Hear from the two people trying to be the NWT Conservative candidate

Two NWT residents who want to become the territory’s Conservative candidate during the next federal election have set out their priorities if chosen.

At a Saturday event in Yellowknife, Kimberly Fairman and Jackie Jacobson spoke about how they plan to help the territory tackle issues ranging from diversifying the economy to addressing the need for housing.

Fairman is currently executive director of the Institute for Circumpolar Health Research and is pursuing a PhD in social dimensions of health at the University of Victoria. She highlighted her experience working for the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency and Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada.

If elected, Fairman said she plans to fight the carbon tax and federal gun laws, welcome new development to strengthen the territory’s economy, and allow for a mix of public and private healthcare options.

“Everything that’s happened since the Liberal government took over has made things worse for us in the NWT, not better, and I’m tired of it,” she said.

“We can’t miss this opportunity to elbow some room on a national agenda and I can do that for you, and I will do that for you.”

Jacobson, formerly the MLA for Nunakput, said he was asked by “numerous people” to seek the federal party nomination rather than try for territorial re-election last fall.

“That was a really tough decision,” he said. “I really wanted to be able to help in regards to making our territory to be able to take care of ourselves, to be able to do our housing.”

Jacobson said his two biggest issues are housing and healthcare. He said he also plans to continue fighting the carbon tax and wants to lift the moratorium on oil and gas development in the Beaufort Delta.

“I want change,” he said.

“I believe in myself, if given the opportunity, to do the job for the Northwest Territories.”

Former Hay River MLA Wally Schumman had also sought the Conservative nomination but was barred from running by the national party for reasons that have not been made public.

An uncommon race

This is the first time in several years that more than one person has wanted to run under the Conservative Party banner in the NWT.

In the 2021 election, the territory’s Conservative candidate was a woman from Thunder Bay who had never visited the NWT. In 2019, Yellowknife’s “bowtie banker” Yanik D’Aigle ran for the party. In the 2015 election, former Inuvik mayor and premier Floyd Roland was the only person to seek the Conservative nomination in the territory.

Former NWT health minister and longtime Liberal Party member Sandy Lee was appointed as the Conservative candidate in the 2011 election. While former NWT finance minister John Pollard also sought to run for the party that year, his nomination was deemed not valid as it was submitted after the deadline had passed.

The last time the territory elected a Conservative MP was in 1984. Progressive Conservative Dave Nickerson held the seat from 1979 to 1988, when it was known as the Western Arctic riding before Nunavut became a separate territory.

Voting for the territory’s next Conservative candidate will take place by mail-in ballot and in person at Yellowknife’s Explorer Hotel from 5-8pm on June 29. Only Conservative Party members in good standing who lived in the NWT as of April 5 will be eligible to vote.

So far, there’s no fixed date for the next federal election. It must be held on or before October 20, 2025.

The NDP has already selected Kelvin Kotchilea as its NWT candidate for that election. Whether current Liberal MP Michael McLeod will seek re-election has yet to be announced.

At Saturday’s Conservative event, both nominees were asked six questions, which organizers said had been selected from party members’ submissions.

Below, read a full transcript of how Fairman and Jacobson said they plan to tackle those challenges if elected. The transcript has been lightly edited for clarity.

John Williston, moderator: Given we have diamond mines that could close during the next Government of Canada term, what will you do to promote the next new mines and a mineral economy in the NWT?

Kimberly Fairman: So this is a huge question, I think, for the territory and one where it’s going to take a long time, because we’ve had such a big gap in the mining industry and exploration. These things don’t happen overnight. I think we’ve heard a lot of issues in the Northwest Territories around infrastructure for mining, regulations that take too long for people to get through. Those are key areas we see in the Conservative platform that will be addressed.

The key things are to look for boosting mining exploration. We have resources up here that people want, that Canadians want, that the world wants. I think it’s key to promote that, I think it’s key to find ways to support the exploration and mining companies to make investments here.

Another key piece is around taxation and making sure there are benefits for local investors as well in the mining industry. We can’t count on this to be funded entirely outside of the territory or outside of the country. I think when we look at typically the things that have prevented the mining industry in the past, it is things like energy, cost of energy, access to the minerals and resources.

Another key thing that I think, and going back to some of my notes when I started out, is around involving First Nations in the planning of mines – getting them involved early and making sure they have a say in how the development is going to go. I think that’s a key thing that’s held us back in the past, where we have mining or exploration companies that come in and they do make an attempt to involve First Nations, but it might be at a point where it’s a bit too late, or they give the impression that they’re not fully involved as a partner. I think this is a key thing, and not just for the mining industry but for some of the supportive industries as well for mining. I think those are the things that I would focus on and they fit in a lot with the platform.

I think the infrastructure piece, we also need to think about this not just as infrastructure for mining but co-use infrastructure. That’s a key piece for some of the smaller communities that are struggling with roads, access to supplies, and then some of the challenges that we’re facing now, with low water levels and decreased barges and things like that. So the infrastructure, to me, has to be co-use and thought of that way as well.

Those are the things that I think we focus on, and there are things happening now that I think it’s important to pay attention to. We’ve got port and road projects that have been on the books for a long, long time and so we should continue pushing forward with those things as well.

Jackie Jacobson: We’re resource-rich and cash-poor in the Northwest Territories. We’re not given the opportunity to basically take care of our own resources. Prime example is the moratorium that was given to us an hour and a half before the moratorium was given to my home community and home riding in the Inuvialuit Settlement Region for offshore [Arctic oil and gas licensing].

But I think where we need to be looking, there’s eight potential mines that are able to the road to Whatì. I think that road to Whatì really should be one of the top priorities because when Yellowknife is doing good, everybody’s doing good across our territory. That’s what I’ve seen over the 12 years I’ve been in Yellowknife as the MLA for Nunakput. And for myself, I think the road to resources into Whatì, I’m just thinking outside the box here, I’d like to see the Wrigley to Inuvik road built. And that’s going to open up so much more jobs where we’re able to have our people take care of ourselves. Instead of waiting for government handouts, we’ll be able to actually work and pay your bills.

I know every Aboriginal leader across our Northwest Territories right up and down the valley. I know, given the opportunity to work with them and able to make a plan for the people that they represent, too, if the Conservative Party – which I know is going to win this next election – if the Conservative Party wants to work with the Aboriginal leaders in the Northwest Territories and create jobs, not only jobs but meaningful participation on what we’re doing, I think that’s a really good thing.

For the power, we could start selling our power to the south. There’s so much different opportunities we could do. I could go on and on, especially with the shipping in the North. With MTS, we have no more barging. We’ve got to figure that out.

So right now, I think, given the opportunity, and like I said before I’m going to keep saying it, I believe in Pierre Poilievre’s plan and what he’s got for the North, and that’s why I put my name forward and I’m really excited.

John Williston: What is your position on unsettled land claims?

Jackie Jacobson: I think given the opportunity, we’re working with our Aboriginal leaders, with the Aboriginal groups. I’m 100-percent positive we could work and get through that to work towards giving them actual authority – and what’s been not given to them before is a priority.

As an Inuvialuit beneficiary myself, I know that feeling. Once that land claim is signed, I guess, in the communities, you’re going to have community pride again. We don’t have the pride that we did 20 years ago across our territory. The people, we’re way off, you know, our youth, the respect that they should be having. There’s so much dysfunction across our school system, across everything. But in regards to the land claims, I have no issue to work with my leader and to get that done for the people of the Northwest Territories, which is long overdue.

Kimberly Fairman: I think this is a key issue for us here and I don’t think that we can continue to let the land claims negotiations go on for another two or three decades. I don’t think First Nations governments want that, either. I think the key here is for the feds having a seat at the table to take a real leadership role and get these things done.

We’ve seen examples with land claims that are settled in the Northwest Territories around what it means in terms of economic development, their participation in projects, social development, community development. These things all are: when First Nations are in control of the decision-making, we see that these things start to improve over time. I think that when we talk about some of the barriers to economic development and particularly mining, this is something that we know contributes to an uncertainty that mining companies feel up here. When claims aren’t settled, they’re unsure about what it means in terms of coming in and who they should be working with, what the project’s going to look like, the timing. All of these things become a little less certain when claims aren’t settled.

I think, again, it’s really imperative that there’s a commitment from the federal government to listen to what it is that First Nations are saying about what they value in terms of settled land claims, and then working towards a common solution on those things. I think too often that maybe we’re talking over each other or under each other. And so that’s a key piece. It’s not a criticism, I just think there has to be a commitment and we need to follow through and get them settled for a number of reasons.

John Williston: Other than mining, what do you envision and support to stimulate the economy in the NWT?

Kimberly Fairman: This is a great question and I’ve thought a lot about the diversification of the economy here in the Northwest Territories. You hear from small business that they, everybody would benefit with a more diverse economy up here.

I think one of the things that the NWT should really be thinking about is tourism as a major contributor to the economy. Of course after the pandemic, I’m sure you know, we realized how much it was contributing and how much it hurt when tourism was off-limits for that couple of years.

Some of the other areas where I don’t think that we can ignore and where we have activity is around the fishing industry. There’s also some of the arts and crafts that contribute to the economy as well. I think there’s other opportunities up here in terms of some of the supportive industries for mining and resource development.

I think some key areas that we should be thinking about are also more sort-of innovative solutions. One of the things that I think we undervalue here in the North, and we often talk about as a negative, are things like the amount of land there is up here. And I think there’s some opportunities for people to think a little bit more creatively around communications and IT solutions, being a leader in those areas and being able to offer solutions to other jurisdictions that have similar issues.

I always feel like I’ve forgotten something – of course you’re on the spot up here – but I think those are the main ones that I would be thinking about. Obviously construction and some of the trades that we really need to contribute towards infrastructure and that sort of thing. I think we could do a lot better in-house with some of that stuff.

Jackie Jacobson: Just thinking, the Mackenzie Valley Highway, putting our people to work. I said it earlier in regards to building that road from Wrigley to Inuvik. I think that’s nation-building, and connecting the Beaufort Delta to Yellowknife. The natural resources that we do have across our territory, natural gas pipeline, we should be looking at that again given the opportunity.

The thing is, we need the support from our federal government to get these bigger projects off the ground, to start making headway in regards to providing service to our people. And at the end of the day, I think that the more jobs we do have, it’s just going to make life a lot easier, because I see it every day in my home community. If you’re struggling here in Yellowknife, you could only imagine how bad we are in the communities. Giving them the opportunity, I think, for something like this, putting people to work, training programs and stuff like that. One big thing too is connecting our power grid to the south and getting cheaper power and being able to do something like that.

John Williston: Lack of sufficient housing is an ongoing problem. What is your plan to address this that can be federally supported?

Jackie Jacobson: The biggest problem we have in the Northwest Territories is CMHC [the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation]. Every community across our territory is allocated a certain number of houses in the community. So when the houses are being brought into the community, say you got for instance for Tuk, 178. You bring three new, three get taken out of the system, so there’s no growth. My plan would be to get rid of CMHC and the number of houses that are allotted per community. I’d want to get rid of that because that’s the only way we’re going to have growth in the communities for that.

For housing, we’re short probably 2,300 houses in the territory. People are having to leave the communities because there’s lack of housing. And some houses in the communities, there’s like 10 or 15 people living in it and it’s a two-bedroom. This is unacceptable.

One of the biggest beefs I have with our territorial government at the time, we don’t hold the federal government accountable. We don’t. They come up here, they make promises, like they said, “Oh, we got 68 houses coming in.” In two years’ time, we only had four.

This NDP-Liberal government is so out of touch. There’s an opportunity here to make a difference in regards to that housing. Housing and healthcare. And like I said for myself, I worry a lot about people back home. I don’t know how it is here, but I do for myself: we’re penalized for where we’re from. We’re penalized because we’re from the NWT. With me going in and getting that opportunity, it ain’t going to be like that no more, because the shoe’s on the other foot now. So, there you go.

Kimberly Fairman: The housing issue is one that I’ve heard a lot about when I’ve been out talking to people, and also my own family have experienced some of the difficulties that are occurring. I have children who are locked out of the housing market now because prices are so high. I have my father who is looking to downsize but doesn’t have any options there, either. So this is an issue that affects people across the board.

I think one of the things that the federal government needs to do and work towards is not just offering funding and trying to address the supply piece but investing for results. We have to make sure that when we are funding organizations to build homes that the homes actually get built, that this isn’t about offering money to streamline some of the city’s regs around this thing. It has to be about building homes.

I think that all Canadians should have reasonable opportunity to own homes if they want to and they have to have access to safe and affordable housing as well. And I think we need to be realistic about what that means. It’s a problem across the nation, it’s not just one that we face here in the NWT. And I think there are ways to collaborate with provincial governments and with municipalities to make sure that we start to improve on this issue, that people have options, and that we’re not just sort-of tinkering around the edges of a supply issue, but really trying to address the issue for Canadians.

We could also look at ways to make housing and housing ownership more attainable to individuals through different tax incentives, different supportive programs, to get them to that point of buying their first home. These are things that I would be working on actively. And I think the housing issue is one that’s going to take a long time to solve. It’s been building up for several years, as we know, but I do think if we set realistic goals around housing, and we make the right investments, and we push for results around getting rid of the issue that exists, then it’s possible. It just is going to take a lot of consistent and hard work and, again, collaboration.

John Williston: Addictions in the NWT is another ongoing problem. Do you see our federal government having a role in addressing addictions and mental health in the NWT?

Kimberly Fairman: It’s a great question and, of course, it’s one that I think a lot about as well. It’s something that living in any of the communities in the Northwest Territories, you can’t escape the magnitude of the issue. It’s pretty obvious that it’s been, I would say, mismanaged over the years. There aren’t options for recovery for people here in the Northwest Territories.

I do think that the federal government has a role to play in terms of talking about the issue with compassion, being able to provide leadership on options that are available to Canadians and to people in the Northwest Territories. I think it’s really important to also talk a little bit about some of the things that have been tried. I think there are good options out there around trying to be supportive of people with addictions, but you can’t continue to do that without recovery options. We can’t try to support people with addictions and various programs and not offer recovery as something that is the goal or the aim. And so a key thing for me that, I think, is missing from the dialogue and from the discourse is, ultimately, what we want is for people to recover from an addictions issue.

Jackie Jacobson: With the addictions and mental health, my plan would envision having somewhere in the South Slave, Yellowknife, somewhere in the Beaufort Delta, to be able to take care of our own. We have residential school survivors that, in regards to the mental health and the addictions, that’s where it’s all stemming from. With the way that everything’s been put aside in regards to us asking our territorial government to provide services like that, to provide a place where the people could go to be safe, in regards to getting help, should be top priority.

The kids that are affected by residential school and everything that’s been going on – from what I’ve seen over the last 25 years, there’s been a lot of suicide, there’s no hope. We need hope. You’ve got to give them hope to be able to try to bring them in, community pride, having a roof over your head. So many things that come into this in regards to this question, but mental health and addictions are probably the number two right beside housing that we’re going through across our territory. If we work together with our territorial government, community governments and local leaders, I know we can make a way for us. I know there’s a plan that we could work towards to achieve and bring everybody to the table and work together and start working and pulling them the same way.

John Williston: I want you to pick one infrastructure project for the NWT that you see our federal government supporting.

Jackie Jacobson: My wish, the biggest one I think, would be the Mackenzie Valley Highway, because it entails eight new mines. It would put so many people to work, back to work. And another thing, too, is what we have to do is start implementing and forcing our territorial government’s hand to start having the people that are fly-in, fly-out. They’ve got to be giving them an option to do that.

But the best thing, I think, for our territory right now would be the Mackenzie Valley Highway. Eight new mines. Yellowknife’s doing good, everybody’s going to do good. I know that. I lived with it for 12 years at the Legislative Assembly. And the mines are starting to close, there’s more worry for people. And then it’s a lot harder to live in the south than it is in the North. But in regards to the cost of living and stuff, you have mortgages, there’s so many variables that come into it. But at the end of the day, Mackenzie Valley Highway would be the number one, and I’ll lift the moratorium in the Beaufort Delta for oil and gas when I’m done.

Kimberly Fairman: I don’t disagree but I do think there is a bit of a timing issue when you think about infrastructure for mining, and a mismatch in terms of where we are in the cycle.

If I was thinking currently about what’s happening globally and some of the insecurity that we are facing globally, I think military infrastructure – and again, thinking about co-use infrastructure for communities – is a good place to start investing, and where I think Canada can really get behind the sovereignty issue and increase access to some of the infrastructure in the North for communities.

That could be across the board. We could look at ports, I think there’s a real commitment to looking at increasing marine activity and that kind of thing, and I do think some airports as well. That would be the way that I would go, in terms of being strategic and the timing.

I don’t disagree that any infrastructure up here would be great but, for the Canadian government to get behind it, with some of the geopolitical activity that’s going on and the sovereignty piece for the North, I think that would be a key investment in infrastructure.