are putting into our water, but that said, it’s not as if we don’t know that. I guess in some ways, how do we communicate its risks and gains? I know the dental industry strongly supports that, fluoridation in our water, and that is part of the reason why I certainly support it. But that said, how do we...

Mr. Speaker, I want to know the nature of this discussion. Is he going to call them? Is he going to talk to them and say, “Hey, how ya doing?” I want to know if he’s going to take the public’s interest first, or is he going to protect the institution?

I have great respect for the RCMP. It’s not about that. Every one of those folks in red serge knows that I proudly believe in the work that they do. I also believe equally in the public’s safety.

So, I want to hear that the Minister is going to bring them this issue and provide them some instruction that we need to ensure the public’s safety...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’ll have questions for the Minister of Human Resources right now. We’ve all been made well aware of the experience and certainly the security issues that have happened around Stanton Hospital where many of our staff have come under some scares due to a security issue. My fear, of course, is that Stanton may be more of a symptom of problems as opposed to a particular one. Rather than focusing strictly in on Stanton, which would probably be a mistake at this particular time, I want to look broadly across our public service and ask the Minister of Human Resources what...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Kofi Annan, the former secretary general of the UN, had said, “Knowledge is power. Information is liberating. Education is the premise of progress, in every society, in every family.” I couldn’t agree more. I really believe education is the true future before us. It’s one we can write and help others write their own future.

I once again call upon this government to take a hard look at what it’s doing to the future of education. We’ve all heard about the travesty of its plan on junior kindergarten, not thought out, well-conceived and believed in, but yet not thought out....