Caroline Wawzonek

Thank you, Madam Chair. Returning again is deputy minister of Finance, Sandy Kalgutkar.

That is the first time I've had it raised to me that that is an option or a solution that we should be pursuing, and I agree with the Member's statement that there is short-term and there is long-term. Yes. Absolutely, short-term, I'd like to see this project to Whati in partnership with the Tlicho Government advance, and then, beyond that, to get the satellite communities to the state where they have gained access to low Earth orbit satellite system. Then, beyond that, I will give you the words that I was told by the federal counterpart, which is: dream big. If we're being told to dream big...

Right now, there are no plans in place to be extending the fibre line to Gameti and Wekweeti. The first step is to get it as far as Whati. Again, working in combination with the Tlicho Government, it may well be that, if we are successful in our applications to the federal government for their support and their funding in regard to that project, that, from there, we may well be moving on to Gameti and Wekweeti, but we have to lay the first line first.

There are business supports that ITI does have in terms of providing business mentorship. The Business Mentoring Program run through ITI has been, in fact, oversubscribed for the last two years, so I think that speaks to its success. I certainly would plug that program. There are certainly funding supports through ITI, for example, with the SEED Program that can help businesses as they are getting started. Then, of course, in terms of accessing contracting, there are the existing programs under BIP, for instance, that can help businesses gain access to government procurement, and there are...

I had the opportunity to review the materials around the 8(a) Program that comes out of the United States, and I can't say that that program has been looked at as a model for the Northwest Territories. I do want to assure the Member that ITI does look at best practices that come from across Canada in terms of how we are supporting local business and will continue to do so.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Department of Finance is able to support up to 40 internship placements every year. That works out to being roughly $40,000 per year per placement. Thank you.

Madam Chair, the $451-million proposed capital budget brings with it 990 estimated full-time equivalent jobs, so there is quite a lot of potential here to really have a significant impact at a time when, as the Member has just pointed out, there has been a lot of concern around economic downturn. This plan does have a lot of possibility in it. We've broken it down in different ways between different communities. The goal isn't to spread the dollars in some sort of fashion where we parse it out by community but to ensure that every community's needs are being met.

With respect to schools, for...

Thank you, Madam Chair. I think, with respect to the carry-overs, this is a conversation that has begun and has already been had. I think on that one, Madam Chair, I do want to wait and make sure I have all of the necessary information that is still coming to me, as the Member notes that there is a written question right now that is seeking quite a lot of detail about the state of our carry-overs and where we are at. I do think there is more to come on that, and I think it is still an important conversation to have. I am sorry that I am putting it off, but I do think it's important to actually...

Mr. Speaker, I hope we are ending on a good note because I absolutely agree with that suggestion. I will definitely go back to the department and ensure that we are making available through our channels and through partners in the community, such as the chambers, information about how to run a business, how to do the due diligence, and how to ensure that, when they enter into contracts with a new business, no matter where that business comes from, that they are doing so in a way that is going to be to the growth and the support of both of the businesses that are involved. Yes, I am more than...

It's a deposit, and it is a deposit that is regulating a relationship and a program between the department and an individual who is potentially going to immigrate here. Unfortunately, it is not a compensation mechanism. The compensation mechanism when an agreement between private entities goes awry is typically through the Department of Justice and through the court system or some other form of mediation or arbitration. Again, the service and the process of the Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment with respect to this program is to try to provide supports to the businesses that are...