I appreciate that, Mr. Murray.
I realize this is a subject that is fairly complicated, and the committee has in many instances discussed the owner-operator principle and I think basically supports that principle. But we have a particular situation that's occurred in a single part of this industry, which is a very profitable part of the industry, and the access to capital to put all these licences in poor fishermen's hands.... I don't see it. It's simply not there. I think that somehow or another we have to adhere to the policy that the minister has set out. But I'm not sure that the way forward is there, without causing major disruption in the industry. It needs to be raised. It's not a matter of going against policy. It's a matter of finding a way to make it work.
Right now, I can assure you that in the short term it's really not going to work. People who had planned to retire are now suddenly looking at licences that five years ago they paid $700,000, $800,000, $900,000 for, and it isn't there in the marketplace today to sell them. So to find fishermen, poor fishers, to fulfil those 500 or 600 licences, it's going to be a challenge. I do think it needs to be looked at again.
With that, I thank you. We have gone over time here.
I thank our members for coming today. It was a productive discussion.
The meeting is adjourned.