Caroline Wawzonek

Thank you, Mr. Chair. This refers to section 11 of the federal Species at Risk Act, and this funding is going to support entering into the implementation of a conservation agreement with any government in Canada, organization, or benefit to support a species of risk. This funding will help ensure that we as the GNWT are fulfilling obligations under a two-year conservation agreement, and the project proposed here is titled the Conservation of Boreal Caribou in the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Happy to do so, Mr. Chair. On my left, Bill MacKay, deputy minister of finance. And on my right, Mandi Bolstad, the deputy secretary to the financial management board.

Thank you, Mr. Chair, I do.

Mr. Chair, I am here to present Tabled Document 341-20(1), Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures and Borrowing Authorization) No. 1, 2025-2026. This document proposes a total appropriation increase of $47.15 million, $38.5 million of which will be offset by revenues from the Government of Canada and various provincial governments.

Notable items supported by federal funding include:

$20.6 million to support health and social services cost share agreements, including $9.2 million for First Nations and Inuit Home and Community Care and $8 million for Northern...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Very happy to say we also have Yellowknife South representation in the House here. There are quite a number of health care professionals from this riding, and with us today is Keela Gould and, again, if I missed anyone because there are so many, I would welcome them to the House as well. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, Mr. Speaker, in fact, there is a bit of an update. We are later -- I guess not quite this month. Early in June, Department of Finance officials and staff from NWTMA will be together going and doing a workshop that helps investigate and helps learn about what interest-based negotiation might look like, so we can see where that process takes us. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, there was some increase here -- well, there was a couple of reasons. For one all but, as I said, this started in 2022 with the planning, but 2023 and the wildfire season that we experienced that summer certainly hindered significant progress on this first phase, of which first phase was to do, really, the mechanical dredging to reopen and reestablish a safe passageway for barges and for boats and barge traffic. So when that was delayed that certainly, you know, any time that there's work that gets delayed one year to next, that impacts and impedes on the budget...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we are still currently in this process of a general rate application that was required by the public utilities board, so at this point we are waiting to see what the public utilities board comes back with.

We are also then very much eagerly anticipating the response of the public utilities board to the 13 different policy proposals that we have put forward as a government to look at ways to change and improve the overall structure and system of the GNWT or of the Northwest Territories power systems, and that includes looking at things like power systems...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. So, I mean, a broad analysis as to whether or not the funding is successful is probably beyond what I can speak to meaningfully here. I can say that with respect to the funding that's going to these organizations alongside work that's happening at Housing NWT is changing the available spaces that for folks who may require housing in different -- on different parts of the housing spectrum. So, you know, in addition to the Rockhill site that I had mentioned, there's also the Folk on the Rocks site that is looking to be transitional housing. I think that was only discussed...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, again, I would be very happy to appear in front of committee. In fact, perhaps a public briefing would be most appropriate to be able to give much more lengthy answers to all of these questions. This is an opportunity with this project to connect 70 percent of the population of the Northwest Territories to hydro. It's an opportunity to take advantage of energy that is spilling over at the current facility in Taltson Dam. It's an opportunity to link our grids, which are currently disconnected grids which is a huge problem for our energy costs and for...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, I don't know that I have a bed count necessarily here. I can say that initially the project that this was funding was on an estimate that there might be a 50 bed needed; however, it was determined that 25 to 30 person modular would be reasonable and so the numbers came down and the project was being asked to changed. There are 45 beds currently at Spruce Bough; 25 in it transitional housing. And so this does continue to support those efforts in that regard. With respect to the Salvation Army, again, I don't have the numbers in front of me, Mr. Chair. Thank you.