Inuvik (Mar 24/06) - Western Arctic MP Dennis Bevington says his intention to make a private members’ bill to change Canada’s motto will provide him the opportunity to address other issues affecting the North.

“It’s an interesting vehicle,” said Bevington of his push to change the nation’s motto to ‘from sea, to sea, to sea’ to reflect the three coastlines from its current form, ‘from sea to sea.’

“Not only is it symbolic, but it will allow me to talk about all kinds of issues.”

Bevington adds that he was considering putting a bill forward on increasing the Northern Living Allowance, but says private members’ bills cannot be about money or finances.

“I’ll be working on that through our caucus and looking at getting that through on a budget response,” he said.

However, before Bevington will get a chance to push for a change to Canada’s motto, April 11 will be his first opportunity to make a statement in parliament.

“It will focus on the pipeline and I want to lay out what’s on the agenda for the Western Arctic,” he said of what he plans to say.

As for the Drum editorial which questioned the wisdom of changing the country’s motto, Bevington says he anticipated some dissent.

“I fully expected to be hit with that one,” said Bevington, adding he wasn’t surprised that the national media reported on his motion.

Recalling his days as mayor of Fort Smith, when he and council voted to make the town “quadrilingual” it was opposed by many towns around the country. They followed suit by passing motions for unilingualism in light of the Anglo-backlash against the failed Meech Lake Accord.

Bevington believes the best way to affect change is to get people talking.

“That brought a lot of attention to Fort Smith and I think this idea to change the motto will put the spotlight on the North, which is a good thing - especially now,” he said.