Caroline Wawzonek

Yes, Mr. Chair. I believe I do have some opening remarks. Mr. Chair, over the past few weeks, the Legislative Assembly has been considering the 2021-2022 Main Estimates. In our system of consensus government, Cabinet does not pass the main estimates without at least three supporting votes from Regular Members of the Legislative Assembly. I know there is, at times, a perception that getting these votes would involve deals made one-by-one with individual MLAs rather than through a process that considers the collective priorities of the Northwest Territories.

Mr. Speaker, it is to the credit of...

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, that Bill 26, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Operations Expenditures), No. 3, 2020-2021, be read for the second time. This bill makes supplementary appropriations for operations expenditures of the Government of the Northwest Territories for the 2020-2021 fiscal year. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, that Bill 26, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Operations Expenditures), No. 3, 2020-2021, be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, that Bill 27, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 3, 2020-2021, be read for the third time, and, Mr. Speaker, I would request a recorded vote. Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I will commit to getting that information to the Member. My information before me right now is specific to what is needed to house these services until the new facility is ready, but I'll certainly commit to getting an answer for the interconnection or not as between the long-term care facility and the old hospital. Thank you.

I know that the Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment certainly does capture the data about northern spends, jobs created, and looks at SEED investments and how that is utilized. For instance, again, tourism, I know there is information captured. However, I am hearing that the question is really one that is much more multi-departmental. I can speak to examples of that in ITI. Recently, we and ENR met to discuss exactly that, what can we do in some of our areas of shared interest to ensure that we are analyzing contracts that are not being awarded routinely to Northwest Territories...

Thank you, Madam Chair. We are in a deficit on what was being projected or held off for our supplementary reserve. We now have gone in for $16,801,000. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Madam Chair. There were some delays over time. Again, no delay at this point in terms of the expected May 2021 date, but I would suggest, if I could, to direct it to the deputy minister to speak to the delays, just briefly, that they have encountered in the past getting to today. Thank you.

One of the key pieces of Dead North has been the industry training and workshops afforded to participants, at which the writers and producers of films received tips and feedback from more experienced professionals in the industry. This component of the festival marks a true investment in not only the film and media sector but in the people working to expand and grow NWT film into a significant contributor of the northern economy. Congratulations to all of last night's recipients. Thank you for your dedication to the growing film and media sector in the Northwest Territories.

Mr. Speaker, the...

Thank you, Madam Chair. Always happy to take lessons learned. I would only, perhaps, suggest, if the Member wanted to follow up with me about, more specifically, what she is pointing at, that would only help us learn those lessons better. Thank you, Madam Chair.