Caitlin Cleveland

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. So, Mr. Chair, both from a political and operations level, we'll make sure that it is shared. So I will make sure that I share it with my colleagues at the Cabinet table. And in addition to that, the deputy minister will be sharing it with her colleagues as well. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. So, Mr. Chair, absolutely our program funding is fairly consistent year over year, and for the most part all of our programs are oversubscribed which means that we've got evaluation committees that have tough decisions to make. But whether it is tourism programming, SEED funding, community transfer initiatives, and film funding, there's a lot of competition for programs in the territory. We have seen an increase in, for example, film funding because we recognize the multipliers that exist within that industry so really trying to see a growth in that sector given...

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. So, Mr. Chair, a couple of things, and I will try to be brief. The first piece being that this falls also within the mandate of Aurora College, so an expectation that they're doing some of this work, that they're looking to stack funding, that they're also looking to bring in research dollars and have been noted in, I believe, was within the top 15 of research institutions across Canada for multiple years now. And that is work that we can continue to expect them to continue and to grow on and stack.

This also has to do with partnerships with industry. I was here...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we have some very special guests in the gallery joining us today, including members of the official languages board, participants of the mentor apprenticeship program, and staff from the Indigenous languages secretariat. And I'd like to take this opportunity to recognize them in the House today. These individuals continue to put their hearts and hard work into language revitalization, and it is an absolute privilege to have them in the House with us today. And in no particular order, and I will do my best, Mr. Speaker, we have names Lorna Storr, Elsie...

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. So, Mr. Chair, certainly workforce development and training doesn't happen in a vacuum and a lot of the training opportunities that we see in the Northwest Territories really do rely on partnerships with industry in order to do them. We're seeing a lot of, you know, need for trades. That requires a partnership with an employer. We're seeing a lot of need for on-the-job opportunities where people can still put food on the table, make a living, not have to leave an employer they may have been with for a long period of time and still be able to fill a new role and...

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, I'd like to pass this one to the deputy minister.

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. So, Mr. Chair, the highest loan, so the repayable loan, is the additional $1,400 a month, and the loan cap overall for students is $90,000. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we're certainly working on the required legislation for the Aurora College Polytechnic. That work has not stopped. That includes pieces like establishing a framework for that, evaluating what clauses from the existing Aurora College Act would be imported into new legislation, and also looking at the legislation or university or polytechnic legislation from other jurisdictions like the Yukon, speaking with counterparts over there as well, to find out information like what has served them well, what they would have liked to have seen different or what they...

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. So, Mr. Chair, within a few days of the end of the month, residents can contact a -- or any time after the 25th of each month, residents can reach out to their client navigator to work on their paperwork for the following month because the income assistance program is meant to be a month-to-month program to help residents meet their basic needs, so for example their rent, utilities, etcetera. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Yes, and we continue to work on those pieces of legislation internally to the department. Thank you.