Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment Minister of Education, Culture and Employment
The Honourable Caitlin Cleveland was first elected in the 19th Assembly as the MLA for Kam Lake in 2019, and has served as the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, and Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment since 2023 after being acclaimed to the 20th Assembly.
In addition to owning and operating a northern business for over 20 years, Minister Cleveland worked in a variety of communications and policy roles in both the public and private sectors before entering politics.
Between 2019 to 2023, she chaired the Standing Committee on Social Development, fulfilling a goal to be a part of the discussions and decisions affecting social programs in the Northwest Territories. Her noteworthy work on the Committee included guiding the considerable review and input into recommendations on housing in the NWT, suicide prevention, and improvements to caring for children in care and building supported families.
Within the scope of her portfolios, Minister Cleveland is focused on helping children grow into successful NWT residents that recognize opportunities and develop successful careers that contribute to a growing economy. She advocates for new approaches to sector diversification and innovation, and ensures the North is welcoming both skilled foreign workers and investment in the critical mineral resources across the territory. She persistently explores solutions for efficient and equitable access to programs and services, upholding a shared vision of an NWT where people are supported in the ways they wish to live, work, and grow.
Minister Cleveland is a lifelong resident of Yellowknife where she lives with her husband and their three children.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'm wondering if a licensed day home chooses not to opt in to this new childcare agreement, if a parent can switch their child to a new licensed childcare provider and still receive the retroactive subsidy from their new childcare provider. Thank you.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate that commitment from the Minister.
My second question is that the cost of living has gone up everywhere, including the cost of fuel and food as of late. As such, some businesses are having to increase the cost of their services. And so I'm wondering if the Minister can speak to what are the rules around increasing the cost of childcare now that the average rates have been set in the Northwest Territories. Thank you.
Debates of
, 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 109)
Thank you, Mr. Chair. My questions in regards to housing and funding were asked and answered by my colleague so I won't ask them again. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Your committee would like to report on its consideration of Bill 39: An Act to Amend the PostSecondary Education Act.
Bill 39 received second reading in the Legislative Assembly on November 25th, 2021, and was referred to the Standing Committee on Social Development for review. On March 24th, 2022, the standing committee held a public hearing with the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, and completed its clausebyclause review of the bill.
Mr. Speaker, the committee reports that Bill 39: An Act to Amend the PostSecondary Education Act is ready for consideration...
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, and I appreciate the Minister's comment. Some of the problem, though, is that without the service standards, some people aren't receiving that phone call back or that email back to let them know that it's going to be a year or a year and a half or two years before a student receives services. So the schools are really unable to make alternate arrangements or alternate plans for the care and the learning and development of that student.
And so will the Minister commit, then, to response service standards for school professionals so that NTHSSA is committing to...
[Remote] Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions today are for the Minister of Health and Social Services.
Some people experience with accessing or working to access support services feel that support services from NTHSSA are at an alltime low and are very siloed in today's environment. Schools are currently trying to find funds to pay outofpocket to secure access to support services like speech language pathology, occupational therapy, but this is incredibly costly.
So will the GNWT work with schools to fund access to support services if it does not have the capacity to...
Debates of
, 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 108)
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. So I'll move down, then, to the address home repair barriers to assist low income seniors and disabled individuals with aging in place. And then I'm happy to see that there were policy changes, then, that took affect that were implemented by the NWT Housing Corporation.
One of the big barriers to housing repair programs in the Northwest Territories is really the cost of the programs. And without an increase, then, to the budget of the NWT Housing Corporation, a policy change is only a portion of that barrier. And so will, then, the Premier commit to ensuring that...
Debates of
, 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 108)
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. I'll accept fulfilled and ongoing on that one. So thank you to the Premier for that.
One of my points of that one is, for example, the $60 million carveout that is identified under progress to date was a commitment that was made during 2018. So we weren't even within the 19th Assembly at that point. And so this is something that we are thankfully reaping the benefits of, of work that was achieved in the 18th Assembly for that $60 million carveout. And so I'm wondering if there is a commitment from Cabinet to pursue additional carveoffs like that from the National...
