Barb Gustafson
Last week, I mentioned that the Throne Speech was coming to open the Saskatchewan Legislature’s sitting. It was delivered, and along with the financial reality check meant to deflate government union demands, it also offered a potpourri of other items.
Cell phone use while driving – the government has said it intends to introduce legislation this term to ban the use of handheld cell phones while driving. As an editorial in the Saskatoon StarPhoenix said, this is one of those things that should be common sense and not require a law. Police have long had the power to ticket someone who is not paying attention while driving, and using a cell phone is one good way not to pay attention, but this law will now specifically make holding a phone while driving illegal.
Some will argue this restriction doesn’t go far enough, since studies have shown that even talking on a hands-free phone while driving is very distracting. It’s a start, though.
Another “Duh!” piece of legislation: no smoking in a car with a child on board. Again, this shouldn’t require a law, but apparently it does, and the Saskatchewan government intends to bring this legislation forward in this sitting, as well. If only common sense could be legislated in general, so many other laws would be unnecessary.
Five-year drivers licences – beginning in 2011, Saskatchewan people will join with the majority of Canadians in only having to renew their licences every five years, rather than lining up at the SGI counter every year to fork over $25. At that time, you can pay $100 for a five year license, or continue to pay $25 per year, but a new licence with picture ID will only be issued once in five years.
Now, if we could add to this what Ontario does with its five-year licences, which is to require a mandatory retesting once you reach 80 years old. There are way too many people driving in Saskatchewan who really shouldn’t be. I understand how tough it is to give up this freedom, especially in a rural area, because you can’t just take public transit or call a cab, but it’s not fair to endanger yourself and others if your eyesight or other faculties have declined too far to be driving safely.
Cutting surgical wait lists: this is probably the highlight of the Throne Speech and definitely a stretch goal for the government. Premier Brad Wall says that within four years (conveniently, just outside the current mandate) surgical wait lists will be reduced so that no one is waiting more than three months for surgery.
While it’s a statement that resonates with the people, particularly seniors who may have been waiting for far longer than that to have joint replacements, etc., it’s a huge leap. Just like the rest of Canada, it’s not just a matter of throwing more money at health care; it’s a matter of having enough people. Surgeons have been saying for years that the bottleneck is not so much their time, operating room time, or even having beds physically available in hospitals. It’s about having enough nursing staff to look after patients.
I truly wish the government good luck on this once. To get to that goal, however, they first have to wade through the protests from health care union members like the one on the steps of the Legislature this week, test out their essential service legislation from the last session which has the unions riled up, come up with reasonable contracts, and find enough money to make this all work.
Maybe that’s why we have the simple stuff like banning cell phones and smoking in cars – so that government can feel that they’ve accomplished something.
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