Caitlin Cleveland

Given that we just simply don't have time to wait for the review of the Business Incentive Policy before we refocus our procurement on northern benefit, how does the Minister intend to ensure that government contracts will come with a benefit retention to Northerners?

Thank you very much, Madam Chair. Many tour operators throughout the Northwest Territories have seasonal income where they may not have had anything for the first part of the year. Really, they were waiting until right about now to open their doors and be able to start bringing in their income for their families for the entire year. Is there any type of program that ITI is thinking of putting together? Since they have put so much money into tourism in the last decade, is there any type of program they are looking at doing to help tourism operators cover their costs if they have no clientele...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. If the GNWT is going to move the NWT economy toward recovery, it must commit to a fundamental change in how it relates to and supports northern business. Last August, the 18th Assembly Standing Committee on Economic Development and Environment tabled a report identifying what is keeping northern businesses out of government procurement through four themes and two recommendations.

Mr. Speaker, the report first identified a need for consistency, clarity, and transparency in the procurement process. Northern businesses need to understand what the government wants and know...

Thank you very much for that answer. I would like to request potentially being able to sit down with the Minister and discuss this one in greater detail. I have a lit bit of concern about this one and how we are actually ensuring the money stays here and doesn't end up walking away with a southern contractor and also that any monies left over are going to our northern businesses, especially this year. Our northern businesses are suffering right now. They are looking for cash flow to be able to evolve in a new COVID landscape, and it's really important that we can provide that to them.

My next...

Thank you very much, Madam Chair. I think I am going to fall in line with my colleague from Yellowknife North a little bit. The southern tour operators who operate in the Northwest Territories, do they pay the exact same tour operating licence as members from the Northwest Territories? Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Yes, I'd just like the opportunity to come back around to the Nominee Program, just to understand it a little bit better. We discussed that we make money by collecting fees. We spend money through staff. The program is currently on pause. Madam Chair, I'm wondering if the Minister could just speak a little to what mechanisms we use to protect the GNWT's investment in the Nominee Program.

Thank you very much, Madam Chair. I would like to just shift streams a little bit here over to page 202. I think that the Northwest Territories' Nominee Program falls under that. Can you explain how we make money off the nomination program and how we spend money off the nomination program, please?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We are lucky that COVID-19 hit Canada as the sun was starting to come back in the North. Now that we are in phase 1, people are able to get outside and spend more time together while social distancing. Mr. Speaker, I am concerned that our second and potentially third wave will come as we are heading back into winter and that the mental health of Northerners will be further at risk. Self care for people includes exercise, eating properly, establishing a support network. What I would like to know is: what is the plan for the Department of Health and Social Services to...

While I appreciate the Department of Health and Social Services looking for new ways to provide mental healthcare to Northerners, the reality is that not every single person has access to using apps or video conferencing for mental health appointments. Many residents of the Northwest Territories simply do not have the minutes on cellphones to be able to access telehealth. What I would like to know is: will the Department of Health and Social Services still provide in-person counselling to people who simply cannot access these supports?

Mr. Speaker, I woke up mid-day to my husband standing over me. He took a deep breath and bravely said, "I can't do this anymore." After an awful pregnancy, we welcomed our third child. For his first eight months, he cried and never slept. Yes, eventually, our baby stopped crying and started to sleep, but I did not. Daytime became the hunting ground of my self-care, and nights became the slaughterhouse of my self-compassion. Mr. Speaker, I love my children, and I'm a good mom. Having a third child felt like being capsized at sea, gasping for air, and then, being passed a screaming and told,...