Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment Minister of Education, Culture and Employment
The Honourable Caitlin Cleveland was first elected in the 19th Assembly as the MLA for Kam Lake in 2019, and has served as the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, and Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment since 2023 after being acclaimed to the 20th Assembly.
In addition to owning and operating a northern business for over 20 years, Minister Cleveland worked in a variety of communications and policy roles in both the public and private sectors before entering politics.
Between 2019 to 2023, she chaired the Standing Committee on Social Development, fulfilling a goal to be a part of the discussions and decisions affecting social programs in the Northwest Territories. Her noteworthy work on the Committee included guiding the considerable review and input into recommendations on housing in the NWT, suicide prevention, and improvements to caring for children in care and building supported families.
Within the scope of her portfolios, Minister Cleveland is focused on helping children grow into successful NWT residents that recognize opportunities and develop successful careers that contribute to a growing economy. She advocates for new approaches to sector diversification and innovation, and ensures the North is welcoming both skilled foreign workers and investment in the critical mineral resources across the territory. She persistently explores solutions for efficient and equitable access to programs and services, upholding a shared vision of an NWT where people are supported in the ways they wish to live, work, and grow.
Minister Cleveland is a lifelong resident of Yellowknife where she lives with her husband and their three children.
Mr. Speaker, our seniors and Elders are the fastest growing population in the NWT. Over the next decade, our seniors population over 60 will increase by 56 percent, and the demand for home care by 80 percent. As the GNWT pens an Elders strategy, we speak often in this House about the need for housing to support seniors to age in place with dignity. But what we don't talk about, Mr. Speaker, is the predictable surge of chronic illness. 31 percent of NWT residents over the age of 65 have diabetes, a disease shown to lead to neurodegeneration that substantially increases a Northerner's risk of...
Debates of
, 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 88)
Thank you very much, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, it strikes me quite interesting that or it strikes me quite hard that one of the biggest uncertainties in the Northwest Territories is housing, even for the Housing Corporation, how to operate, how to build new houses, how to maintain existing ones. And so I'm wondering if there is a plan within the Housing Corporation, either within the GNWT or within the federal government, to create more certainty for the budgets going forward, because there is a huge amount of fluctuation and a huge amount of uncertainty within the corporation as to how they...
Debates of
, 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 88)
Thank you very much, Madam Chair. So, Madam Chair, in the press release that we all got this week, it did identify that there was 213 units that will undergo major repairs, modernization over the next three years. One of the things that I'm noting is that in the document we're looking at right now, it does have 176 units of, I'm guessing, those 213 units, which would only leave 37 units left over. So is it the intent of the Housing Corporation to go over additional go after, sorry, additional federal dollars in future years in order to increase the number of units that they're providing...
Debates of
, 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 88)
Thank you very much, Madam Chair. So I didn't hear a dollar number in that, and so I'm wondering if a dollar number does exist for that. Thank you.
Debates of
, 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 88)
Thank you very much, Madam Chair. Does the Minister have a number of how many units are currently needing repair that are occupied?
Debates of
, 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 88)
Thank you very much, Madam Chair. Are there any other units other than the 102 that are currently under repair that are sitting empty that might not be currently under repair, just to clarify. Thank you.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, sometimes going to the union can cause a little bit more friction than people are looking for right off the bat. And so I'm hoping that together we can find an alternate solution for staff who want questions and further clarifications. But often the current process means that frontline staff receive far less opportunity for professional development from their colleagues that work in headquarters departments. This is required for nurses who want to gain the experience and the certifications required to work in small remote nursing stations and...
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions today are for the Minister of Finance and the Minister responsible for Human Resources.
Further to my statement today, I'm wondering if the Department of Finance has a clear policy of who can apply and cannot apply for education leave and supports from the GNWT? Thank you.
Committee takes note of the request to allow for sufficient time for meaningful consultation and engagement. Committee will review its public engagement processes to ensure timelines are respectful and sufficient for stakeholders to support meaningful consultation.
Further, committee makes the following recommendation.
The Standing Committee on Social Development recommends that the Department of Education, Culture and Employment and Aurora College take note of this request that engagement timelines are respectful and sufficient for stakeholders to support meaningful...
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, before COVID, we sat as equals and set the priorities for the 19th Assembly. Even then, we recognized the shortage of resident healthcare workers and tasked the government to reduce the number of health worker vacancies and our reliance on locums.
Mr. Speaker, there is significant strength in Northerners serving Northerners, providing trauma informed care. This not only fulfills our priority, it creates sustainable succession plans and recognizes the primary role education and meaningful employment play in connecting all community health indicators. I...
