The previous experience I had with the department and our communities, certainly there’s got to be a critical mass to warrant. Sometimes that’s not the case and sometimes drivers have to wait three to five months before we can get enough people in that community before the department says, okay, we’ll come in and do the test or issue the licence. Even issuing the licence, sometimes we can’t wait three to four months because the work is not going to be there. Sometimes they have to make special arrangements to charter a plane on their own expense in the Sahtu to fly to Norman Wells or wherever they can get their licence.
I know the Minister and department have made special effort in the past to help us out here. They made some efforts to go the extra mile to help people get their licence so they can go to work and contribute to the community and have some money in their pockets. I know that’s special circumstances. Even so far as they have worked with the Aurora College in Colville Lake. That was a success. That’s what we want to look for in our communities. Those are the special circumstances we have in the Sahtu. Similar maybe in Yellowknife, but Yellowknife has a different type of issue there. That’s kind of the same thing we’re looking for, is how do we get these individuals who want their licence to go to work.
That’s the thing I want to ask the Minister. When he looks at Yellowknife it’s so different in the Sahtu or Beaufort-Delta where communities such as ours are going to be impacted by resource development. I appreciate the Minister making an offer, that if it’s an issue that we have in our region, that the department and Minister have our ears and we’ll see how we can work out some situations. I know sometimes cost is a factor in a decision. At times we have to weigh the cost-analysis benefits. It doesn’t quite always favour on the community’s side. Sometimes we need to make special provisions where possibly some of these people in our communities can fly to Norman Wells, for example, and obtain their licence. Hopefully that will be a subtitle or a policy that the department may cover or otherwise they will have to do it on their own. It is kind of sensitive.
I look forward to seeing the Minister work on these types of issues when we have these types of systems. Ideally, you want to have a system in the Sahtu where they can go and obtain their licence.
Sometimes that is not the case. I want to thank the Minister on that point there. I look forward to any types of suggestions he may have. These are my questions on this page here.