Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Enough for a passport, but not MPI
Woman frustrated to find Alberta ID won't help her get Manitoba driver's licence
TREVOR HAGAN / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Enlarge Image
Krista Pace says a Manitoba Public Insurance employee told her she can use her Alberta ID card to get a passport, then use the passport to get her driver's licence here.
Krista Pace has enough documentation to get a Canadian passport but not enough to get a Manitoba driver's licence.
It means Pace, 22, would be able to visit countries around the world and would have no problem crossing the American border, but she won't be able to drive down a Winnipeg street.
She has a licence to nil.
"It's frustrating," said Pace on Friday after receiving the runaround from Manitoba Public Insurance staff when she tried beginning the process to get her first driver's licence about a year and a half after moving here from Alberta.
"I'm 22 and I want to get a driver's licence, but they say you don't have enough identification. I thought all I needed was my Alberta identification card, my birth certificate and my Manitoba Health card, but they said I can't use the identification card."
To make matters worse for Pace, an MPI clerk explained she would need a guarantor to sign, vouching for her identity.
"She suggested I go to a doctor to sign as my guarantor. I did and they said they haven't known me more than two years," Pace said.
"Other people she said I could go to were a judge or politician -- I don't know the mayor or a member of Parliament. I don't hang out with doctors.
"The MPI person also said I could fly back to Alberta and go to one of my doctors. I don't have the money to fly back to Alberta to get a piece of paper signed.
"Then she said I could get a passport. My Alberta card could allow me to get a passport, but not a driver's licence."
Looking at MPI's website, there is a list of acceptable documents to prove each part of your identity -- including birth date, legal name, photograph and Manitoba residency.
The list does not include the Alberta card, but does include out-of-province driving permits, marriage certificates, utility bills, mortgage documents and refugee protection claimant documents. And looking at the list of guarantors, MPI will accept forms signed by judges, police officers, mayors, lawyers, doctors, dentists or accountants.
It's pretty much the same list the Canadian government used to require people obtain to sign to get a Canadian passport before it was changed to allow anyone with a valid passport to sign a person's passport application.
The irony is, looking at the Alberta driver's licence website, if Pace still lived there, she could once again try getting a driver's licence because that province's identification card can be used as proof of who you are.
MPI spokesman Jack Marquardson said the rules are clear.
"We're trying to ensure the person is the person before they get a driver's licence," he said.
Marquardson said if the identification card is not on MPI's list of approved cards, it is unacceptable for getting a driver's licence.
"I checked with others in MPI and they say this really hasn't been an issue -- people are able to get what they need and proceed to get their driver's licence."
Andrew Swan, minister responsible for MPI, could not be reached for comment. Last month, when it was learned that thousands of people were being left on hold trying to book driver's tests, Swan waded in to get MPI to fix the problem within days.
But there may be a headlight in the tunnel for Pace.
Marquardson said he wants to hook Pace up on Tuesday with a MPI executive to see if they can figure out what she needs to get a licence.
kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition September 4, 2010 B1
-
WFP Hockey
Download our new hockey app for the iPhone for Winnipeg Jets updates
-
Editor's Bulletin
Sign up for daily bulletins from editor Margo Goodhand
-
Winnipeg Jets
All things NHL on our Jets landing page
-
Twitter
Follow our reporters and our news feeds on Twitter
-
News Cafe
Check out the menu, read our blog posts or get info on coming events
-
Facebook Fanpage
Follow our Facebook Fanpage for story links, contests and special events
Ads by Google
- Back to Top
- Return to Local
Poll
Most Popular
- Piers Morgan blasts 'gruesome' Madonna
- RCMP receptionist told Stobbe wife was dead
- Search is on for man seen leaving the scene where two Alberta Mounties were shot
- City family donates $1 million for endowed research chair in cardiology
- Province rules out reports of cougar in Transcona
- Cabela's to open massive store just west of IKEA site
- US teen gets life in prison for killing 9-year-old; called the murder "pretty enjoyable"
- Slain woman appears before jury on video
- Census 2011 : Immigrant influx boosts Manitoban population
- CNN's Roland Martin suspended for comments that sparked protest by gays
- Piers Morgan blasts 'gruesome' Madonna
- Clothing chain pulls Caterpillar boots to protest closure of London, Ont., plant
- Three winning tickets sold for Friday's $50 million Lotto Max jackpot
- Woman sexually assaulted during noon-hour in Exchange District
- Woman's car stolen at gunpoint at St. Vital mall, police say
- Eleven people killed after truck hits van in southwestern Ontario
- 'This is so silly': Mom and Dad tell story of baby Zade, born on side of Highway 59
- Stobbe said slaying during shopping trip 'strange': sister-in-law
- Tactical squad storms St. Vital house
- Restaurant Dubrovnik may be closed for good
- Do you smoke marijuana?
- Driver dead after SUV goes over Disraeli Bridge
- George Clooney's prank could end Pitt's career
- Piers Morgan blasts 'gruesome' Madonna
- Tina Maze strips down to her sports bra to send out underwear message: 'Not your business'
- Clothing chain pulls Caterpillar boots to protest closure of London, Ont., plant
- Minor earthquake strikes near Manitoba
- Car's plunge off Disraeli fatal
- Two children, two women die in fire
- Kate Beckinsale's weight fears over Underworld catsuit
- Harper driven by libertarian ideology, not reality
- Cabela's to open massive store just west of IKEA site
- Tassimo brewers and espresso packages recalled amid rupture, burn concerns
- Task force to review 2011 flood
- Winnipeg software company ranked top employer
- Pardon application fee to quadruple later this month despite complaints
- Province rules out reports of cougar in Transcona
- OMG! Candy kings back at it
- Lesson about war, power told with Shaw's comic touch
- Easy, economical, healthy soup
- Swedish bunny's sheep herding skills becomes click-monster on YouTube
- League encourages hazing secrecy
- Northern fishing lodge destroyed by fire
- Police target drivers talking on cellphones, texting
- Harper driven by libertarian ideology, not reality
- Obama torn by conflicting allies
- 'This is so silly': Mom and Dad tell story of baby Zade, born on side of Highway 59
- Time, it appears, is on Assad's side
- Woman's car stolen at gunpoint at St. Vital mall, police say
- Bridging the gap between suburbs
- Minor earthquake strikes near Manitoba
- Paddler Starkell was modern-day voyageur
- Driver dead after SUV goes over Disraeli Bridge
- Car's plunge off Disraeli fatal
- Canadian woman 'badly injured' in Mexico, local media report apparent beating
- Winnipeg mother watches as car stolen with child inside
- Swedish bunny's sheep herding skills becomes click-monster on YouTube
- League encourages hazing secrecy
- Local shooting spoofed on SNL
- The cost of calories: It's expensive to eat healthily
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is register and/or login and you can join the conversation and give your feedback.
The Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010; View the changes. New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.