Minister, this program was developed by the department and big guys in the industry, by a select group of appointees from the previous government. The program itself is very complex. It was never explained to the fleet. It was never vetted by industry. It was never voted on by industry.
The fact of the matter is that it has hurt the small-boat fleet. I've got a list of boats that weren't even going to bother fishing this year because they couldn't afford it. Boats have been put up for sale because they can't afford to participate.
My question again, Minister, is simple. Have you not been given this information—the complaints, the e-mails, I've received? Why has the department not supplied you with these, and why are they not keeping you fully informed?
Finally, you said to me in a letter of May 19 that all aspects of the groundfish plan would be reviewed, and that you had asked staff to provide you with a monthly update on the initiative's progress. I wonder if you could provide those monthly updates to this committee.
Most important, why has your department not kept you informed?