Redsea application met criteria: Stoodley
‘Nothing unusual’ about one-day application approval, minister says
Despite Redsea’s sloppy ridesharing licence application that plagiarised competitor Uber, it “met established criteria,” said Minister Sarah Stoodley.
Last week, Saltwire reported on the speedy, one-day approval of the province’s first ride-sharing licence — a licence which was subsequently suspended after the government learned chief executive officer Yosief Tesfamicael faced serious sexually based charges involving minors.
Saltwire obtained the application communications between Redsea and the Motor Registration Division, which showed Redsea copied its company policies word for word from Uber.
The communications also showed that two days after Redsea’s licence was approved, the Motor Registration Division’s deputy registrar asked Tesfamicael which insurance companies he and his drivers were using. This question was asked after the application was approved, even though proof of insurance is required with applications.
On Thursday, Feb. 22, Saltwire requested to speak with Stoodley, but an interview was not granted.
On Friday, communications officials in her department emailed Saltwire a statement to be attributed to either Stoodley or the department.
“The service standard for all commercial motor registration transactions is two business days from receipt of a completed application. However, like anything, there may be occasions when officials can process applications faster, and others when it may take longer,” the statement said.
“There was nothing unusual about the processing time in reviewing the application from Redsea Riding.
“The application met established criteria. Our policies are also very similar to those used in other jurisdictions.
“Given the applicant’s ongoing legal matters, it would not be appropriate to comment further,” the statement said in full.