Merci, Madam la Presidente. My questions are for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. I would like to explore why the Yukon seems to be doing much better than us when it comes to federal investment in their postsecondary education system.
Can the Minister tell us what the specific ask was from our government that resulted in the federal announcement of $8 million in their last budget? Merci, Madam Speaker.
Thank you, Member. Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. The ask that resulted in the $8 million contribution from the federal government was an ask for $8 million. We got every penny that we asked for. It is for the:
Development of a facilities plan, including making sure we go and do the proper engagement;
A research services team pilot, which is a way to advance the research environment in the Northwest Territories, bring more money into the Northwest Territories via research and really build connections among the research community in the Northwest Territories; and,
Money for the Western Arctic Research Centre expansion, and that is of course the facility in Inuvik.
So those are the three items that we approached the federal government and said these are the pieces that we need right now at this point in the transformation, and they happily obliged, and we got a shout out by name in their budget and we were very happy about that. So I'm very thankful the federal government sees the value of this and is fully supportive. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Merci, Madame la Presidente. Thanks to the Minister for that. I guess I'm just a little bit greedy, and I would like some more.
I think that part of the reason why we're not attracting federal investment is we don't have a budget or a business case together yet for the transformation and, as I understand it, that won't be finished until July 2022.
Can the Minister tell us what he is going to do to speed up the development of that budget and a case for investing in the transformation and facilities for a polytechnic university. Merci, Madam Speaker.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. It might not seem like it, but 2022 is less than a month away. So July 2022 is not that far off. And there is a lot of work that needs to be done. The Member often references the Yukon and them getting money. The reason they got money is because they put a lot of effort into developing a facilities plan. That's what we're doing. We don't want to go with a document that is not up to par, that the federal government will look at and say we can't give you this much money based on this plan. So that's the work we're doing. It does take time. We do need to engage with communities because we are looking at a facilities plan that talks about the entire college from the three campuses down to the community learning centres. And that covers a lot of ground, and we need to make sure we do it right. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Merci, Madam la Presidente. Thanks to the Minister for that. I just worry that the window of opportunity's closing.
So can the Minister tell us what specific work is being done to encourage, promote the NWT to the federal government as a good place to invest in postsecondary education? Merci, Madam Speaker.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. And I don't have to sell the value of education to the federal government. When I meet with Minister Vandal, when I meet with any Ministers, they appreciate the value of education. It's pretty easy to look at a chart and see that the more education you have, the more prosperous you are as an individual and the more prosperous your community and territory are. So there's plenty of excitement.
And I would also say that in addition to those interactions I have, the officials from the Aurora College and the Aurora College transformation team are in contact with federal officials, keeping them apprised of what's going on, and my Cabinet colleagues, Minister of Finance and the Premier, carry that message to Ottawa as well. This is a major priority for this government. And those conversations don't just happen at my level. They happen at a number of different tables. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary, Member for Frame Lake.
Merci, Madam la Presidente. Lastly, I think part of the reason we're not attracting federal investment postsecondary education is that our federal engagement is not clear enough, and it's still focused on big infrastructure that has little prospect of actually proceeding or benefitting NWT residents.
Can the Minister tell us what he's doing to convince his Cabinet colleagues that investment in postsecondary education is a very high priority, even higher than big infrastructure? Merci, Madam Speaker.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. So I do want to clarify that, you know, the Member said we're not attracting federal investments. This year, in this federal budget, we attracted federal investments in our postsecondary education system. It's happening. So I don't have to convince my Cabinet colleagues either of the value of this. Everyone is well aware that this is a priority. It's a priority of this Assembly. It's a priority of this government. Everyone understands the value of education and higher education. So I don't think that I need to convince everyone. I think we're all on the same page. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Monfwi.
Oral Question 857-19(2):
Thank you, Madam Speaker. Yes, okay. I would like to rephrase the word that I used, "ban", to “restriction and/or limiting harvest.” So because those are the most appropriate word to use when I'm referring to the ban on caribou. I would like to rephrase that.
So a restriction on caribou, the Bathurst caribou herd has been in place for over ten years. Does the Minister anticipate that the restriction will ever be lifted? What requirements need to be met before the Minister can consider can consider lifting the ban on Bathurst caribou? Thank you.
Thank you, Member. Minister for ENR.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. Again, I'd like to thank the Member for the question. I know it's very important to her. We've had numerous conversations in the hallways, on the phone, and I thank her for that. This is an opportunity.
First and foremost, again, I need to reiterate the Bathurst herd is, you know, very small right now. We've seen I think, 98 percent decline in the population of the herd. However, the Beverly herd is all right. It's still being able to hunt there. But the most important aspect of it is with this mobile zone and non-hunting and in this mobile zone is been through our co-management partners, the Wek'eezhii Renewable Resource Board. So we've had those conversations with them. Again, it's about using local, traditional, and scientific knowledge to see how we can try to increase this herd's population so that then we can be able to get that back on to the opportunity to hunt. But, again, I have to reiterate there is the opportunity to hunt Beverly. It's a little further away and last year we had the unique situation of the Beverly and the Bathurst interlinking together. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Thank you. We all know that limiting and the restrictions on the caribou has been hard on our people. So limiting the harvest was based on caribou declines, and the process is in the Tlicho Agreement. So I want to ask the Minister, can he provide an update, based on the most recent population survey of both herds on Tlicho land within the Wek'eezhii and Monfwi Gogha De Niitlee? Masi.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, we have completed the survey with the herds there. We are we've tabulated a report. We are now just working with our Indigenous governments and leaderships, including the Wek'weezhii Renewable Resource Board. We are in the process of setting up the opportunity to meet with them to share the report. We also will be sending it to committee. As well once that is done, we will get it out into the public and sharing that. But, yeah, it's been done, and we've been able to get the surveys done this year even despite of COVID. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. I recognize there are technical working groups to support the management and recovery of caribou species. Can the Minister commitment to update myself and Tlicho leaders on a regular basis regarding the discussions and decisions occurring at the technical working group meetings? This is to ensure that Tlicho Agreement is respected and recognized. Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. Yes, I'll make that commitment. We've already been sharing this information with Tlicho leadership, with the Wek'weezhii Renewable Resource Board. So we're very much about sharing the information and making sure we respect the agreement with the Tlicho government. So I again thank the Member for that. And, again, we will share that information on a regular basis. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife North.
