Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I seconded the motion on the hard work of Mr. Dolynny and all the research he’s done into this and taking the initiative to do the ride-alongs in the city of Yellowknife. We do have a growing concern in my community of Inuvik as well. It started out with the Town of Inuvik making this public, the town council actually, and going to the paper to discuss some of the issues around open alcohol in the downtown core of Inuvik on Mackenzie Road.

On my last trip home, I had a talk with the RCMP and how they’ve changed their policies so they won’t have to deal with anybody who has open alcohol or under the influence in terms of not taking them into the jail cells and taking them to the hospital which, in turn, reflects more visits going to the emergency room. So, obviously, this is not only affecting the public, but it’s affecting how people do their jobs. It’s one of the biggest concerns for the RCMP, and it really exhausts the resources the RCMP has when they can be working and doing other work, such as drug enforcement or other crimes, that they could put their time and effort to.

I have stood in this House talking about mental health and addictions. This falls right into the same category. The motion itself is a study. I would like to see it taken one step further and have a policy in

place or amendments to the act. All it’s doing is providing us with another set of eyes on the road. Obviously, bylaw sometimes do spot checks. They will be driving around the communities. If they see any infractions, they would be able to address them, but also looking at the protocols and regulations as we move forward on such an important issue, obviously under the proper training that will be required. It provides us with safer roads in our communities. It provides us with safer communities.

One suggestion that was brought to our attention from our staff sergeant in Inuvik, but also our CEO at the hospital, is maybe we bring up the Minister of Health and Social Services and the Minister of Justice and do a ride-along, such as Mr. Dolynny did here in Yellowknife, and we could see the real issues, not only on the streets of Inuvik but what’s happening in the emergency rooms, and talk to the people dealing with these issues that are happening right now.

So I thank Mr. Dolynny for bringing the motion forward and I encourage all colleagues to support the motion and speak to it. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.