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, and thank you to the Minister for that commitment. Mr. Speaker, my next question is for government renewal to really be effective, it cannot happen in silos. How is the GNWT working to ensure that now that they're at the phase 2 of this review that this review really is done with a crossdepartmental lens? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions today are for the Minister of Finance. Mr. Speaker, phase 1 of government renewal was intended to do an inventory of GNWT programs while phase 2 was meant to look at how those programs are funded. Can the Minister start off today by informing this House of the current status on government renewal? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
No, thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I move that committee defer further consideration of Tabled Document 97419(2), Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 3, 20232024, at this time. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, what I was trying to do is ask the lead department on climate change what's going on and to help me paint this bigger picture as to how we're actually going to get to our goal. When I have to jump around from department to department, I don't actually get the full picture in one answer. And so it's nice when we can ask one department to help us paint that picture for residents. And so my final question is in regards to a dashboard that was actually mentioned yesterday and has been mentioned in this House multiple times before. Is there an intent, and is...
Thank you, Madam Chair. I'm wondering if the Minister can speak to without the approval of the supplementary appropriation and the increase to shortterm borrowing limit will the GNWT be in compliance with the FAA? Thank you.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we heard yesterday a very honest portrayal of where the Northwest Territories is in its production of alternative energies and how also the low water levels this year are having an impact even on what's happening right now with our current energy usage. Right now we have a huge dependency still on fossil fuels in the Northwest Territories, and that's only going up with our low water levels. And so I'm wondering if the Minister can speak to how this additional usage of fossil fuels, even in this year, is going to have an impact on our climate...
Yeah, thank you very much, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, and I know that this has been a very difficult Assembly and, as such, that's reflected, I suppose, in the requests for increases to the borrowing limit. And so in the life of this Assembly, this is our third now request for increases to the borrowing limit, and I'm wondering what is this government going to do in order for us to see, or for the next Assembly to see, more money in surpluses and to be able to kind of be a little bit more prepared for additional dollars in emergencies because we know that we're going to see more in the years to...
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, climate action is reconciliation. We're on the heels of a dry summer season of record heat and wildfire in many parts of the world spurred by a rapidly warming planet and marked by a significant absence of global climate action ambition. Yesterday we heard an excellent synopsis of this government's persistence to overpromise and under deliver on climate action and the grim reality of the progress of energy alternatives. Globally, Indigenous people protect 80 percent of the world's biodiversity but account for less than 5 percent of the global population...
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Madam Chair, I move that this committee defer further consideration of Tabled Document 97319(2), 20242025 Capital Estimates, at this time. Thank you, Madam Chair.
