Thank you.
A lot of times we talk about the financial contributions, the legislative and policy direction that provincial and federal governments can take in terms of wildlife management conservation projects and conservation regimes.
The one thing that strikes me personally as a former conservation officer, a lifelong hunter, and indeed, a guide and an outfitter in Yukon Territory, is having a minister right now in the federal government in Canada who not only understands and appreciates the role that hunters and trappers play in the conservation management of our wildlife, but who has also lived the life herself as an Inuit woman.
She spoke to the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters in Toronto on March 21, where she said:
Canada is a country of hunters, fishermen, and trappers. It is these people, who have lived off the land, who have true appreciation and respect for conservation. People who hunt or fish will naturally try to protect the environment, because they want to make sure they can go hunting or fishing next year. It is they who are true environmental stewards. Any discussion on conservation must include hunters and fishers because they are the experts on this topic.
My question for each one of you is, can we actually have a conversation in this country on conservation without the inclusion of hunters? How important is it, if not only just symbolically, that we have a federal Minister of the Environment that understands this very point?
Perhaps you could move in succession, quickly, and we'll start with you, Mr. Craik.