Caroline Wawzonek

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as I've had the opportunity to say on many occasions, the GNWT's approach, whether it be in policy development, funding decisions, it's meant to be inclusive. We look at the whole of the Northwest Territories, the needs of all communities. Funding is not distributed or not not distributed on the basis of one group and where they may or may not be, and that is equally the same for the members of the Salt River First Nation. They have the same access and must have the same access, of course, to services as every other member of the Northwest Territories, and...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, very happy to welcome Mr. William Jacobs here in the gallery, resident of Yellowknife South, and also acting as a page this week. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I wish to present to the House Bill 53, An Act to Amend the Liquor Act, to be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to tabling the following three documents: Supplementary Estimates (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 1, 20222023; Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 1, 20222023; and Resident Readiness Strategy. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I had an opportunity to look back at the manufacturing strategy and also with looking at that in the context of the procurement panel's review. Mr. Speaker, one of the things that is being recommended in the panel, by the procurement panel was, of course, to have a more integrated and consolidated policy to which the northern manufacturing policy would also then be part of. So to the extent that we are right now at a critical point in that process, having done obviously the public review process, now also an Indigenous government engagement and consultation...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'm glad to have an opportunity to speak about this. Certainly, we're going into the fall session and getting ready on capital planning.

During the public review process, there was some Indigenous governments who had chose to not partake in that process and instead we've been engaging more directly with them in terms of the Modern Treaty SelfGovernment tables, Council of Leaders tables, in order to ensure that all Indigenous governments here within the Northwest Territories are properly involved in this process. So that process is now complete. There was...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, so if anyone's wondering perhaps why as Minister of Finance I'm speaking to this is the Member and I have had the opportunity to begin these discussions back at the time of the last budgeting cycle and in discussing where and how funding decisions are made. I've since had an opportunity, and continue to have the opportunity, to meet with the Minister responsible for Housing NWT. It's her staff directly who had met with the members from the Salt River First Nation, the chief, the vicepresident I understand, or CEO. I understand that happened April 12th or...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I've had the opportunity also to speak with my colleague, the Minister responsible for Housing and for Homelessness.

Mr. Speaker, this is a mandate item of the Government of the Northwest Territories. I would venture to say that every person in this House considers it a priority and considers it a priority for every resident anywhere in the Northwest Territories. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, this too has been the subject of the review itself and is subject of discussion amongst those participating in the various reviews, both during the review formally and since in terms of discussions with businesses and Indigenous governments. There's opportunities both for the potential for penalties. There's also potentially the opportunity for incentives. And I'm not going to commit one way or the other at this point. I'm not going to jump to the conclusion of where the review's going to go other than to say that there does need to be a way by where once an analysis has been done...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there are Crown corporations who are not subject to the same procurement rules as the GNWT. For example, the NTPC does follow their own procurement rules. That said, they are guided and fairly closely align with what the GNWT does. So certainly I expect that they will benefit as well from the work that we are doing and can certainly follow my colleagues who are also responsible for the various corporations to see that we are working towards being as consistent with one with the other as possible. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.