Paul river sunshine coast. Thank you, mr speaker. There are over 50 000 residents of the sunshine coast. We have hospitals, we have doctors, offices and health clinics and we are the home to many seniors. Most of our medical specialists live and work in north vancouver or vancouver, making it necessary for residents to travel on one of the particularly busy ferries in phase one of the pandemic.

When sailings were cut dramatically, the province ordered that residents and essential goods would be given priority loading when travel picked up bc, ferries hadn't had enough time to hire and train their regular contingent of summer workers, but we were left with busier ferries and fewer sailings people going to their rescheduled surgeries or pre-surgery consultations with specialists for missing their ferries. The company's own, complicated medical assured loading program with its restrictive eligibility requirements couldn't meet our community's needs.

That's why I was pleased when the province made a medical travel order, that states quite clearly that a medical professional's letter, along with a regular travel assistance or tap form, will get a person traveling for medical reasons on a ferry if they arrive 30 minutes ahead of time gone was the requirement that the travel had to be urgent or that waiting at the terminal would have to cause risk to health gone.

To is the burden on bc ferries in trying to determine who qualifies and who doesn't medical priority is determined at the discussion of the medical professional medical practitioner to ensure people traveling for medical reasons will get to and from their destination.

I'd like to thank the province and bc ferries for acknowledging the unique circumstances facing residents of very reliant communities, and I look forward to working finding better long-term solutions to residents needs. Thank you very much, mr speaker.