Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are for the Minister of Transportation in regard to his Minister’s statement that he made earlier today. It just goes to show that prevention, promotion and education works, and that he’s doing a great job with the Department of Transportation. It’s something that all departments should look into doing, to cut down on the costs in the Northwest Territories.
Thank you, Mr. Moses. The Minister of Transportation, Mr. Ramsay.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. That’s a great idea and that’s how ideas are born. I think we need to be looking to Regular Members to supply us with ideas on how we can enhance public education and awareness when it comes to safety on the water, on our roads, on our trails. Certainly as we move forward, we’ll be looking for partners to help us deliver that safety message. I appreciate the Member’s comments.
We’re in the middle of February here and we’re getting ready for our summer breakup and the ice melting away. That’s a lot of time, plenty of time from now until people get onto the waterways. It’s a good opportunity, as well, for the department to start looking into a possible program like a lifejacket borrowing program, like I said, in all the communities that do sit on waterways. Would the Minister commit to look at such a program and putting funds away so that we can ensure that our residents who travel the Mackenzie River, that our modes of transportation are safe? Thank you.
We’ve got a number of initiatives that we’re looking at for next year, and certainly incorporating something like a lifejacket borrowing system is something that I believe we can look at. I do appreciate the Member bringing that issue up today.
Further to that I just wanted to ask the Minister of Transportation if he’s done any work with our five sport and rec organizations in the NWT who do provide kayak programs, canoe programs, skiing, on-the-land programs that do transportation. Has the Department of Transportation done any work with these sport and rec organizations to provide safety to people who enjoy going out on the land?
I know we do work with the Department of Health and Social Services, the Department of ECE, and to the specifics of whether we’re working with the rec associations around the Northwest Territories, again, I think if we’re going to have continued success in delivering safety, it is important that we work with partners around the Northwest Territories. I again will commit to getting back to the Member on how we have interacted with those organizations.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Final supplementary, Mr. Moses.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We do want to continue to see these encouraging results going into the next fiscal year and beyond. Just in regard to the zero driving and boating fatalities, I’d like to ask the Minister how the new proposed legislation on hand-held devices with driving has been going and have there been any infractions on that.
I think the legislation as it pertains to distracted driving is another tool that keeps our roads safe. There have been a number of tickets issued for folks driving with cell phones and things like that. We’re encouraged that people are putting their phones away when they’re driving. I know me personally, before the new legislation came in, I was guilty of using my cell phone, but now that the new legislation is in place, I, too, leave the phone alone when I’m driving and I encourage anybody else out there to do the same.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The honourable Member for Frame Lake, Ms. Bisaro.
