Hearings into N.W.T premier's secret affair wrap up

Floyd Roland's future as premier of the Northwest Territories could rest in the hands of an adjudicator who might decide that Roland's secret affair with a legislative clerk could warrant an order from the legislature that he resign.

Public hearings into the matter wrapped up in Yellowknife on Friday with closing arguments.

Adjudicator Ted Hughes must decide if Roland, a married father of six, compromised his duty to the N.W.T. legislative assembly and the public last year by not immediately disclosing his extramarital relationship with Patricia Russell, who at the time was working as a deputy legislative clerk.

As a clerk, Russell provided advice to MLAs and the Speaker, as well as attended MLAs' in-camera committee meetings — meetings where members talked about, among other things, the performance of the premier and his cabinet.

Six MLAs filed a conflict-of-interest complaint in February, saying Russell may have passed confidential information from those committee meetings to Roland.

Russell no longer works at the legislature. She and Roland are currently living together in Yellowknife.

Denied sharing secrets

Testifying earlier this week, both Roland and Russell — a former journalist — strongly denied claims that they shared committee secrets.

"Confidentiality has been my bread and butter," Russell told the inquiry on Wednesday.

"Working in my adult life has been based around matters of confidence, how to use confidential information."

Roland admitted early in the inquiry that he kept his relationship with Russell secret for months.

The affair was underway as the legislative assembly was going through turmoil early this year, when some MLAs launched an unsuccessful campaign to oust Roland and his ministers from cabinet.

MLAs who testified at the inquiry could not say for sure that Roland and Russell shared information but they argued that trust is often based on perception.

"I still find it incredibly hard to believe that any two individuals in an intimate relationship don't share information," Great Slave MLA Glen Abernethy said during the first round of hearings last month.

As for why the relationship was initially kept secret, Roland testified that he did not want to go public with it until he broke the news to his wife and children.

"I knew this was not going to turn back. It was going to go ahead," Roland said at Wednesday's hearing. "I approached my spouse to inform her that I was involved with Miss Russell."

Premier could be ordered to resign

Hughes's findings and conclusions from the inquiry could affect Roland's future as premier, a position that he has held since 2007.

If Roland is found to have been in a conflict of interest, Hughes can recommend penalties ranging from a reprimand or a fine to an order that the premier resign.

But any action that Hughes may recommend would have to be approved by MLAs in the legislative assembly.