Thank you. Sergeant-at-Arms, please escort the witnesses into the chamber.

Okay, would the Minister please introduce her witnesses?

Thank you. Committee, we will resume by beginning consideration of the tourism and parks key activity, beginning on page 244 with information items on page 246. Are there any questions?

I will go to the Member from Great Slave.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, something that I've been hearing recently, and I know the Minister is aware because we've chatted about it, is that within the tourism envelope in the NWT, there is a desire from international tourists, specifically, for luxury experiences. There's a high demand for it but little market for it. Is this a conversation that the Minister is having with the hospitality industry? Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Okay, thank you. I will go to the Minister.

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.

So, Mr. Chair, this is a conversation that is happening within the tourism sector, with Indigenous governments as well, with investors both nationally and internationally as well. This is a conversation that has come up on multiple occasions as well when we have had conversation with ambassadors who are looking for different partnerships and relationships that can be formed and tourism is a natural one in that. And so certainly these conversations are happening and there is a mass of people out there that are looking for unique experiences in the Northwest Territories and all budget ranges of those experiences. So, this is certainly an instance of if you build it, they will come. Thank you.

Thank you. I will go back to the Minister of Great Slave -- Member.

Thanks for the promotion, Mr. Chair.

I guess on top, to respond then back to the Minister's remarks, Mr. Chair, I suppose what supports and/or guidance is she giving to Indigenous governments that might be interested in this space? Thank you.

Okay, thank you. I will go to the Minister.

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.

So, Mr. Chair, if we are making contacts with people who are looking for opportunities to invest, certainly making sure that we're sharing that information and making connections when I am having conversations with Indigenous governments or their development corporations. In addition to that, Mr. Chair, the NWT Tourism also has an Indigenous government caucus that they are forming and putting together programs for as well.

Okay, thank you. I will go back to the Member from Great Slave.

Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thank you to the Minister. That sounds intriguing. What are the terms of reference for this Indigenous caucus? Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Okay, thank you. I will go to the Minister.

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, for that level of detail, I'd like to pass to the deputy minister.

Okay, I will go to the deputy minister.

Okay, thank you. I will go back to the Member from Great Slave.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Sorry for the delay.

I believe that's all I have for this item. Thank you.

Are there any other questions from Members? Member from Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Okay, my first question, in the business plan on page 36, it talks about one of the actions is to work with partners to identify barriers for remote lodge operations. And there's like a little paragraph there under progress that talks about how an economic analysis that was done across departments identified a number of regulatory barriers. And one of the case studies was remote lodges, and there were these four barriers identified:

• Fire inspections,
• Liquor licensing,
• Environmental health and water; and
• Immigration hospitality.

But it doesn't say anything about what's actually being done about those barriers. So yay, we did a study and identified barriers. So what is the next step? How is this being prioritized? How are these barriers being addressed and removed? Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you. I will go to the Minister.

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. So, Mr. Chair, within economic barriers space, some of the work that ITI does is working with their stakeholders, so different industry leaders in order to basically unroot those. And then I have the opportunity and officials as well, and deputy minister as well, at her tables to share this, both with my colleagues at the Cabinet table, this work, as well as other deputies, so that we're all essentially working together. Whether or not and how this work is then prioritized really relies on the other work that is being done within that department.

So, for example, within this example, so fire inspections are done with MACA, liquor licensing with finance, environmental health and water with health and social services. So it's really about an all-of-government approach, but we also have to take into account that there are a multitude of priorities, especially related to legislation within each of these departments, and ultimately, at the end of the day, determine what has the greatest impact for northern residents across the board. And so it's largely a prioritization exercise but work is still being done, and first and foremost is identifying what those barriers are. Thank you.

Thank you. I will go back to the Member from Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Okay, and so is this analysis at least publicly available? So other, I mean, I am sure this might apply to many other business owners, entrepreneurs, tourism operators, so they might be able to see the work that's been done, and then is there some public, like a tracker or something that would allow them to see what is in progress, what's being done to address these things, even if they're not top priorities? It's like okay, well, next year, we're going to look at this, or in the next Assembly, just so that there's a loop back to people who are certainly interested in seeing these barriers removed. Thank you, Mr. Chair.