Caroline Wawzonek

Member Yellowknife South

Deputy Premier
Minister of Finance
Minister of Infrastructure
Minister Responsible for the Northwest Territories Power Corporation

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,  Minster 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

Yellowknife South
Member's Office

Yellowknife NT X1A 2L9
Canada

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

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 1st Session (day 3)

Thank you, Madam Chair. Similar to taxes, it is an ongoing obligation to pay. We would be certainly subject to changes in year-over-year mill rates as would any other property assessment. Essentially, it is a tax owing and will be due year over year, subject to a new assessment.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 1st Session (day 3)

Thank you, Madam Chair. There is no intention at this time to make any reductions of any sort, and it is our hope that that will not be needed in the course of this administration, if possible. We are right at the beginning of a new government, right at the beginning of a new administration, and we simply want to do our best to be fiscally responsible in a way that is transparent. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 1st Session (day 3)

Yes, Madam Chair.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 1st Session (day 3)

Madam Chair, I am pleased to say that all three of us came to the same number. It is approximately $300 million.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 1st Session (day 3)

Thank you, Madam Chair. We have only really just begun the internal process of looking at what the fiscal framework and fiscal policy will be, going forward. I can say, quite honestly, it is not an overt intention by any stretch to maintain a higher short-term borrowing policy or short-term borrowing limit. I am also cognizant that there seems a trend only ever upwards, and so, while I can't say what the final number will be now, the entirety of that number is still under discussion and evaluation. The intent is to look at the totality of what is happening and get a better handle on it and...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 1st Session (day 3)

Mr. Speaker, back in February of 2018, there was a framework developed to evaluate the program. That was more, I think, in terms of evaluating the success of the program as a whole as opposed to the individual success. I am sure the Member will appreciate, and, as he has already alluded to in his opening, the individual successes on a program like this will depend a lot on how exactly one measures not only recidivism but obviously the reducing of severity of violence and the frequency of violence, so it is a very complex thing to measure, and the success of one individual may differ from the...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 1st Session (day 3)

Thank you, Madam Chair. There is an appeal mechanism. To my limited knowledge, and I will just verify it, I don't know that the government has made use of that appeal mechanism. To the knowledge of the witnesses present, Madam Chair, that is not something that is generally done. This is a policy whereby the primary principal of the policy is to provide fair compensation for municipal services to the various community governments. I imagine there would be some hesitancy in general by most departments to challenge an assessment that we are part of creating.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 1st Session (day 3)

Thank you, Madam Chair. The simple answer is that the health authorities have limited and challenged capacity to pay the money back. That is the reason for which the Department of Finance is working with them in order to try to ensure that their own internal fiscal frameworks are as responsible, going forward, as possible.

There are a number of initiatives underway currently, partnered between Finance and the health authority, to this purpose, one example of which is the "towards a better future" initiative. That is something that has been organized between the health department and health...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 1st Session (day 3)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Perhaps, to be more specific, I can't answer the Member's number in terms of right now at this moment. I can say that, since this program started in 2013, there have been 13 groups in total. Of those, 135 individuals were registered; 28 have completed. The last group just completed back in November of this year, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 1st Session (day 2)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to table the following five documents pursuant to Section 35(1) of the Financial Administration Act. I will be tabling the document entitled "Public Accounts 2018-2019," second, "Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures and Borrowing Authorization), No. 3, 2019-2020," "Northwest Territories Coroner Service 2018 Annual Report," pursuant to Section 72.2(2) of the Residential Tenancies Act, a document entitled the "Annual Report on the Activities of the Rental Officer – April 1, 2018 to March 31, 2019," and finally, pursuant to Section 9(2) of the...