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

Board of Management
Yellowknife South
Member's Office

Yellowknife NT X1A 2L9
Canada

P.O. Box
1320
Email
Email
Office
(867) 767-9143
Extension
12177
Deputy Premier, Minister of Finance, Minister of Infrastructure, and Minister Responsible for the Northwest Territories Power Corporation
Mobile
867-445-7437
Minister
Email
Email

Statements in Debates

Question 1472-19(2): Procurement Review
Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 150)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, so already there is, just to confirm, the manufacturing policy guidelines newly minted are on ITI's website, current BIP guidelines and renewed guidelines are on the ITI's website. There is now a dashboard with respect to procurement that is live over on Finance's website. Those are all things that have come out of the procurement review, and I certainly would encourage people to go to them, take a look at them.

Further, as well, I the principles that I have mentioned, the objectives and principles around procurement, that is not a small thing. That was one...

Committee Motion 383-19(2): Committee Report 43-19(2): Standing Committee on Government Operations Report on Bill 63: An Act to Amend the Official Languages Act – Indigenous Languages Legislative Changes, Carried
Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 150)

Thank you, Madam Chair. So, again, just subject to not going too far in the future in terms of procurement dollars, of the dollars that have not been yet put out for procurement, other than that responses will they can be certainly tabled in the House. Thank you.

Committee Motion 383-19(2): Committee Report 43-19(2): Standing Committee on Government Operations Report on Bill 63: An Act to Amend the Official Languages Act – Indigenous Languages Legislative Changes, Carried
Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 150)

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I have $194 million as being the total cost now including this. Thank you.

Committee Motion 385-19(2): Concurrence Motion – Tabled Document 881-19(2): Supplementary Estimates (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 3, 2022-2023, Carried
Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 150)

Thank you, Madam Chair. Looking as a net, $1.553 million.

Question 1472-19(2): Procurement Review
Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 150)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So, Mr. Speaker, as the Member's already pointed out, there was a summary version of what's ongoing already published several months ago with respect to the work that's happening. I believe with that there was also a publication of a set of principles, unifying principles about procurement so that we are no longer spread with different purposes and objectives between different departments, which was a significant recommendation from that report.

As to a detailed response, Mr. Speaker, that is something that is still coming out. There will be a more fulsome response out...

Committee Motion 383-19(2): Committee Report 43-19(2): Standing Committee on Government Operations Report on Bill 63: An Act to Amend the Official Languages Act – Indigenous Languages Legislative Changes, Carried
Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 150)

Thank you, Madam Chair. I'm not sure, Madam Chair, if I have the totals here in front of me. Let me check with the deputy minister first, please.

Committee Motion 386-19(2): Concurrence Motion – Tabled Document 882-19(2): Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 3, 2022-2023, Carried
Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 150)

That is correct, Madam Chair.

Committee Motion 383-19(2): Committee Report 43-19(2): Standing Committee on Government Operations Report on Bill 63: An Act to Amend the Official Languages Act – Indigenous Languages Legislative Changes, Carried
Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 150)

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, there had been a matter involving the other parties, what we call Project Co, the entity that was involved in building and running the Mackenzie Valley Fibre Line. They, under the project agreement, have the ability to seek compensation for what's called a supervening event. So that's an event that they may have claimed would have increased the associated costs of the project. What they were seeking was such that the GNWT entered into some discussions to try to determine if that could be settled rather than having to go all the way through a more formalized...

Committee Motion 385-19(2): Concurrence Motion – Tabled Document 881-19(2): Supplementary Estimates (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 3, 2022-2023, Carried
Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 150)

Thank you, Madam Chair. I believe there is. I don't have a link offhand but we can provide that together with some of the other commitments we've made today. Thank you.

Question 1470-19(2): Review of Fiscal Responsibility Policy
Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 150)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the P3 policy is separate; it wasn't part of the review that was done in looking at the fiscal responsibility policy so that it simply wasn't part of it. It's a different policy all together.

Mr. Speaker, at this point in time there's not any active work happening with respect to a P3. So this is not something that is you know, there's not an active concern around growing numbers of P3 projects. What we do have are the some projects that are ongoing that where there are operational expenses now because rather than investing huge amounts of sums at the...