I'm going to be doing my presentation in French.
The Harbour Authority Program is now 19 years old, and it has become the cornerstone of service delivery for small craft harbours. You can take it for granted that the harbour authorities are mainly the eyes of the Small Craft Harbours Program within a fishing harbour and that everything that happens is reported to Fisheries and Oceans.
The contribution by volunteers is very significant. There are currently more than 5,000 volunteers working in fishing harbours in Canada. Harbour authority revenues total approximately $11 million annually. The volunteer effort approximates 135,000 hours a year, which corresponds to about 70 full-time people. In addition, harbour authorities engage approximately 125 full-time staff. When you combine the two, you see that harbour authorities provide approximately $25.5 million a year in time and money in the context of the Small Craft Harbours Program.
If the harbour authorities did not exist, taxpayers across Canada would have to find a way to pay $25.5 million more every year to satisfy fishing harbour users. Consequently, the contribution of all administrators and members of harbour authorities cannot be neglected.
We of the harbour authorities are proud of our harbours and of providing a high-quality service. People consider this a challenge. It is a good challenge for them to be able to tell the people of the community that they are taking care of fishing harbours and that they are proud of that. However, their pride stops when they see the state of the fishing harbours. Volunteers are experiencing frustration. They are physically and morally affected by the present situation. You have to understand that most volunteers are retirees. These are former fishermen, many of whom are over the age of 65. They have given a lot to their community, and when they see their fishing harbour deteriorate from year to year for lack of funding, they become discouraged. All harbour authorities agree that the present budget is inadequate for small craft harbours. You need only go into the field to see the state of disrepair of current facilities.
It must also be understood that the day-to-day management of fishing harbours is becoming more complex. From year to year, we have increasing government, but especially environmental obligations. There is also the risk associated with the management of fishing harbours, which every volunteer must bear. That isn't easy.
It must also be understood that a lot of volunteers have been involved with a harbour authority from the outset, for 19 years. These people would like to be able to ask someone else to take over, to replace them, because they are tired. At the national level, it is hard to recruit new volunteers. The people who seem interested in becoming members of a harbour authority are often frustrated when they see the responsibilities of management, the state of facilities and the reactions of users, who are even more frustrated than we are. It isn't always easy to find yourself in a fishing harbour and to be told by a member of your family, a fisherman or a friend that the harbour is in a lamentable state and to be asked if there's a way to do something. You have to deal with the arrogance of fishing harbour users.
It has to be acknowledged that the people of the Small Craft Harbours Program have listened and responded to certain requests by the harbour authorities, but their willingness has been constrained by a lack of funding. We know very well that the Small Craft Harbours Program people would like to do more, but that that is currently impossible. We're trying to find a way to save a dollar, and that's not always easy.
For example, I will tell you that the Small Craft Harbours Program currently provides $500,000 annually to deal with fatigue within harbour authorities, which represents $100,000 per region. I can tell you that that $100,000 is very well spent to assist the harbour authorities in day-to-day management.
In addition, the Small Craft Harbours Program includes a civil liability insurance program for administrators and accidental death and dismemberment insurance. If, for one reason or another, Fisheries and Oceans Canada did not have to buy these insurance policies and thus protect 5,000 volunteers or more who work for the fishing harbours, I wouldn't be here today talking to you. No one would respond to you in the fishing harbours; you'd have to speak directly to the Small Craft Harbours Program. These volunteers clearly cannot injure themselves in a fishing harbour and not be insured; that's unthinkable.
In closing, it is interesting that the National Harbour Authority Advisory Committee and the Small Craft Harbours Program worked jointly to prepare a brochure to promote the Harbour Authority Program. I don't know whether you have received it, but it will be distributed to you. It provides an explanation of the Harbour Authority Program. It's one way to promote the harbour authorities.
Having said that, I'm going to turn the floor over to my colleague Osborne. Before closing, I should tell you that we are nevertheless pleased to hear that the annual $20 million amount should remain. In spite of that, if we went to see the people in the field and tell them that we have $20 million more, their answer would be that there was a budget for 2005-2006 or 2006-2007 and that, even if that amount was maintained, there would still be financial problems. They will continue until additional money is invested in the small craft harbours.
Having said that, I thank you very much.