Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, I am doing my part to help out with what the Hay River South MLA is saying.
Currently, Madam Speaker, our outofterritory tourists are not permitted to enter the NWT for leisure travel unless they are travelling directly to an approved remote tourism location. According to operators, to gain this designation they must submit a rigorous COVID plan that includes additional insurance for medevacs, plans for isolating guests, and provisions to bring doctors to site should a COVID diagnosis be required. After almost two years of literally no business, operators are finding themselves in the difficult position of having to decide if they close their businesses or go further into debt hoping that one day they will see a light at the end of the tunnel.
The tourism industry is an indirect and direct supporter of northern businesses including retail, restaurants, art galleries, suppliers, and airlines. We have seen a huge loss in our tourism sector with many businesses changing the services they offer or shutting down completely. Operators are selling their inventory of gear, and many of our shops and retail outlets are leaving or switching to online storefronts to survive the effects of the pandemic restrictions.
With the vaccination of children aged 5 to 11 in the NWT, I understand that the order restricting leisure travel by nonresidents is being looked at and hopefully we can expect changes soon. Will these changes come quickly enough to save our vulnerable tourism sector? I really don't know and have to admit I'm not optimistic given how long it will take for operators to recover any sort of profit after years of poor return.
As part of ongoing support for tourism marketing and infrastructure programming, the GNWT announced that the Tourism Product Diversification and Marketing Program and the Community Tourism Infrastructure Contribution Program are officially open for submissions and are eliminating a step by removing the expressions of interest phase.
Has this move by the GNWT come quickly enough to save the NWT tourism industry through the remainder of this pandemic?
When I see outfitters selling assets and hear rumors of large operators closing businesses that not only serve tourists but also local residents, I'm sad for them and worried for the future of the sector. Tourism operators have run out of resources, restrictions have starved their operations, and current entry requirements continue to turn people away. If we don't work hard now to help them, there is no way they will weather the COVID storm. And I have to ask, given the current bleak outlook are we already too late? Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Thank you, Member. Members' statements. Member for Frame Lake.
