Member Yellowknife South

Deputy Premier
Minister of Finance
Minister Responsible for the Northwest Territories Power Corporation
Minister Responsible for Strategic Infrastructure, Energy and Supply Chains

Caroline Wawzonek was first elected to the 19th Legislative Assembly in 2019 as the Member for Yellowknife South. Ms. Wawzonek served as Minister of Justice,  Minister of Finance, Minister responsible for the Status of Women and the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment. In 2023, Ms. Wawzonek was acclaimed to the 20th Legislative Assembly and returned to Executive Council as Deputy Premier, Minister of Finance, Minister of Infrastructure and the Minister Responsible for the NWT Power Corporation.
 
Ms. Wawzonek holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Calgary (2000) and a law degree from the University of Toronto, Faculty of Law (2005). Her academic journey included language studies in China and Taiwan, as well as legal internships in the Philippines and England. Born in Calgary, AB, she has called Yellowknife home since 2007.
 
After establishing her criminal law practice post-admission to the Law Society of the NWT, Ms. Wawzonek appeared in all levels of NWT courts and engaged in circuit court travel. She later joined Dragon Toner, expanding her practice to general litigation and administrative law until becoming a member of the 19th Assembly.
 
Since 2007, she has taken on leadership roles in the legal community, including the presidency of the Law Society of the Northwest Territories (LSNT), section chair for the Canadian Bar Association Northwest Territories Branch (CBA-NT), and committee membership in various working groups. Her community involvement extends to appointments in multiple Yellowknife organizations, and she received a national award in 2017 for her contributions to Canadian Women in Law.
 
Ms. Wawzonek, a mother of two, enjoys running, paddleboarding, and time outdoors.
 

Committees

Caroline Wawzonek
Yellowknife South
Member's Office

Yellowknife NT X1A 2L9
Canada

P.O. Box
1320
Extension
12177
Deputy Premier, Minister of Finance, Minister of Infrastructure, and Minister Responsible for the Northwest Territories Power Corporation

Statements in Debates

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 49)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. So Mr. Chair, this is a program that is administered by the Arctic Energy Alliance. With respect to its individualized functioning at that stage, I'm not well placed necessarily to describe how AEA administers it. I'm happy to commit to getting that detail. We provide this fund, and I know there would be some expectations surrounding its use but, again, I'll have to make a commitment to bring that back here. Thank you.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 49)

Yes, please, Mr. Chair.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 49)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you, Mr. Chair, let me see if the deputy minister wants to take this and if not, we might -- let's send this to Ms. Burt, please.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 49)

Mr. Speaker, I wish to advise the House that the honourable Member for Hay River North, the Premier, will be absent from the House today due to illness. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 49)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Well, I mean, as a first point of call, I would certainly suggest that this division of the department is certainly one to speak to. I would also suggest the NT Energy folks who are the sort of strategic branch of NTPC is also a good point of call. As for any particular funding, sort of a funding pot, if I may, I might turn it to Amy Burt and see if she can point us to something quickly and if not, we'll take it under a commitment. Thank you.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 49)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I had a very lovely visit in Fort Resolution last year when I was there, so -- and I can't make commitments obviously for the Premier or his schedule. I know I've already got a visit myself planned in April but certainly happy to see -- Fort Resolution is not that hard for us to get to. If we can work together and find a date in April, I'm happy to try. And if I can't, it may well be that the Premier's able to. But, again -- so let's try and see if we can make some dates work. I know that the housing Minister's nodding as I'm speaking, so at the very least...

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 49)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. So that was a one-time contribution because of the losses that arose from having a low water season. Now, we are planning this year around low water from the perspective of our fuel services division and ensuring that we bring a full 100 percent value of fuel into those communities that would have otherwise depended upon reservicing, certainly in the Sahtu, from having the barges on the anticipation that we may face, again, a low water season. The High Arctic communities are not expected at this point to require anything other than barging and so in that sense, we would...

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 49)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. So, again, Mr. Chair, for this year's budget, there's -- the core programs do remain there. With respect to future funding or future initiatives, obviously any future initiatives come through a business planning process for 2026-2027. And comments duly noted. Thank you.

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 49)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there's a number of initiatives that are underway by the government. We have, if I'm not mistaken, in the last five years spent over $60 million in different energy efficiency programs, including renewable heat, renewable energy and, for example, biomass boiler installation, LED lighting replacements in a number of areas. There's a push towards some solar energy and being able to interconnect those systems in to our existing energy infrastructure, so again -- and supporting communities in their efforts to move towards having, again, their own opportunities...

Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 49)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'm going to turn it to the A-Team. Let me start with deputy minister Loutitt, please.