Caitlin Cleveland

I would speculate that the expenses to the department would be in the form of salary dollars to people who would remain employed whether or not someone was participating in the program. I can say that there may be business owners in our communities who have been hurt, not directly by the program, I will say, but by people not fulfilling their obligation to the agreement that was in relation to the program. These people have not been compensated through the good-faith deposit. What I am wondering is if there is a mechanism for people, for business owners within our communities, to receive...

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:...

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?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This past June, the Departments of Education, Culture and Employment and Industry, Tourism and Investment teamed up to announce a new website for the NWT Nominee Program. The goal of this resource is to help attract, settle, and retain foreign nationals to the NWT.

Mr. Speaker, I see great value in attracting newcomers to the Northwest Territories; increasing our population base is the easiest way for the NWT to increase the federal transfer payment, which is how the government generates most of its spending money. Immigration also increases diversity and reunites...

The numbers again today are very different than what is being reported in the annual report from the Giant Mine Oversight Board, and so I would love to be able to figure out with the Minister where the discrepancies are coming from and to better understand if it is a difference in definitions used or if there is something else happening. However, my next question, Mr. Speaker, is: companies that do not follow their contract responsibilities under the federal Aboriginal Opportunity considerations are fined by the federal government; given that the repercussions of that and the damages of that...

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. In my Member's statement today, I alluded to some differences in definition between the federal government and the GNWT and how they refer to "northern" or "Indigenous" content within their procurement guidelines. I want to kind of get away from that a little bit because assumptions can be concerning when it comes to procurement, and I want to have a very good understanding of how the NWT is benefitting from the Giant Mine Remediation Project. What I am wondering from the Minister of ENR today, Mr. Speaker, is: how many contracts have been awarded to NWT...

Mr. Speaker, this week, Parsons, the main construction manager for the Giant Mine remediation, is hosting an online industry week. This is an opportunity for local contractors to learn about the project's upcoming multi-million-dollar contract opportunities.

For half a century over 7 million ounces of gold was extracted from Giant Mine, leaving behind hundreds of thousands of tons of arsenic contamination and a $1-billion clean-up, making it one of the largest Canadian environmental remediation projects. While this project is being overseen by the Federal Government, the GNWT is still a co...

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. My question was in regard to specifically the fines received by the federal government for contracts that don't fulfil what they call their "Aboriginal criteria" for their federal procurement process. It's outside of other contracts that the government provides for remediation or for partnerships with Indigenous governments. This is very specific to people not following what they say they are going to do with the procurement contracts that they have with the federal government. Maybe I can request that in writing. I can do that tomorrow in a written question...

Before I go on to my next question, I would like to request that those numbers be provided in writing and also the definitions used for each of those, as well, pretty please. Thank you. My second question, Mr. Speaker, is: a significant focus of the Giant Mine Remediation Project needs to be training and apprenticeship; this is an opportunity for the Northwest Territories to develop made-in-the-North experience for remediation workers for a future remediation economy. How many apprentices are currently working on the Giant Mine Remediation Project?

Mr. Speaker, we only get one shot at NWT benefit retention from the Giant Mine remediation. We cannot afford to fail. We need jobs, we need apprenticeships, and we need to grow into a territory capable of leading its own remediation economy. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.