Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions are for the Minister of ITI.
In 2021, the GNWT participated with many stakeholders, including Indigenous governments, on the Re-Imagining Closure project around mine closure and where ideas of common ground could be found about repurposing assets, among other ideas. Can the Minister tell me the status of conversations between the GNWT and other stakeholders and diamond mines as they close around asset repurposing? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from Great Slave. Minister of ITI.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Government of the Northwest Territories continues to support our diamond mines in conversations with potential stakeholders for assets. The diamond mines also are pursuing potential new uses of their assets themselves as well. That's everything from working with -- or sorry, ensuring that Indigenous governments understand what potential opportunities there are right down to their staff. So, for example, they have things like boats that are on site and ensuring that they are working kind of through their own stakeholder priority list as they near closure, has been a priority of theirs, and where we can we have supported those conversations as well. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you to the Minister for that. And I know the Minister is aware I have a passionate constituent who asks a lot of questions about this, so thank you.
Can the Minister tell me if as outlined in those conversations in the 2021 report on Re-Imagining Closure if an Arctic research and development centre continues to be a part of this conversation? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. So, Mr. Speaker, as you know there is a tremendous amount of assets. These are billion-dollar diamond mines that we have operating in the Northwest Territories that have a significant amount of infrastructure that could potentially be repurposed in a multitude of ways, whether that is a research centre, a logistics hub, or potentially processing of different types of minerals, depending on what type of adjustments can be made to processing plants. These are conversations that we continue to have. We as a government certainly don't have the pockets deep enough to continue to support this level of infrastructure without kind of a known use for it, but we continue to provide different ideas to, for example our federal partners as well, as we explore different opportunities within the Northwest Territories whether that is through critical minerals, through opportunities that exist with Arctic security as well. So we continue to make sure that all of our partners are aware of the level of infrastructure that does exist in the Northwest Territories and the potential opportunities that they present. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister of ITI. Final supplementary. Member from Great Slave.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thank you to the Minister for that. I know she has a lot of opportunities to speak to various partners, including federal partners, on topics such as these, including the assets of the mines as they reach their closure.
Mr. Speaker, can she tell me if -- especially in Arctic security, Mr. Speaker, can she tell me if there is interest of the Department of National Defence to utilize some of these airfields and airstrips in their future planning? Thank you.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. So, Mr. Speaker, it's not just us that's talking to our counterparts within the federal government. The mines themselves, I know of one in particular that is also doing their part to ensure that these opportunities are known to the federal government, and where and when we can, we support these conversations as well. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister of ITI. Oral questions. Member from Range Lake.
