Fisheries committee  The amendments proposed in this bill broaden enforcement capabilities to cover not just fishing vessels but also other vessels that may be trans-shipping unlanded fish products. They broaden the definition of where those enforcement powers exist to include all ports of entry into Canada.

Fisheries committee  It seems improbable that a pleasure craft would serve as the entry into Canada for illegal—

Fisheries committee  I will turn to my colleagues to offer their perspectives, but my understanding is that the bill as drafted would only allow us to require that documentation in the case of RFMOs to which Canada is party. Tim or Allan, is that...?

Fisheries committee  Again, I'll turn to my colleagues. Perhaps Allan is the one best placed to speak to this. In contemplating the regulations that might be proposed should this bill receive royal assent, one of the amendments that's proposed here increases the capacity of law enforcement officials to seize fish that are believed to have been produced from an IUU fishery.

Fisheries committee  Mr. Chair, I'd like to thank the member for an excellent question. I'm not sure how quantitative an answer I can provide him, but as I think I mentioned in my remarks, there is evidence to suggest that IUU fishing is a significant global problem and illegally harvested fish do account for a significant proportion of the global fish supply.

Fisheries committee  I think that's a fair characterization of what this bill proposes to do. It is enabling legislation. The bill is sufficient to bring Canada...well, it isn't on its own sufficient to bring Canada into compliance with the treaty. It will require further regulatory amendments if and when the bill is adopted by Parliament and receives royal assent.

Fisheries committee  I will turn shortly to my colleague Mr. MacLean to offer his perspective. You're quite right that we're doing this to bring ourselves into compliance with a global treaty, to make ourselves part of a global solution to a global problem. It is also true that by global standards Canada is not a major contributor to IUU fisheries; we do have a robust domestic regime in place and we're a relatively small contributor to a serious global problem.

Fisheries committee  Thank you. In general, when it comes to illegal fishing, it is obviously not easy to obtain accurate data on the situation. Certain analyses enable us to estimate the impact on the markets. We are trying to better focus our efforts to reduce illegal fishing, but this is not an easy issue.

Fisheries committee  Thank you very much for the question, Mr. Kamp. I have a couple of thoughts. Certainly there is broad international consensus around the treaty. It takes time, as is often the case with these things, for countries to take a treaty and make the necessary legislative amendments in their domestic processes.

Fisheries committee  I'll simply say that the bill we were invited to speak on today doesn't affect our relations with NAFO in any way. It wasn't an issue that we came prepared to address. Certainly if it's an area of interest to the committee, I'm sure the relevant officials would be pleased to discuss the issue.

Fisheries committee  If memory serves, 11 have ratified. We clearly haven't reached that threshold. I have two points to make on that. One, it's our view that Canada is a global leader in combatting IUU fishery and that it would therefore be appropriate that we be at the forefront in moving forward with this.

Fisheries committee  Thank you very much for the questions. I will offer my thoughts and then perhaps turn to colleagues to supplement. At a global level, this bill is intended to strengthen the global regime to combat IUU fisheries. With respect to the NAFO region, the intent is to respect the regional fisheries management organization, RFMO, as it currently operates, so the amendments in this bill do not propose to change that in any way.

Fisheries committee  Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. Good afternoon, everyone. I appreciate the opportunity to talk about DFO's role in combatting illegal fishing and to answer any questions about the proposed amendments to the Coastal Fisheries Protection Act. Before I do that, though, I'd like to introduce the colleagues here with me today.

Fisheries committee  Mr. Chair, I would like to thank the member for his question. Closing the Mont-Joli library was part of a change in the business model for managing our collections and our libraries. In reality, 96% of research by library users is done electronically. We are investing significantly in digitizing our collections.