Mr. Chair, before I present the petition, I wish to extend my heartfelt condolences on behalf of the people from Courtenay—Alberni and send our love and kindness to all of our brothers and sisters in Nova Scotia at this very difficult time.
Today I'm tabling a petition on behalf of independent harvesters on the west coast who are enduring an inequitable distribution of risks and benefits, difficulty in access for new entrants and a lack of availability and transparency regarding the quota licence system and socioeconomic data on the west coast fisheries.
The petitioners point out to the government that in May 2019, the Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans provided 20 recommendations to the government for changing its current management of commercial fisheries in British Columbia. After consultations with independent fish harvesters, community organizations, industry and academics, the report identified a need for transparent fishing licence and quota ownership, and it's currently not known where the benefits of fish resources are flowing.
Among its recommendations was a call for the set-up of a public online database to track the buyers and sellers and sale-lease prices, as well as an end to the sale of fishing quotas and licences to non-Canadian interests. Therefore, the petitioners are calling on the government to commit to a timeline and a plan that respects and addresses the 20 recommendations laid out in the report of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans entitled “West Coast Fisheries: Sharing Risks and Benefits”.