Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I always like to do on Friday, I like to make a special mention of the fact that it’s Red Friday so we can support our troops.
Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death and injury to children of all ages. But those aged between four and nine years old are currently the most vulnerable. Canadian data shows that the death rate from car crashes has dropped in all other age groups, but not for the children between the ages of four and nine. Data also tells us that the majority of Canadian children aged four to nine are riding in seat belts, which puts them at risk for serious injury in car crashes.
Seat belts are designed to fit adult proportions. Children don’t generally reach the right size for seat belts until at least the age of nine. When a child is too small for a seat belt, it crosses the wrong places, such as their neck and their stomach. In the event of a crash, a child who is too small for a seat belt can suffer spinal injuries, internal injuries or what the doctors sometimes call seat belt syndrome.
The risk of serious injury and death can be significantly reduced by the use of a booster seat, a simple safety device that raises a child so the seatbelt fits correctly across the shoulders, chest and hip bone. Unfortunately, research shows that less than 30 per cent of Canadian parents who have children between the ages of four and nine use booster seats. Most parents think their children are too big or too old for those seats.
We need to work to address this gap in the protection of our children that are between the ages of four and nine by implementing a public education campaign to give parents good information on the importance of booster seats and on how to tell their children that they need this seat and that they’re not too big or too old to have one.
Secondly, we need to pass legislation that requires booster seats. Quebec, Ontario, Nova Scotia, P.E.I., Newfoundland and New Brunswick have all passed booster seat legislation. British Columbia will be implementing new booster seat legislation this summer. The Government of NWT should follow suit and make booster seats mandatory.
In closing, we protect our children with car seats when they’re infants, toddlers and pre-schoolers. I urge the Minister of Transportation to extend the same degree of protection to our children between the ages of four and nine by implementing legislation that would cover them. Putting children first is something we should always do. Let’s not let this gap continue.
Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Members’ statements. The honourable Member for Weledeh, Mr. Bromley.
