The following statement was read in the House of Assembly today by the Honourable Sarah Stoodley, Minister of Digital Government and Service NL:

Speaker, I ask all members of this Honourable House to join me in recognizing May as Motorcycle Awareness Month, and next week, May 16 to 22, as Canada Road Safety Week.

The chilly weather is slowly subsiding. Mild temperatures and sunshine mean that motorcyclists are enjoying our scenic landscape, and are using our roadways in greater numbers. All drivers should be looking, listening and ensuring they are safely sharing our highways and roadways with motorcyclists.

Canada Road Safety Week, an enforcement-driven initiative led by the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, is designed to increase public compliance with safe driving measures. The focus of this campaign continues to be on the elimination of impaired driving, distracted driving, aggressive driving and driving without a seatbelt.

This year’s theme is “Take the Wheel”. This is a reminder to drivers that they should be always mindful of their behaviour in order to keep themselves, other drivers, passengers, motorcyclists, cyclists, road construction workers, and pedestrians safe.

Speaker, our government takes road safety and enforcement seriously. Last year we once again increased fines, demerit points and the number of days that a vehicle may be impounded for excessive speeding, street racing and stunting offences. We have also increased penalties for impaired driving.

Speaker, I remind all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians to always practice safe and defensive driving, especially this upcoming Victoria Day weekend.

Thank you Speaker.