Caitlin Cleveland

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there's not currently a vaccination mandate for teachers outside of, you know, when we went through COVID and there was expectations around that. That was under the direction of the CPHO, the chief public health officer. And so our education bodies and our schools work very closely with the chief public health officer in events like this, and we ultimately follow the direction of the chief public health officer to ensure that we are aligned to protect residents and children. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. So, Mr. Speaker, the relief in the form of property taxes and foregoing the property taxes was a one-time, one-year-for-this-year relief measure that the Government of the Northwest Territories, under direction of Cabinet, took. It is not a long-term solution. It is a right now -- an acknowledgement of the global diamond market and cost of doing business in the Northwest Territories and also the significance to northern employers, to northern workers, that the diamond mines play. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this would be, you know, a much larger conversation. I'm certainly happy always to take conversations like this back. I would also say that -- you know, recommend that people reach out to health and do their vaccinations, and then we can work together to avoid situations like this. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. So, Mr. Speaker, I'm all about return on investment. I think that we should be putting our dollars into places where we have a significant amount of investments.

In regards to the dollars that we did invest in the diamond mine relief, we end up with over $2 billion in annual exports, a thousand jobs for Northerners, joint northern spend of almost $900 million and $69 million in tax revenues annually to the GNWT. So I feel like that's a pretty darn good investment. That being said, I do agree that we do need to have education because education does last forever...

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, certainly in the Northwest Territories, we do always expect businesses to use reasonable efforts, to use local employment, local labour, and to really ensure that collectively and as a community we're really focused on benefit retention for Northerners. That said, I can't predict what would have happened but we were in the face of a very difficult decision that some of the diamond mines were facing. We know that globally it is a very difficult market for diamonds right now, and we also know that in the NWT that diamond mines provide a lot of our...

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. So, Mr. Speaker, this was a soft launch at PDAC where we were able to attract different ambassadors from different countries who have now their own critical mineral funds, their own raw materials funds. We were able to attract different investors, mining companies, exploration companies, and really we're able to start by rolling this out. We do have some collateral, and there will also be a web page that I'd be more than happy to share on social media to ensure that Northerners also have access to it as well. Thank you.

Thank you so much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this program was just recently announced -- the Member is right -- when we were at PDAC, and it's an investment from CanNor, $460,000 between the three territories, to invest in essentially a promotional campaign to attract investment to the three territories specific to critical mineral mining. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, we have great rocks. The global demand for critical minerals continues to grow, and the Northwest Territories is well-positioned to play a key role in supplying these essential resources to Canada and its allies. With over two-thirds of the critical minerals listed by Canada, and almost half identified by the United States, our territory is a significant contributor to securing a stable and responsible supply of materials vital to clean energy, advanced manufacturing, and digital technologies.

Recognizing the opportunity before us, the Government of the Northwest Territories...

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, overall the initiative is focused on critical minerals and then from there, on mineral resource development and, really, investment attraction in the territory. But our focus is certainly these days on critical minerals given that's where the world is really turning its attention these days. This program is certainly just in its infancy and over our time, we will certainly continue to track, as we already do, exploration in it the territories, projects moving forward in the territories and, of course, GDP from our mineral projects. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Terry's going to feel very special today because we're all fighting over him, but I'd like to say a warm welcome to my constituent, and we might need some proof of residency now to Mr. Terry Testart. Mr. Speaker, I'd also like to acknowledge Steve Loutitt in the House today. I started my journey with the GNWT as an intern for the Department of Transportation, spent many a days on the tarmac with Mr. Loutitt, including the year where a missile hit the golf course. What a time to start in communications. But very much my best memories of him were certainly at...