Katrina Nokleby

Good afternoon Madam Speaker. As everyone is aware, Cabin Radio has been a staple of the northern media scene for the last five years. Launching in 2017 with an online format, Cabin made an application in August 2019 for their FM license to begin broadcasting over the airwaves. On Wednesday, 42 months after submission, the Canadian Radio, Television and Telecommunications Commission, or the CRTC, informed Cabin Radio that Yellowknife’s economy could not sustain a new commercial FM radio station therefore ending Cabin Radio’s bid for FM status.

One of the most shocking things about this decision...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I like this area of the budget. It's really the place where given my or really the Minister's reply that I gave to the budget address today, we can tell that the nondiversification of our economy is quite concerning with the sunsetting of the diamond mines. So my first question is going to be around the Canadian Agricultural Partnership. I note that in the estimates for 20232024 that it's at $1.2 million, and prior to that we saw actuals of $488,000.

So can the Minister or the department please let us know what that significant increase of money is for and maybe just a...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. My question is just that there seems to be a trend of under spending in this area, and I'm just wondering if the Minister or the department can explain why that is and if that is the case, then do they need to maybe start thinking of changing how they're doing the budgeting then if they're not spending here? Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, is it the intent of the Department of Infrastructure to retender this project or; i.e., send it out for another RFP round? Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I'm going to continue along this line of questioning.

Can the Minister speak to when the last halting or demobilization or stoppage of work at the Tulita Health Centre occurred? It must have been past the time of the COVID stopping. Thank you.

Thank you. And yeah, I also cannot say enough good things about the Mine Training Society, particularly in how a lot of their course work or options or training is free. They do a lot of training around community members and repurposing or re I don't know what the word is reorienting people in their professional path that have come out of other areas that are maybe not so prosperous at the moment.

Can the Minister or the deputy minister or Ms. Salvador speak about where the money for the Mine Training Society would fall in these contributions and do we actually, in fact, other than on a...

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I'm a bit confused by that answer as it's been brought to my attention by several people in the area that the health centre has now been halted and is not progressing. Can the Minister please speak to the rumors and why that would be being said? Thank you.

I never thought I would be so excited about hearing about cement but, yes, I'm really happy to hear that there is that potential. And it is my understanding that not only could it be used for basic cement products but that it is also such a high grade that there's other really sort of niche applications for some of our sand. So I think that's awesome, and I am excited to look into that or get more information on that as it progresses. And thank you for answering what the other portion of that money or that increase was for, because that was going to be my next question. So I appreciate that.

I...

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, my questions are for the Minister of Infrastructure. Could the Minister please provide us with an update on the Tulita Health Centre? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. And if I don't already have this in the schedules, could the Minister provide me with the breakdown of the different community futures and how much money they're each getting? It perhaps is in the schedules and maybe she just needs to remind me of which page that's on. I'll let her answer that.

But I just want to do one last thing while I've got 17 seconds left here. The northern food development program, glad again to see that we've sustained the funding of $550,000. However, again, my comment being that it's probably too low. Can the Minister speak a little bit to...