Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I know that the Minister of Economic Development and Tourism has expressed his willingness to consider ideas from Members in tourism matters. I have a couple of suggestions today. A couple of weeks ago, I was driving back from Whitehorse from the Arctic Winter Games. I came through British Columbia and had to cross the border between British Columbia and the Northwest Territories. I noticed a big difference between the BC side and our side. On the BC side of the border the roadside was dominated by a large, attractive sign that says, 'The Supernatural Splendour of British Columbia Welcomes You.' On the NWT side, there was a rickety, little sign warning drivers not to hit the bison. A little further on there was another sign that said, "Hunting is Not Allowed within a Kilometre of the Roadway." A little while later it said that seatbelts are the law. It was not until a turn in the bend a couple of kilometres past the border that you see a faded, old sign saying, "The Northwest Territories Welcomes You."

This is not much of a welcome, Mr. Speaker. Honourable Members will know that this year marks the 50th anniversary of the Alaska Highway. There will be increased tourist traffic up and down the route. I believe that the decisions tourists make about how long to stay in a place -- and even how much money to spend while on vacation -- is at least partially dependent upon their first impressions. We are not creating much of an impression with the way our highway roadside is set up, Mr. Speaker.

It is important to me because it is my constituency that they first enter, and I believe it is one of the friendliest and most welcoming areas in the Northwest Territories. We are hoping to attract more tourists with the beauty and tradition of our land and not leave them with the feeling that they have just driven another stretch of highway on a long trip.

I would like to encourage the Minister of Economic Development and Tourism, as well as the Minister of Transportation, to review the appearance of the border crossing and consider building a small welcoming centre -- even a temporary one -- on a trial basis...