Caroline Wawzonek
Deputy Premier
Statements in Debates
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, that's the first time I've had that question asked of me in any setting. I don't have an answer right now, and I'm happy to certainly take it back and likely confer with ECE who would have a role in ensuring that we are providing that kind of level of service to residents. So, again, happy to take that away and see if there is some room or opportunity to support residents differently or better. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. For all of the thermal communities; in other words, communities that rely on exclusive diesel generation for power supply. They are brought down to the power rate that is in Yellowknife so it does -- it would benefit -- yes, it brings the power rates down for those communities. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, while Project Nanook is definitely one that centers on the department of defence and RJTFN, I can say that one of its aims is to help develop the interagency Crown Indigenous multinational partnerships intraoperabilities, so it is an opportunity for us to demonstrate our ability to work collaboratively at different levels and different degrees of government. And in that regard, Mr. Speaker, certainly, I'm confidently able to say the Premier does continue to speak regularly in the media, in the territorial address here, with respect to the work that's...
Thank you, Mr. Chair. So to date at this point, this is being done internally. It was meant to be an exercise that didn't take on or didn't add costs to departments or include to the Department of Finance. So at this point, it's been largely cost neutral or -- and certainly to get, as I said, not new money. Again, there's -- I think outside of finance -- I may be wrong -- I think only ECE has their own actual formal evaluators. So to do this in a bigger sense would likely require some additional funding. Again, could potentially get some estimates for the committee if they want to consider...
Happy to do that, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. The increase, Mr. Chair, is due firstly because the carbon tax rates are going up. There was an increase of $15 per ton. And there was also, of course, the change in terms of the impact of having heating fuel removed which saw a significant change year over year. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. So, Mr. Chair, there was a number of reductions that are resulting from the impending phasing out of the Fort Smith facility, so that was -- would be the majority of reductions.
Mr. Chair, with respect to any position of reductions, again, there's none in the Department of Finance. There's -- I think there was a program sunsetting that -- some federal dollars up in the Beaufort Delta, not GNWT money. I -- I'm just trying to -- we were just trying to all look for the overall GNWT department change because I don't recall there being a reduction in positions in the Tlicho...
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, there are sites along the Canol Trail that we have some responsibility for. There are other sites that are still with the federal government, but this is some -- a liability for the sites that are already transferred over to the GNWT. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, Mr. Speaker, just as the current affirmative action policy applies, so too will the Indigenous employment policy apply. And, Mr. Speaker, I can say anecdotally we do find that the bigger challenge is really bringing in students. We find often that students begin to go down the process and accept jobs more quickly than we can get to them. So it's more often than not that the students that are utilizing this are all getting scooped up which is, again, a good problem for us to have. We are looking, therefore, to have individuals who are members of the First Nations...
Thank you, Mr. Chair. So, Mr. Chair, we do get regular updates with respect to progress on GRI which at this point was involving the different -- different programs chosen by each department. We are providing training and supports through MBS over in fiscal -- our fiscal division over to departments to do that evaluation work in an ongoing way. And, yes, then that information goes through reviews is supposed to come back, each program evaluation comes back to the financial management board, Cabinet, and certainly happy to ensure that that's getting shared regularly. I believe it is getting...