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 very much, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I support this motion. It was duly noted by committee that public litigation has gone up quite a bit for the GNWT over the course of the last five years. But we in committee have no way of knowing what is driving this. We're holding the government accountable, or really advocating for change for things that are really truly systemic. And so I support this motion and appreciate the conversation that committee had in regards to this. Thank you.
I'm starting to feel like it's my birthday, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, the Minister just said something pretty amazing. She said that housing is the number 1 priority of this government, and I think that's a pretty incredible statement and one that I hope that I can capitalize on for my third question.
So I'm wondering, Mr. Speaker, has the NWT Housing Corporation asked the GNWT to replace the lost CMHC funding for O and M; and if so, why is Cabinet expecting these lost federal funds to be found internally if this is their number 1 priority? Thank you.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in June of 2021, this House passed a housing motion called Action for Improved Housing Outcomes. On November 22nd, the government's response was tabled in this House. But the government's response wasn't any different than the answers I generally get from the Minister anyway. It didn't have any specific change or timelines associated with it.
So, Mr. Speaker, I'm wondering if the Minister of Housing can let us know, or let this House know, when the Standing Committee on Social Development can expect to see a draft of the revised motion for the...
Thank you very much, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I move that this committee recommends that the Government of the Northwest Territories speak to questions on codrafting legislation and comanagement beyond resourcemanagementbased legislation and discuss this concept with the NWT Council of Leaders. Thank you, Madam Chair.
WHEREAS section 40.2(1) of the Public Service Act provides that the Commissioner, on the recommendation of the Legislative Assembly, shall appoint an Equal Pay Commissioner as an officer of the Legislative Assembly, who is responsible for exercising the powers and performing the duties set out in the act;
AND WHEREAS the position of Equal Pay Commissioner became vacant on November 30th, 2021;
AND WHEREAS the board of management was tasked with recruiting an Equal Pay Commissioner and as recommended an individual to the Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Assembly is prepared to...
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we heard previously a lot in this House about how the change in policy from a number of leaders on an annual basis for the seniors home heating subsidy was changed to a dollar amount on an annual basis and the impact that that had on seniors. So even a 10 percent increase would have an impact on the amount of fuel a senior could access to heat their homes. So how is this even 10 percent increase expected to have an impact on seniors across the Northwest Territories? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think I could well, a lot of my colleagues could probably attest to the fact that I'm slightly hard of hearing, but I'm pretty sure I heard a sigh from a lot of artists of the Northwest Territories on that one.
Before I was even elected, before any of us were elected into the 19th Assembly, ITI and ECE did engage with artists across the Northwest Territories. They invested a lot of time and a lot of effort, and it was very well received from the artists of the Northwest Territories. And so I think people would be frustrated in order to go back and say the same things...
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there's another way that we can do this. We could drive it from the GNWT outwards. It doesn't have to be, you know, continuing on with the whole notion and the age-old anecdote of the "starving artist." We can actually prop our artists up, give them an opportunity to bring in huge amounts of dollars into the territory, and go at it from a GNWT perspective, which I think is what a lot of people are asking for given the GNWT already does have a program that supports artists, and we want to be able to see that organization grow.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as a child I have vivid memories, as my mother's sidekick, as artists discussed the needs of the NWT arts community. Many of the faces that advocated then are the same in today's fabric of arts activists, but they're tired of asking for the same things: core funding, independence, and infrastructure.
Mr. Speaker, the GNWT released the next tenyear art strategy. Despite several suggestions to improve the strategy from standing committees on both economic development and environment and social development, not one suggestion was considered or incorporated in...
Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I move that this committee recommends that the Department of Education, Culture and Employment and Aurora College take note of this request that engagement timelines are respectful and sufficient for stakeholders to support meaningful consultation and ensure that the timeframes for engagement and consultation concerning the polytechnic university are adequate. Thank you, Madam Chair.
