Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Just following up with the Minister of Transportation on roadside assistance and people that travel north to Wrigley, I did write to the Minister, I think about eight days ago, and his response was for me to tell my constituents to contact roadside assistance about their concerns. They already know their concerns. They’re stuck. They can’t get assistance. But what he’s asking me is to ask help from the Minister of Transportation to get a hold of roadside assistance and let them know that this is a public road, that this is not an ice road. Their designation is an ice road, that’s why they’re not travelling on it. They must be scared of ice roads, I guess. The issue is the Minister has to designate it in writing to these companies that it is a public highway and a public road.
Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. The Minister of Transportation, Mr. Beaulieu.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We have been in contact with the roadside assistance organizations and they’re aware this is a public road. Both of those organizations indicated to us that they will provide roadside assistance, and if there are issues with roadside assistance and they provide us information, I would be pleased to pass that information, plus other companies that may be providing roadside assistance on the winter road, on to the Member.
I don’t think the Minister heard me. People are getting stuck and they’re not getting roadside assistance. I don’t know where he’s getting his information from. What we’re asking is no cost to government. What roadside assistance need is, the perfect term for it, of course, is a letter of comfort that this is a public highway system and not an ice road.
Can the Minister do that? Can he write a letter without costing the government?
We’d have no problem sending a letter to the roadside assistance providers indicating that this is a public road. If their assistance is to provide roadside assistance on all public roads, that the winter roads that are maintained by the GNWT are considered public roads, we’d have no problem addressing that letter to the roadside assistance providers.
The Minister has heard. As well, I’d like to ask the Minister if he can copy me and Mr. Yakeleya on that, and also to include that residents of the Northwest Territories aren’t being serviced, that’s why he’s writing them on behalf of his constituents.
I would be pleased to copy the Members on that. I would probably have to get some detail from them. I don’t want to be writing to an organization that’s providing service when somebody else is responsible for providing that assistance, so if I can get some detail from the Member, I will include that in the note to the organization.
Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Menicoche.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I would be pleased to provide as much information as I can to the Minister. He already contacted a couple. I’d be glad to assist the Minister with that. Thank you very much, and thank him for his question.
There is no question. He’s just thanking you. The Member for Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen.
