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, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I believe in the Member's statement he referenced legacy royalties from the site. The GNWT certainly would not be in a position to ask for those back. And then in -- however, Indigenous governments certainly could have their own conservations and bilaterals with the federal government.
In terms of federal engagement, certainly the government does have a federal engagement strategy and has identified key infrastructure projects as of what they are going to the federal government and advocating for. When it comes to our FTP tables, our federal...
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, if the Member's asking for the publication of it, I think that tabling it here in the House is a great way to make sure that all of our colleagues can see it and the Member can share his hard work on that. And I look forward to continuing conversations about NORTRAN with the Member. Thank you.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document: Government of the Northwest Territories Response to Committee Report 9-20(1), Report on the Review of Bill 8: An Act to Amend the Student Financial Assistance Act. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, Aurora College is currently working with the Department of Finance to help affected employees work through the staffing process and work through what comes next for them, including looking at lists of available positions within the GNWT. So I can confirm that Aurora College is working closely with the Department of Finance on this. Thank you.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, if the Member would like me to share with him the number of students that were returning when the program started versus last year, more than happy to do that. As far as reviewing a program that just ended, Mr. Speaker, we haven't really had space or time to see impacts of that. What is occurring here is now students who have repayable loans need to repay those loans, and students who have remissible loans are being asked to stay in the North longer in order to remiss those. Thank you.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I can share with the Member that since I started in this role, one of the common things heard at our FTP table is that this agreement -- or these agreements were signed before record inflation occurred and that, as I had previously said, jurisdictions are putting more and more money into this program in order to make it work. So that is something that I will certainly continue to share with the federal government at every opportunity that I do get at these tables what the reality is that we are hearing from our childcare providers. Thank you.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, from the agreement that we as provinces and territories have with the federal government for childcare, we aren't allowed to charge additional fees. The piece that keeps coming back out is places can do fundraising. I do understand, though, Mr. Speaker, as a working parent myself who uses different entities to care for my children, that this is very difficult to do. We also know that many sporting institutions do charge fundraising fees if parents aren't able to do fundraising. And so in answer to the Member's question, I am currently looking into...
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I can confirm that new legislation will not be released in March of 2025. It still needs -- it's GNWT legislation so it still needs to go through GNWT protocols. It will be tabled in the House here and then will go to standing committee as per our usual protocols. Thank you.
Thank you for the question, Mr. Speaker. So, Mr. Speaker, this work is already being done. I would say that it is not potentially conversations that are happening in public realms, but I can assure the Member that conversations around different avenues to access student housing are occurring with the board of governors, specifically with the chair and with the president. Thank you.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I guess I should start off thanking Members for giving me this area here to champion the college on a regular basis here in the House. I do see transformation of Aurora College as an incredible opportunity for the territory because our students deserve to have quality access to great programs, and that is part of the transformation, is the programming as well.
Given the arm's length relationship with Aurora College, I have met with the board of governors on a regular basis and have reiterated to the chair, but also the entire board, that when they...
