Final supplementary. Member for Frame Lake.
Mahsi, Madam Speaker. So is this the kind of precedent like, this is the way that we used to get communications in the last Assembly; I can tell you that. But is this the way that we're going to continue to get information moving forward, is through Cabin Radio instead of communications directly from our colleagues on the other side of the House? Mahsi, Madam Speaker.
The Member for Frame Lake can rest assured this is not a new way of communicating. I've already explained that the federal government is doing its own communications. We don't have any control over that. I've told him what we're doing. And, you know, that is what we are going to stick with. I think I already said, but I will say again, I wasn't best pleased either to read on Cabin Radio that coming out of that meeting, apparently somebody had Minister Duclos had done an interview with Cabin Radio about the health agreement. We didn't have a specific embargo in place, so we have to go with the flow. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Kam Lake.
Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, my questions today are for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.
Madam Speaker, today I spoke about sustaining and growing our population in the Northwest Territories, and a key tool to grow our population is using immigration. The GNWT currently does not fulfill its annual immigration quota allotted by the Government of Canada through the nominee program. This is a big concern especially within our business community.
So I'm wondering if the Minister can explain why we're not hitting our quotas and tell us what his department is doing to fill the quota and provide guidance if this week's newest immigration pilot will help us actually hit that quota? Thank you.
Thank you. Minister for Education, Culture and Employment.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. The quota, as dictated by the Government of Canada, was established years ago. I would have to assume it's based on our population. I would imagine that as soon as we hit that quota, that quota would be increased. We're never going to be continuously hitting the quota. We always want to strive for better. I will say that during the life of this government, we have done a lot in terms of immigration and increasing the population, you know, and I'm happy to announce that since I took office we've doubled the number of people coming in through our nominee program. Back in 2019, there was around less than 50, with their families less than 70. We're now up to 108 nominees; with their dependants, 140 individuals immigrated to the Northwest Territories last year. So we are making progress, Madam Speaker.
And to the other part of the question, what are we doing? Well, we have done quite a bit. We're developing resources. We've created a welcome to the NWT booklet for potential and actual immigrants to the territory. We've updated and modernized the nominee program website. We've made the application accessible online. We've introduced a Francophone stream recently. We've made changes to our nominee program. We continuously make changes to make it more accessible for employers. We are working to implement a new stream focused on in demand occupations. We are participating in an economic pathways pilot to attract skilled refugees from abroad.
And to the Member's third question in that series, we expect that there well, hopefully some modest increases, maybe five or ten applicants through that stream. But if we keep chipping away at this, those numbers will continue to go up. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, I appreciate the success that has happened over the course of this term, but there's still room for us to grow and there's still room for us to welcome more people to the Northwest Territories. One of the things that I like to do in this job is pick up the phone and call people. And I've had the opportunity to speak to people working in the immigration sector from other jurisdictions who have literally said, why aren't you guys getting closer to your quota? So I think there's room for us to grow.
Madam Speaker, the department's response to the Assembly's motion indicated that ECE's immigration strategy is up for renewal. The strategy concluded in December, and it's not clear what the next steps of this government are. So can the Minister tell this House the status of the review, including who will be consulted, what the scope is, and when it will produce a new strategy? Thank you very much, Madam Speaker.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. So the strategy was from 2017 to 2022. Part of that strategy or included with that strategy was a performance measurements plan. So the department is now reviewing the data, reviewing the administrative records and reaching out to stakeholders to complete that work and conclude that report. There have been discussions between ECE and ITI about the overall future of the program. And so those discussions, while they're ongoing, I expect that near the end of this Assembly/the beginning of the next Assembly, they will ramp up again when we have that capacity to do so. And a determination on, you know, perhaps how the GNWT internally deals with immigration will help inform a future strategy as well. So that work is on the way. I don't expect that we'll be seeing a new strategy during this term, but it is underway. Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, this time last year when I asked the Minister to create an immigration advisory council, the Minister informed me that, quote, "ECE and ITI are proactively reaching out to businesses and people who are familiar with the nominee program to find out what we can do to improve the program."
So I'm wondering, Madam Speaker, since there is no intent to create a strategy in the life of this Assembly, where I can find that information that the Minister has been collecting with his department over the last year? Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. So we did reach out. The level of engagement wasn't what we would have hoped. Nonetheless, we did identify some areas for improvement. And so the Member can see the result of that engagement in the changes that were made to our nominee program stream, so changes to job advertising requirements and some other streamlining efforts. So that is where she can find those results. The proof is in the pudding. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary. Member for Kam Lake.
Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, earlier this week I made a statement about Nunavut 3000, Nunavut's ambitious aim to build 3,000 new homes by 2030. Its ambition that we desperately need in the NWT but lacking sometimes, especially when it comes to creating new housing to meet our need. So I'm wondering because housing is such a huge barrier to sustaining our population, I'm wondering if this Minister will advocate for an ambitious house building and house repair strategy and action plan to support the sustaining and growing of our population, especially since he is the Minister who holds the immigration portfolio? Thank you.
Thank you, Speaker. I'm always advocating to increase our housing stock. It doesn't just have to be the Government of the Northwest Territories building houses. When I meet with other groups and with Indigenous governments, I often speak to them about the need for housing and the roles that they can play as well, so I do do that work on a regular basis. It doesn't just impact immigration. It impacts our ability to staff teachers in communities and nurses, and all of those other things. So this is something that is at the forefront of my mind and the department's as well, and I will continue to be an advocate. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. I spoke in my statement today how I think cabins are really a bellwether for how settling land claims are going and, you know, we've seen a number of court cases over the years. I think one of the main problems is that if you have a if you're an Indigenous person and you're using a cabin for rightsbased purposes, you're treated just like anyone else. You have to get the same leases, pay the same taxes, and follow all the same conditions.
So I'm wondering if the Premier will work to create some sort of different tenure for those rightsbased cabins, to put them in a different category than, say, someone who just wants a recreation cabin on the Ingraham Trail? Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Thank you. Honourable Premier.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. I do know that within the Indigenous treaty land claims, selfgovernment agreements, the cabin issue is addressed in many of them so that is one way of doing it. I also know that it's gotten a lot of attention recently because of the work that the Minister of Lands is doing with the unauthorized occupants in the Northwest Territories of which there are lots. We are trying to work with the Indigenous governments on rightsbased cabins to give them the money to help them to identify the cabins that are theirs. We've posted. We've posted twice on people's we don't know who's rightsbased and who's not; it's an issue for us. It's an issue that keeps continuing to grow. The definition of "a rightsbased cabin" is an issue as well. So we are looking at how we can support them, but it's work that will be ongoing. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Yeah, thank you, Madam Speaker. I know that lands is posting notices and they are not getting uptake, and there are a lot of Indigenous governments who are specifically telling their members do not identify your cabin. And I think there's a history there because what then happens is you have to get a lease and then you have to pay lease fees and then you have to pay taxes. And so why would you do that when you could just have your cabin for free? And I think the step here is right now there is a wild inconsistency on which Indigenous rights holders are paying anything for their cabins, which and so I think we need to create some sort of status, and I would suggest exempting rightsbased cabins from lease fees and taxes. The reason I'm directing this to the Premier is because it is actually a Department of Lands, a Department of MACA, and a Department of Finance and that I'm quite sure that EIA is going to want to have its hands on what they actually define as a rightsbased cabin. So it really is a complicated matter.
Is looking into exempting rightsbased cabins from lease fees and taxes something the Premier is willing to do? Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. I do appreciate the Member recognizing that it is not an easy issue. It's contentious not only within our definitions of how we define it but also contentious within Indigenous governments. We have some Indigenous governments that feel that they can put cabins anywhere in the NWT. We have other Indigenous governments saying not on my land. Those are issues that are alive and well. So I'm not going to commit in the House here about the solution. What I am committed to, and I've already brought that to the Council of Leaders, is that is a discussion that will go to the Council of Leaders. In fairness, Madam Speaker, I need all Indigenous governments to help me solve this. I need them to define what it is first. And so it would be inappropriate for me as the Premier to define how and what without the Indigenous governments having those consultations. And it's not going to be easy. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Yes, thank you, Madam Speaker. You know, it's back to that chicken and egg problem. No one is going to tell you it's a rightsbased cabin if it means they all of a sudden have to start paying taxes and lease fees and they're presently not doing that. And we can't exempt them from taxes and lease fees unless we identify a definition of whether it's a rightsbased cabin. So this is why this issue has not been solved. I think at the very least, there are a number of obviously rightsbased cabins where they were told to get a lease, they perhaps did not understand what that meant, they perhaps got direction from their Indigenous government to not pay lease fees, and now we are sending those people to collections and ruining their credit. I'm quite convinced that the Department of Finance is just doing this, triggering it automatically, because when they don't get paid they go through a collections process.
Is the Premier willing to stop sending those rights holders to collections until we figure out some sort of path forward? Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. As stated earlier, I have and it took a lot of work to get that item on the Council of Leaders' agenda. I feel it would be disrespectful for me at this point to make decisions since it is on their agenda as a topic. So I'm going to wait until those conversations happen at that table, and then we'll make decisions based on that feedback. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Thank you. Final supplementary. Member for Yellowknife North.
Yeah, Madam Speaker, one of the other things that I grow frustrated about is that there is no definition of a rightsbased cabin. Right now, Lands wants you to identify them but they say they have no tool to give you a special form of tenure. They make it clear they will send you a lease fee. I think you can get an exemption from taxes, but it seems to be very inconsistent. It's unclear to me what someone with a rightsbased cabin is actually supposed to do, or what the government wants them to do. So perhaps following that Council of Leaders, can I get a commitment that EIA will put something out publicly on a plan forward and task each of the departments going forward with what they are supposed to be doing because right now, I don't think anyone really knows. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. I would love to make that commitment, but I don't think it would be fair to EIA to make that commitment yet. I think this issue is going to be very, very tenuous at the Council of Leaders' table. I don't know if it's going to be resolved in one month, one year, ten years. So I can't commit EIA to doing that because it may if it's in this government, then I'll be looking at it. If it's in the next government, I can't commit the next government. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Thank you. Tabling of documents. Minister for Industry, Tourism and Investment.
Madam Speaker, I wish to table the following two documents: Grants and Contributions Results Report 20212022; and, What We Heard Report 2022 Engagement on Resource Royalties. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
I now call Committee of the Whole to order. What is the wish of committee? Member for Frame Lake.
Mahsi, Mr. Chair. Committee wishes to deal with Tabled Document 81319(2), 20232024 Main Estimates, Housing NWT. Thank you.
There's a motion on the floor and is nondebatable. All those in favour?
Committee, we will take a short recess and resume with the first item. Mahsi.
SHORT RECESS
Welcome back, everyone. Committee, we will continue with Housing Northwest Territories. We were reviewing the Main Estimates 20232024. Minister, have you witnesses?
Yes, I've got two witnesses.
Sergeantatarms, can you escort the witnesses into the Chamber.
Minister, can you introduce your witnesses, please.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I have with me here is Ms. Eleanor Young, CEO and president of Housing NWT. And associate deputy minister Jim Martin. Thank you.
Mahsi. Committee, we were on the finance and infrastructure services. That's page 382 to 385. The first speaker I had on the list was the Member for Monfwi. 385, that's the finance and infrastructure services, towards the back end.
I was going to ask the Minister yesterday regarding this mortgage payment and social housing agreement, 20212022 that says 313, and 2023 I just want to know why it's less here compared to now. There's a big gap in between, and I just wanted to know if mortgage payment was forgiven in this area. Like, some mortgage, were they forgiven? Because it's 313 compared to 955, why is it less?
Was that your question?
Yes, why is it less, yes. Are they giving people a break? Like, this 2021 I know it might be related to COVID, I'm not too sure. But it's lesser than to current to the main estimate for 20232024.
All right, mahsi cho. Minister.
