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, 2nd Session (day 164)

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, there was money at one point notionally allocated for pullouts along the InuvikTuk Highway. Madam Chair, the challenge that we've run into is identifying the appropriate location and getting the hunters and trappers associations from the regions to, in fact, agree on a location, along with elders. Last I know there was some work and some progress made towards bringing those parties together. I would like nothing more than to see what really is a tourism flagship, or could and should be a tourism flagship, have those kinds of facilities.

Without them, it's...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 164)

Thank you, Madam Chair. So Madam Chair, that is, I think, probably the critical decision that needs to be made at the steering committee. And so, again, I suspect the Member knows, but for the public, there's a steering committee that is composed of the signatories to the original MOU, aside from the Salt River, who at the present moment have opted to not participate although are certainly welcome back, and that the steering committee is composed as the leadership and then the working group is composed of the officers or officials from GNWT as well along with those other governments. And that...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 164)

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I have both the 20232024 and 20242025 plans in front of me. The 20232024 still does stretch into the coming few months before the turnover of the fiscal year. There are five new public housing units going into Behchoko under the current fiscal year, and that is being done through the Tlicho Infrastructure Agreement. And then there were other additional major retrofits, both to Behchoko as well as to Whati, two different units two units going into Whati, again under the current fiscal year. Then we get into the present year and that's where it is retrofits...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 164)

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I actually don't have confirmation as to whether it will be a full replacement or not. I'm just trying to see if I can see the detail here. But I think at this point, there was an assessment done so I just don't have the details of the project here. I'm not sure if Members of the Department of Finance have it. I'm not sure that we do, Madam Chair, sorry about that.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 164)

Thank you, Madam Chair. So what I have with me is the 20222023 delays. And with respect simply to Hay River and to parks in particular, I don't see that there's been any expressed delays there. There was a bit of a delay in getting the fish processing plant online, but it wasn't damaged.

As far as any damage to facilities and damage to park facilities specifically, that would likely be coming in either in a supplementary appropriation under the infrastructure budget or into the future infrastructure budget because that damage assessment hasn't been done yet. Obviously hoping that it would fall...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 164)

Thank you, Madam Chair. Yes, please.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 164)

Mr. Speaker, I'd like to recognize Fernanda Martins. I'm not sure she's actually a constituent, this might be in the wrong spot, but she is a resident of Yellowknife, Mr. Speaker. She's here as the senior advocacy advisor from the Northwest Territories Cancer Society. She's here today because there is a motion, of course, on the floor today around taxation of vaping motions. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 164)

Thank you, Madam Chair. I am certain that the South Slave Region would be happy to send somebody, and I know ITI's listening now. Thank you.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 164)

Thank you, Madam Chair. No, I'm not doing over/unders. Thank you.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 164)

Thank you, Madam Chair. Yes, with respect to our assessment schedule, so there is an assessment schedule that is prepared year over year. I don't have the assessment schedule with us because that's not I mean, again, I and I appreciate the connection to the capital estimates planning process, but I don't have the schedule that is for assessments for future years. I can certainly get my hands on it and provide it. And that may also then with that, we could probably speak to the rating and the risk assessment that goes in. So there is an assessment that is done it's put through a risk...