SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - The legislative assembly has been host to at least one past intimate relationship that posed a potential conflict but didn't result in lost jobs, the premier and his girlfriend argued at the premier's inquiry Wednesday.

A relationship between former premier Joe Handley's executive assistant and a principal clerk – both of whom kept their roles – is proof that Floyd Roland and Patricia Russell's affair isn't a big deal, they testified.

At issue is Roland and Russell's secret relationship while Russell was a legislative clerk and whether it was a conflict of interest – the issue being that clerks regularly attend confidential meetings among regular MLAs where the premier is not present.

When the relationship in the 15th assembly came to light, the former principal clerk had his work shuffled and he would step out of meetings, if necessary, Russell said. She and Roland said they assumed their situation could be treated the same.

"There was a relationship formed there, in fact, with very little said," said Roland of the other relationship, "Adjustments were made to work schedules to permit that to continue."

Clerks attend as many committee meetings as possible, according to Russell. The information in all those meetings is confidential, she said.

When asked if she had ever passed on any confidential information of any kind to the premier, she responded, "Absolutely not. Absolutely not … You can bring the Bible back over here, I'll hold it and hug it. No."

Russell thanked the adjudicator repeatedly for the question. "It's the first opportunity I've had to respond to these accusations."

On Nov. 18, when Russell told her superiors about her relationship with Roland – who was at the time in a 20-year marriage with five children – they moved her to the legislative electoral office two days later. A different department was also considered.

"I said, 'No, I'm not prepared to go work in another department, I've done nothing wrong,'" said Russell. "It was never a matter of the Speaker waving a finger at me and saying, 'You naughty girl, you've done something wrong,' never."

The personal relationship between Russell and Roland started in July 2008, after Russell was offered a job in the premier's office, both testified. She turned the job down in mid-July but they started talking more, taking their friendship outside the legislature by the end of the month, she said.

"We did spend some time drinking tea by the lake," Russell said.

It was intimate by September and on Nov. 17, Roland said he told Russell he knew it was time to tell his wife.

"As we parted company I told her at that point, 'this is the night' … I went to the residence here and informed my spouse that this is indeed happening."

The next day Roland informed members of cabinet.

Due to a scheduling conflict, Roland said, he was unable to inform regular MLAs until Dec. 5 when they called him to a caucus meeting to discuss it.

The fact that he and Russell did not tell anyone for several months was, looking back, perhaps a mistake, Roland said. At the time, he said, he had to consider his family first.

"I tried to separate myself and say purely as the premier, in hindsight maybe I should have come sooner," Roland said, "but can we expect any individual in any profession to remove themselves from who they are?"

He was surprised when an MLA asked if he'd be apologizing for his alleged conflict of interest, he said.

"I wondered why he would use those types of words. I never told anybody I believed I was in a conflict of interest."

Great Slave MLA Glen Abernethy, one of the six MLA complainants, asked Russell, "Do you feel that a secret relationship between a committee clerk and premier is acceptable as long as no confidential information is exchanged?"

She replied, "My answer will speak for itself with my actions – I was fine with it, yes."

Roland also denied that Russell had passed any confidential information to him.

He was prepared to resign in February, he said, when it looked like a non-confidence motion might take down both him and his cabinet.

However, the motion was defeated.

In previous sessions of the inquiry, MLAs testified that Roland knew things he shouldn't have. Roland's lawyer suggested one MLA was passing confidential information to him, not Russell. At no point in the inquiry has the MLA been named.

On Friday, the lawyers and complainants will present their final submissions and arguments to adjudicator Ted Hughes. Hughes will file his report to the legislative assembly when prepared. No time line was given.