Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I want to speak about the lack of cell service across the NWT.
Mr. Speaker, I have heard from numerous Deh Cho constituents who have voiced their concerns about the lack of cell service when travelling on the NWT highway system. People have safety concerns regarding the inability to call for help if something were to happen while travelling on our highways, especially women travelling alone with their children. Mr. Speaker, some people have told me that this is an issue that affects them so much that they fear driving alone, especially to do business in other communities or even visit family. This issue affects all residents and businesses as well, and it must be improved as well.
Mr. Speaker, this is an NWTwide problem that all highways have, and all regions are dealing with. All ten highways across the NWT have this problem, and this problem is especially dangerous for people in the event of natural disasters and emergencies, such as wildfires as we've seen throughout last summer, when telecommunications went down in multiple regions.
Mr. Speaker, I know that many MLAs in many Assemblies have spoken about this issue, and since improving public safety is part of the mandate of the 20th Assembly I believe improving cell service across our highway system should be part of our government's plan. I will have questions for the Premier later today. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from the Deh Cho. Members' statements. Member from Yellowknife North.
