[2] Nuqingaq was suspended without pay from the legislature, including all caucus and committee meetings, on March 6, 2014 until the spring sitting.
He spent much of the summer in Nova Scotia undergoing treatment for an alcohol addiction before returning to the legislature on September 22.
[4] On 24 October 2014, Nunavut MLAs unanimously passed a motion to expel Nuqingaq, which vacated his seat immediately and forced a by-election.
In moving the motion, Justice Minister Paul Okalik claimed that the legislature had spent too much time dealing with Nuqingaq's behaviour, and the public interest demanded his expulsion.
He noted that Nuqingaq had been disciplined for "unacceptable conduct, including persistent absences from sittings of the House and meetings of its committees and caucuses without reasonable explanation.