Norman Yakeleya

Mr. Speaker, I’d like to recognize a founding member of the N.W.T. Seniors’ Society, Mrs. Esther Braden, and also the executive director of the Seniors’ Society, Ms. Barb Hood. I want to thank them for their ongoing hard work on behalf of all seniors in the Northwest Territories.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the Member for the spectacular question.

Laughter.

I would ask my colleague that he and I would work on this very closely. We are working directly with N.W.T. Tourism. We’re all working on this issue here. Hopefully, we would make the fact of the announcements in terms of when we could unroll this licence plate out to the people of the Northwest Territories.

Mr. Speaker, the polar bear licence plate is internationally known and has played a significant role over the years in promoting the Northwest Territories. I’d like to thank the Member for being persistent on this issue and for the suggestion and working with this government in terms of changing our licence plate to “spectacular.” I’d like to advise the House and the Member that the N.W.T. Tourism group is working with the Department of ITI and the Department of Transportation in terms of promoting this licence plate, and it’s going through its process of establishing such a logo for the...

Mr. Speaker, as Minister of the department I’m sure that any type of work that this department does will be quality work. It will be a long-lasting investment. It will be a good investment. The people in Dettah will be very happy with the department in terms of working on their roads.

Mr. Speaker, I will instruct my department to look into our transportation plans across the Northwest Territories, and I assure the Member here that the Dettah access road is in these plans in terms of improving the access roads right across the North. I’m working very closely with my colleague the lead Minister for the funding that the Member alluded to in terms of all of the priorities that we’re being asked for. I certainly would again reassure him that I will instruct my officials in the North Slave regional operations to set up a meeting with the leadership of Dettah, and I also invite...

Mr. Speaker, the bridge remains safe to the travelling public. The signage on the bridge is as much as we can do, and if we can, to do more. I’m satisfied that the signage that we have there, the message we have out for the public — to slow down when they cross the Kakisa Bridge — is there. We’ve been monitoring that traffic.

I myself have driven that road. I have crossed that bridge at five kilometres an hour. I myself am satisfied that all we can do now is up to the public to make wise choices, in terms of travelling all our roads in the N.W.T.

Mr. Speaker, it’s a precautionary measure that we ask of all public members, to slow down because of structural damages to the bridge, that they slow down when they cross the bridge at the Kakisa River.

Mr. Speaker, the issue the Member has raised, I will be looking into it. I will be asking the department.

I know there is lots of work that has been done by the department in terms of this issue here. I will ask the department to review its policies to look at the specific issue that Mr. Abernethy is bringing up here today. I will make a commitment that I would follow up with it as soon as possible and see where we can provide better service to our people in the North.

I, too, would like to see the licence plate and the word “spectacular” on it. I will follow up on this issue with my department. I will ask the department to give me an update as to this, and I will pass it on to the Members of the House. If Mr. Hawkins would like further discussions, I’ll be happy to sit down with him. I’m also working closely with my colleague from ITI in terms of advancing this issue so that all people in the Northwest Territories can be proud to have this word on their licence plates.

Mr. Speaker, I’ve indicated to my office to check on our schedules and my schedules and, of course, the Member’s. I want a schedule that we can coordinate with the leadership of Dettah so that we would arrange that meeting with the community as soon as possible. That may be within a week or so. I’ll be working with the Member on setting the time and location as to when we can meet with the good people of Dettah.