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 , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 30)

Thank you, Madam Chair. Again, these are carryover amounts. They'd already been committed as part of the project, so it would really be a breakdown of the entirety of the project, which is not necessarily information I have right in front of me here in terms of each and every contract that's been awarded under the project or that might yet be awarded under the project. Although, we can certainly provide a more detailed breakdown of those projects. Both of these are fairly long-term projects and I expect will be part of capital planning process that's getting started next month. That...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 30)

Madam Chair, I know the Member wasn't suggesting there was a question. I would note that this isn't a wage, Madam Chair. I agree that no one wants to roll back anything. There have been quite a number of initiatives that have rolled out in response to COVID that are having unintended benefits far and beyond the immediate stage of a crisis response, but this one in particular was really put in place by the federal government to make sure that no one in low-wage, often front-line work walked away from their job in the context of a crisis where they might perceive themselves to be at risk or...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 30)

Madam Chair, that makes sense, now, the whispers I was hearing behind me. Yes, they will make sure that the report does get shared with the committee. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 30)

Thank you, Madam Chair. There is the project underway right now for unauthorized and rights-based occupancy proceeding through the Department of Lands. In order to support that work, Department of Justice had put forward that they estimated requiring three additional legal counsel. After further discussion, it was agreed that, perhaps, a phased approach to the unauthorized occupancy and rights-based occupancy initiative is more appropriate. As such, we'll start off with one legal counsel, and see how the needs may evolve. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 30)

Thank you, Madam Chair. Yes, Madam Chair. I do note a list of them, and I anticipate that the ones that are along roadways, for instance, Highway No. 8 reconstruction, various meaning along the roadway. I'm not sure that we'd be in a position, at this point, to breakdown. I'm just double checking what I do have in front of me. I don't think we're in a position, Madam Chair, to breakdown each and every location at which, for example, culvert replacement would have occurred or which bridge anywhere in the Northwest Territories might necessarily would have been worked on. It certainly can be...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 30)

Thank you, Madam Chair. I just want to know, I think I said "to date" on the chart. Those are numbers that are up to May 15th, so there obviously has been almost the better part of a month since then, but those are the numbers that we have collated to now. Again, only having had a few months, but we're at about $1.1 million per month, on average, so if we use that as a projection, then we're looking at $5.6 million to the end of September. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 30)

Thank you, Madam Chair. I believe, and I probably will hear whispers if I'm wrong, that this program is actually under review right now. There certainly is a recognition of the importance of increasing access to the ability to undertake harvesting, but there is a recognition that there needs to be a real encouragement to young people and to provide mentorship. This does, indeed, cover the shortfall. This covers the difference between the actual subscriptions and requests, as compared to the base funding. There is not an intent at this moment in time to necessarily increase that further, but I...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 30)

Thank you, Madam Chair. This is being utilized to help develop the comprehensive regulations that are required under the new Mineral Resources Act that received assent right at the tail end of the 18th Legislative Assembly. The regulations are fairly extensive and complex, and this is meant to support having individuals and staffing available to complete that work over at ITI. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 30)

Yes, I do.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 30)

I'm cautiously optimistic that it won't be very long, Madam Chair.