Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There was a recent proposal brought to Yellowknife City Council for establishing a cannabis production facility here in Yellowknife. Part of that proposal is 10 to 12 full-time jobs, 15 to 25 part-time jobs, and the confidence that this would be a viable way to solve some of our supply issues in the Northwest Territories for legal cannabis and also to be competitive in pricing.
There is some concern that was raised at those meetings by councillors that this initiative might require support from the GNWT, support that might not be forthcoming. I was wondering if the Minister responsible for our cannabis regime, the Minister of Finance, can speak to these concerns and give certainty as to what steps that anyone interested in starting a production facility needs to follow if they want to open for business in the Northwest Territories. Thank you.
Masi. Minister of Finance.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The establishment of grow-ops or production is licensed by the federal government. We are not involved in the regulating of an establishment or operation of this type of business. There are a number of things that they would have to meet, obviously, with some of the city bylaws, as well as the territorial government regulations, but as for the actual regulating of an establishment, that goes through the federal government. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you to the Minister. I know that production is a federal power. It is very complicated. There is a whole lot of regulatory process. Can the government provide support to people who are interested in getting into the market with production? Can they give them support as a pathfinder, to walk their way through the system and understand exactly what they need to get started?
That is something that I will consider. If we have folks within our department who are able to navigate their way through and understand what type of permits, licensing, or approvals might be needed, if we have that kind of knowledge, I don't see why we wouldn't be able to provide that kind of assistance to those who are trying to navigate their way through to see what they actually have to do to meet all of the regulations.
Thank you to the Minister. That is encouraging. Can the Minister give direction to his department to provide at least an active offer or something public-facing on a website to let other people know, if they are interested or have a proposal, that they can go to the Department of Finance for assistance with Ottawa?
I will have a discussion with my officials and see if there is any type of information that we could put out there to help people. Again, it would be just assisting through navigating to see what kind of permits that they actually have to get. I am sure that we would have some knowledge of that. Again, I would have to work with the department and make sure that we have the knowledge before we even make that offer.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Kam Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Is the government in a position to be open to supply contracts or sole-sourcing northern businesses that enter into the cannabis market? Is that something that is a possibility if a viable business is brought forward to help address our supply needs? Thank you.
It would have to be a case-by-case basis. I can't make a commitment right now that we would specifically buy from a northern manufacturer. If there was one here and they gave us a price that was competitive, then we would seriously have to consider that. For me to say that we are going to strictly buy from a Northern supplier, I think, is premature. We need to work with them, make sure they have a price that is competitive and one that we can work with. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Frame Lake.
