Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to follow up on Minister Ramsay’s statement today on the Alcohol Ignition Interlock Program. This is something that I had pursued awhile back on behalf of a constituent. I’m just a bit curious about something. The idea of an Ignition Interlock Program and system on vehicles the Minister says will make our roads safer. I’m assuming that these devices would be available to people who would otherwise have their licences suspended and wouldn’t be driving on the road at all. I’m curious about this, because, well, some people in our society and in our communities feel that when people have their driver’s licence suspended for abusing alcohol while behind the wheel, or drinking to over the limit and then getting behind the wheel of a vehicle, should be punished. How does this make our roads safer? That’s what I want to know.
Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The Minister of Transportation, Mr. Ramsay.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This is a proven program across the country. Any time you can keep somebody from getting behind the wheel that has been drinking, it’s a step in the right direction. As I mentioned in my Minister’s statement, the Northwest Territories and the Yukon have the highest incidence of drunk driving across the country, so it’s a step in the right direction. It’s not going to keep every drunk driver off the road but it will improve our statistics.
People that would be eligible to have these devices on their vehicle are people who have been charged with impaired driving who would otherwise be banned from driving, but now they can drive as long as they have this device on there. It’s a convenience for them?
It would be a way for them to get their licence back a little bit early, and it would be very beneficial for somebody whose livelihood depended on them driving. It’s been used in work vehicles that allow somebody to get back to work if they’re supporting a family. That’s what it’s intended to do.
The cost per month, $125 per month, I’d like to know, does that cost per device per person using it per vehicle, $125 a month, is that the entire cost of administering this program by our government? Is that intended to recover the cost?
That cost is an individual’s cost on a per month basis. It’s $125. I committed to getting all the costs associated with establishing the program here in the Northwest Territories to MLA Bouchard, and I will share that with other Members of the House.
I think it would be good if whatever the cost is for having this device to allow people to drive when they’ve been already charged with impaired driving, I think that it should be full cost recovery on this. As a taxpayer, I’m not really interested in subsidizing my tax dollars to enable people to drive when they’ve been charged with impaired driving.
These devices need to be calibrated, monitored, installed. There are all kinds of mechanical aspects associated with them. Where does the Minister propose those services be procured?
We’re working with some service providers here in the Northwest Territories that have the knowledge and the expertise to service the equipment, and we hope to move forward with a contract to allow them to work on the Ignition Interlock System here in the Northwest Territories, and they will be from the Northwest Territories.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The Member for Range Lake, Mr. Dolynny.
