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.
Madam Chair, I'll certainly take this back to ADM Brennan, but the information I have is that is actually part of the challenge right now, is NTPC is trying to still work through the relocation and get a proper cost estimate as to how that relocation takes place given that with a relocation you may or may not be able to reuse the equipment. So, again, happy to redirect that as well. Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Chair. First, apologies to the translators. I think I'm speaking quickly.
Yes, so the short answer is most definitely there have been conversations with the federal government, including from the Premier's office but also from other Ministers' offices, including in particular ECC as our EMO lead, and their counterpart at public safety. The federal government is aware of the challenges created by this huge outlay of cash without an advance on what will otherwise be at least some amount of funding coming from the federal government to help offset those costs. The trick is I don't...
Debates of
, 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 164)
Thank you, Madam Chair. So Madam Chair, point of clarity, Miramar does have its own dock so the two aren't to be confused, that there are different facilities in that area. This particular dock, when the Stantec Engineering assessment was done in 2022, they did take into account what remediation may be required, and so as I say, the amount that's being proposed here is taking into account what remediation work was recommended by the engineers in that assessment. Thank you.
Debates of
, 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 164)
Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, it certainly has been a long road coming. That is the wrong choice of words there. But it is still in planning. But staying in planning is important, Madam Chair. Sometimes these projects, as we've seen, advance too quickly without adequate planning and then wind up getting bogged down at the environmental assessment stage or in the geotechnical stage or whatnot. So it is my hope that that won't yet continue to happen here.
As I understand it, there were some challenges in terms of determining what type of contracting and what kind of a final routing there...
Debates of
, 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 164)
Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I'm going to turn that number to Mr. Martin, but I do want to just note that with respect to the extent to which an Indigenous government or community government wants to tell us or make public the amount that they're receiving from the federal government is not entirely up to us, but the Council of Leaders housing group is, I believe, now up and running. I don't know how what frequency or with which it's meeting just yet, but that will be a forum that is significant in achieving exactly what the Member has suggested. As for total numbers, I'll go to Mr...
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This motion is of importance to the people of the Northwest Territories. I did intend to make some brief remarks this morning. I'm not entering, obviously, into any sort of a question period. But there has been a process by which the House would follow to keep committees apprised of their work and respond to correspondence from committee relating to any uncertainties about what was proposed.
But for the sake of the public, Mr. Speaker, on April 7th of 2022, Canada announced the implementation of a federal vaping products excised tax that would be effective in October of...
Debates of
, 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 164)
Thank you, Madam Chair. I believe Madam Chair, there's I this is the end for these two projects. Now, I don't have in front of me whether or not there's any future project lists for or future projects outstanding. But I know there had been some delays. So I just want to confirm, if I could. No, I think from what I am seeing or reading, Madam Chair, I think this is the end. Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Chair. So, Madam Chair, when the main estimates are tabled, the focus of the attention generally is predominantly on the ability or the authority to spend the money that we have in that budget. But another item that's in there, and it certainly does get some attention although perhaps not quite as much, is the sheet that includes the authority to borrow. And it's that number now that we're looking to have amended by way of this supplementary appropriation.
So you have the authority to spend, which is the department by department budget lines that we all look at and that are as...
Debates of
, 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 164)
Madam Chair, I have confirmed this is GNWT land, not it's not something belonging to another entity. So the Department of Lands at one time transferred this to ITI. It is, one way or the other, GNWT owned and not therefore, this dock would then be our responsibility which is why it's coming through this process. Thank you.
