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.
Thank you so much, Mr. Chair. So, Mr. Chair, we can certainly help in the form of a business plan to ensure that all options are considered and that, you know, there's a robust plan that goes with it. I know that in the Member's area, there is incredible areas to go and visit. There's incredible artists. I know when I am in the region and I'm -- I get to see some earrings and stuff, I always wish I could buy them all, and so I think something like that would be incredibly successful. And so I would certainly say that having a conversation with the regional office and there can be conversations...
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, that would be a pretty significant budgetary ask and, at the same time, a building is just a building without the staff that need to go along with it. So that is not a question that I have an answer to right here on the floor of the House, and I think certainly would have more information as more of these details get ironed out. Thank you.
Debates of
, 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 52)
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. Well, Mr. Chair, I'm not shy to ask for money; that's for sure, and I'm sure my Cabinet colleagues would confirm that.
In my short time as Minister of ITI, we've managed to take this fund from $100,000 to $500,000 and now this year to $1 million. And so we're seeing a continued significant amount of investment in it, acknowledging that the benefits are huge and not just for the North Slave region but for the whole territory.
Through a CanNor investment, we were able to work with a location scout who travelled the territory and actually created a bank of...
Debates of
, 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 52)
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I couldn't go without saying an acknowledgement of Shawna Lampi-Legaree. I've had the honour of knowing her for decades, and it's always a great light to get to see her in person. So thank you.
Debates of
, 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 52)
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. So, Mr. Chair, we go out with an RFP to do a complete review of this program in April of this year. And with that, we will do a very robust review of the SEED program with the intent of releasing a new policy next year. Thank you.
Debates of
, 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 52)
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, it's certainly up to the community, and we're always happy to lend some suggestions and some expertise from our staff, and we can certainly support through a contribution agreement. But ultimately it is up to the community. Thank you.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my concern is implementing or agreeing to something on the floor of the House without doing my due diligence because in the end, we could end up having our agreement cancelled which costs this territory and families in this territory a tremendous amount of money. We would risk losing our agreement with Canada if we are found to be in contravention of it. So I want to ensure that I'm doing my due diligence before making an $80 million mistake. Thank you.
Debates of
, 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 52)
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. This isn't additional staff. It's additional compensation and benefits through the UNW collective agreement. Thank you.
Debates of
, 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 52)
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, if possible, one of the things that I'm going to do today is swap out different staff when we get to different sections and so maybe we can come back around to that when we get to the petroleum -- minerals and petroleum resources section of the main estimates today. Thank you.
