Mr. Speaker, three well established tourism businesses in the Yellowknife region are closing the doors, if they have not closed them yet. I don’t feel comfortable mentioning their names, because I know only one, as of yesterday, gave notice to employees, and I can’t speak to the other two specifically.
Their issue for closing their doors, they told me, is the economic climate, the slowdown in tourism, and there is concern that the support levels might not be there from the Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment. Setting that sort of framework up, my questions are directed, of course, to the Hon. Bob McLeod, Minister of ITI.
I don’t want to cry doom and gloom, but this is not a good situation in this climate, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to know what the Minister of ITI is doing to make sure if there is any way to turn some of this around. What type of work is he doing so other tourism businesses don’t follow the same lead as these three well established businesses, by closing their doors because of this problem?
