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.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, on my left is Bill MacKay, the deputy minister for the Department of Finance. On my right, Terence Courtoreille, deputy secretary to the financial management board.
Debates of
, 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 24)
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, so, again, this is a situation where there's a number of breakdowns of things. Site preparation is really about half, if not more than half, of the cost. And so the short answer should be yes, because these ones are coming up on the winter road, and so we are still anticipating that that will be ready to roll for 2025. And site preparation, as I note, that is a significant portion of the rest of that cost, so probably over $2 million or $2.4 million roughly. Obviously, we'll wait and see what the financial bill is on that. I don't know that I have a final in...
Debates of
, 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 24)
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, I'm happy to present Tabled Document 111-20(1), Supplementary Estimates (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 1, 2024-2025. This document proposes a total increase of $142.1 million, comprised of the following items:
$146.9 million for infrastructure expenditures funding for projects that were not completed in 2023-2024. This amount is fully offset by unspent appropriations in 2023-2024;
$2.3 million for the relocation of modular classrooms from Yellowknife to Tuktoyaktuk;
$2.8 million for increased costs associated with the acquisition of portables for Colville Lake...
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, these documents are largely approaches and visions, and I am apprehensive to put timelines around them because they are not going to be solely GNWT-driven documents. They're going to be documents that really bring together the voices of Northerners right across our territory. We have heard a lot of really good things across the territory, a lot of momentum in this field lately, especially in regards to Indigenomics and so this is a space for us to come together through Council of Leaders. This is a space for us to come together with voices, for...
Debates of
, 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 24)
Mr. Chair, sadly, the answer to that is no. This is one particular item that was fairly near and dear to my heart and that I was watching very closely so that these portables would be the first ones on the barge that was due to head north. Obviously with no barges heading north, there are no portables heading north. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Mr. Speaker, I happen to know the answer to this because when the Minister beside me agreed to go on the tour, she handed off an obligation to me on that particular week. So for her to go there, I'm going somewhere else. But let's -- I commit to finding a date as soon as possible hopefully in the next six weeks or eight weeks where I can also head on my own up to the region. Thank you.
Debates of
, 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 24)
Thank you, Mr. Chair. That is the witness table currently speculating on the ceiling for a project of that size. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there are a great many struggles across this Northwest Territories right now, whether it's the public service that's struggling, whether it's NGOs delivering services that are struggling, whether it's residents who are struggling, residents in the Sahtu right now are struggling. So it is difficult to have a line item or an announceable in a budget that addresses every single one of the struggles that we are having in the territory right now coming off of four years of struggle. There's a lot of struggle. No, there is not a line item that says, this NGO...
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, going to bat to ensure that multi-year funding agreements are available is certainly something that I've already fought for and that is now quite widely available, and we'll certainly be dulling that down, that message, as I know my deputy minister already has with his colleagues at my request, that multi-year funding agreements are available. They've been available for the government for a long time. They come with the caveat that we only approve budgets here once a year. That applies to every department and everything we do, including the contribution...
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I have some good news to report in a broad sense. The project for the Taltson watershed area and the potential expansion of the Taltson is proceeding under an MOU. And it's an MOU that involves the Akaitcho First Nations as well as Metis governments of the region and of the Taltson watershed. And we've had more than one steering committee already in the time of this government. One, in fact, in person, where the group travelled to see what underwater tables would look like along with members of the steering committee as well as members of their council. I...
