Caroline Wawzonek

Member Yellowknife South

Deputy Premier
Minister of Finance
Minister Responsible for the Northwest Territories Power Corporation
Minister Responsible for Strategic Infrastructure, Energy and Supply Chains

Caroline Wawzonek was first elected to the 19th Legislative Assembly in 2019 as the Member for Yellowknife South. Ms. Wawzonek served as Minister of Justice,  Minister of Finance, Minister responsible for the Status of Women and the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment. In 2023, Ms. Wawzonek was acclaimed to the 20th Legislative Assembly and returned to Executive Council as Deputy Premier, Minister of Finance, Minister of Infrastructure and the Minister Responsible for the NWT Power Corporation.
 
Ms. Wawzonek holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Calgary (2000) and a law degree from the University of Toronto, Faculty of Law (2005). Her academic journey included language studies in China and Taiwan, as well as legal internships in the Philippines and England. Born in Calgary, AB, she has called Yellowknife home since 2007.
 
After establishing her criminal law practice post-admission to the Law Society of the NWT, Ms. Wawzonek appeared in all levels of NWT courts and engaged in circuit court travel. She later joined Dragon Toner, expanding her practice to general litigation and administrative law until becoming a member of the 19th Assembly.
 
Since 2007, she has taken on leadership roles in the legal community, including the presidency of the Law Society of the Northwest Territories (LSNT), section chair for the Canadian Bar Association Northwest Territories Branch (CBA-NT), and committee membership in various working groups. Her community involvement extends to appointments in multiple Yellowknife organizations, and she received a national award in 2017 for her contributions to Canadian Women in Law.
 
Ms. Wawzonek, a mother of two, enjoys running, paddleboarding, and time outdoors.
 

Committees

Caroline Wawzonek
Yellowknife South
Member's Office

Yellowknife NT X1A 2L9
Canada

P.O. Box
1320
Email
Extension
12177
Deputy Premier, Minister of Finance, Minister of Infrastructure, and Minister Responsible for the Northwest Territories Power Corporation
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Statements in Debates

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 111)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I did have the opportunity to speak yesterday in Committee of the Whole and made a number of comments at that point about consensus government and about the process by which the budget is built. I don't want to repeat all of that, Mr. Speaker, but I do have a few additional comments I want to make today.

Mr. Speaker, I'm very frequently asked what am I going to do about the debt ceiling, what am I going to do about rising costs of debt, what are we going to do about the rising costs of fuel, what are we going to do about the rising costs of living, what will...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 111)

Mr. Speaker, I wish to present to the House that Bill 51: The Appropriation Act (Operations Expenditures), 20222023 be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 111)

In favour.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 110)

I haven't been given my clearance to speak so I just want to make sure I'm being heard? Okay, good. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Yes, Mr. Chair, I do have a few remarks.

Mr. Chair, as you know, over the past several weeks, the Legislative Assembly has been considering the 20222023 Main Estimates. This is my third time going through the budget review process and the associated negotiations that take place between Members and the Executive.

Negotiations are necessary because the Executive holds a minority of seats in the Legislative Assembly and therefore requires at least three votes from Members in...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 110)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, yes, I'm happy to say that myself and Minister Archie, as the Minister responsible for Infrastructure and Northwest Territories Power Corporation, do meet regularly and are the teams of the departments do meet regularly.

It's not only with respect to the taser and Whati and a connection into Whati; this is something that we're looking at on a much larger scale as well with respect to the Taltson, for example, and ensuring that as the Taltson is moving forward that potential projects around the southern half of the of the Northwest Territories are connected...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 110)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, yes, we've had the opportunity, in fact, to speak with Cisco, to speak with well, with a lot of our advanced projects just recently during just recently during the roundup that was occurring. I can say that they are right now doing they're undertaking their regulatory process. They are well underway. I understand, in fact, that it's moving along steadily and positively.

And I don't know that they'll be in production, my understanding, by 2023, Mr. Speaker, but it will be within the next two to three or I think the next three years, if I have the date...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 110)

No, thank you, Mr. Chair.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 110)

In favour.

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 110)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, again more good news on this front as well, that, yes, the NICO Mine certainly will stand to benefit from the existence of the Whati or the Tlicho road. I understand that they're in discussions or may, in fact, even have concluded discussions with the Tlicho government with respect to an additional spur road that'll connect them.

And importantly, they've chosen a site in Alberta that will allow them to conduct their own processing. So that, to me, tells a story of multi levels of government all being involved, Tlicho government, our government, and now in...

Debates of , 19th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 110)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I haven't necessarily seen a direct uptake as of this moment although I will certainly say that I'm also keeping an eye on the situation globally and on the demand situation. I expect that we may well start to hear more about this as the coming year unfolds. There certainly have been a lot of changes with respect to well, for example, zinc. A lot of attention being paid in the news around critical minerals and metals, around having access to the minerals and metals that are needed for clean energies. And again, certainly, Mr. Speaker, I don't think there's...