Debates of October 20, 2020 (day 40)

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are for the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment. The NWT Nominee Program for the business stream used to have a $75,000 good-faith deposit. I am wondering if the Minister can explain what purpose the deposit did serve? Thank you.

Thank you, Member for Kam Lake. Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As you may be gathering from the past tense, this program requiring the $75,000 deposit has now been discontinued. I understand that, in the past, this was one method by which the department was able to help ensure that applicants were, in fact, serious and had the capacity, the financial capacity, to see the process through. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I am wondering if the Minister can let us know how many times that good-faith deposit was kept by the Government of the Northwest Territories?

I believe this program has been in place since 2009, and to my knowledge, we have only kept three deposits.

No. I appreciate knowing that that was kept three times. Can the Minister speak to what happens to this deposit, and was it ever used to support damages to local businesses that were incurred by local businesses in relation to this program?

If it's kept, it reverts to the government, but its purpose was never to shore up or provide any kind of background insurance to private industry or private businesses. If an individual is dealing with someone who happens to be in this program, the good-faith deposit would not be used, as I say, to engage in whatever the private business relationships would be.

Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary. Member for Kam Lake.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I am understanding that there was a good-faith deposit that was instituted by the Government of the Northwest Territories to ensure that applicants met their agreement with the Northwest Territories to come here, set up business, participate in northern economy, and to really form relationships with local businesses. I also understand that three times the GNWT kept deposits when that did not work and that not necessarily was that ever passed along to local businesses that may have incurred damage because of this program. What I am wondering, Mr. Speaker, is: through gaining almost a quarter of a million dollars from this program, what is the purpose of getting rid of the deposit? I have many questions. Maybe I am going to have to stand back up again. How is the Government of the Northwest Territories going to ensure that participants in this program actually fulfill their end of the deal?

The point of the program is to encourage, well, to encourage a number of things. This is meant to be a program that brings folks into the community who can fulfill our labour shortage needs, who can bring direct investment into the economy, who can come and help add dimension to the local business community. However, if, in fact, there have only been three occasions in the last 10 or so years where it got to the point where they were unable to meet that commitment by way of having their deposit forfeited, Mr. Speaker, really that is a pretty good track record, overall. Really, the reason it's being eliminated is: that brings us in line, at long last, with every other jurisdiction in Canada so that, if we are going to be competing for people to come and to invest and to become residents and to contribute to local economy, it makes sense that we not be out of step with what is happening elsewhere in Canada.

That said, Mr. Speaker, the department takes it seriously that, first of all, there needs to be a visit that is done to the jurisdiction to ensure that anyone coming in knows where they are coming and is prepared to make that commitment and to move here. Then, secondly, once they are here, it's, I believe, roughly a two-year process before which they would actually be invited to participate or invited in to go through the rest of the immigration stream.

It's not an uncumbersome process for these businesspeople. It really gives them an opportunity to be supported through that process by the department, to get their legs under them as far as a business goes. At that point, hopefully they are, as most have been, able to successfully set up their businesses and go forward. That is not to say that there cannot always be tweaks and improvements to a program or a system, as with so many other things that are done. However, really, this is an opportunity to bring people in and to bring businesses in. We are now bringing ourselves to be competitive with the rest of Canada when we are doing that. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Monfwi.