WHEREAS Canada’s three northern territories encompass a vast, sparsely inhabited expanse of land and waters that is subject to a very harsh climate;

AND WHEREAS our climate is changing two to four times faster than in the South, and impacts, including increasing numbers and severity of so-called natural disasters, put residents and visitors alike at risk;

AND WHEREAS Arctic sovereignty is a stated priority of the Prime Minister of Canada;

AND WHEREAS there has been a substantial increase in commercial air traffic over polar routes since the 1990s, with the number of annual flights now exceeding 10,000;

AND WHEREAS every minute counts during a search and rescue operation;

AND WHEREAS all present Department of National Defence search and rescue operations are based in southern Canada;

AND WHEREAS a search and rescue base located in the North would greatly reduce the time required to reach people in distress;

AND WHEREAS the NWT economy is growing, with resulting increases to the numbers of workers regularly travelling to remote sites, and the numbers of tourists, thereby increasing the population at risk of a major incident requiring search and rescue;

AND WHEREAS Northerners are Canadians too and deserve the same levels of service as other Canadians in an emergency situation on the land;

NOW THEREFORE I MOVE, seconded by the honourable Member for Deh Cho, that this Legislative Assembly strongly urges the Government of Canada to establish a search and rescue base in a central location north of the 60th parallel.