Evidence of meeting #1 for Fisheries and Oceans in the 39th Parliament, 2nd session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was chair.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Liberal
Bill Matthews Liberal Random—Burin—St. George's, NL
Whether that presents problems for other members....
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Fabian Manning
Okay, the subcommittee meeting—We'll meet back here at the regular committee meeting on Monday. I'm available. I'll make myself available. We'll work out the time with the subcommittee members.
The clerk has informed me, and I think we should have known this—We started this process on small craft harbours. Really, there's a consensus around the table, pretty well, that we finish that file. We don't necessarily have to have a subcommittee meeting to determine that we're going to continue. The decision was made here today to continue. So they can begin work. If we need to bring—
Basically, if the committee is in agreement that our priority should be to continue with our small craft harbour report and try to get that finalized, as Mr. Matthews said, and get it back to the minister, and if that negates travel, well, that's all we can do. Time is of the essence with the report.
We can ask our people at the table and their staff to process them. Maybe as early as next Wednesday we could have somebody in.
Go ahead, Mr. Calkins.
Conservative
Blaine Calkins Conservative Wetaskiwin, AB
Mr. Chair, in the spirit of what you just said, I don't know if it's possible for the clerk to get anybody here for the Monday meeting. But if we were able to, and if we did have some consensus here today to proceed with the completion of the small craft harbour study, I would suggest that we forgo the need for the subcommittee to meet on Monday.
If we were able to get anybody in here, whether it's a department official or anybody who could get here in time for Monday, we should perhaps try that and continue on and get the report done.
We also have the ability, as a committee, to offer an interim report at any point in time to meet any constraints that we have as far as getting the report in front of the minister. So we do have some tools available to us.
But if it is the general consensus of the committee, I would propose that we try going full steam ahead on small craft harbours, starting on Monday.
Bloc
Raynald Blais Bloc Gaspésie—Îles-de-la-Madeleine, QC
I too am looking for a way to ensure that things move as quickly as possible. The discussions that have taken place lead us to conclude that over the next few weeks, what could cause problems is the trip.
If that is the only problem and we do not in fact have time to travel, nothing prevents us from calling the witnesses here, to Ottawa, to debate the situation of small craft harbours. That would take nothing away from the way we proceed. I also think that instead of devoting time to how we should proceed, it would be preferable for the steering committee to meet at the same time as the full committee on Monday afternoon to get right down to work.
Our time is limited. If we subtract next week from the four remaining weeks, we only have three weeks left to complete our work. If we cannot travel, we won't, but nothing prevents us from inviting people here to tell us about situations that we deem relevant. The first person I would like to hear from on this file is the new...
Bloc
Raynald Blais Bloc Gaspésie—Îles-de-la-Madeleine, QC
So the first person we should meet with is the new deputy minister. She undoubtedly has her own way of proceeding. We had discussed the file with Larry Murray, the former deputy minister.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Fabian Manning
Just before I go to François, I think we have a consensus that we complete this file on small craft harbours, just to hurry the process—or to move the process might be a better word to use. I'd like to have a motion from somebody pursuant to Standing Order 108.(2) that the committee continue its study on small craft harbours that began during the last session of the 39th Parliament.
That's moved by Mr. Blais. Do I have a seconder for that motion? Mr. Stoffer.
(Motion agreed to)
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Fabian Manning
Okay, so we're clear on where we're going. Now just help us get there.
Bloc
Raynald Blais Bloc Gaspésie—Îles-de-la-Madeleine, QC
The interpreter is telling me that some people are using their BlackBerrys, and that they are causing terrible feedback for the interpreters. Please avoid using BlackBerrys for the next few minutes, or for the rest of the meetings.
NDP
Peter Stoffer NDP Sackville—Eastern Shore, NS
Hear, hear. If you don't have one you don't have to worry about it.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Fabian Manning
I think we had that discussion before, and I hope we won't need to have it again.
Liberal
Gerry Byrne Liberal Humber—St. Barbe—Baie Verte, NL
We're going to have some mad cusses if they can't use their BlackBerries.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Fabian Manning
Anybody who's caught using a BlackBerry will have to pay a $25 fine.
Committee Researcher
I just want to remind the members what we've done so far. I recall four relevant meetings. One was a long time ago, I don't remember when exactly, when we discussed volunteer fatigue, which was one of the issues you wanted to discuss. Then in May, we had three meetings in a row. At the first one, we met Carl Hegge, who is the sous-ministre adjoint responsible for small craft harbours; Robert Bergeron, who is the director general of CHS; and Micheline Leduc, who is the engineer responsible for harbour operations and engineering. Then, two days later we had three directors general for small craft harbours for the regions from Newfoundland and Labrador, Quebec, and Central and Arctic. The last meeting was with Matthew Bol, on the international situation.
The next step, according to the plan you had agreed on, was to go to the regions to try to see for yourselves the state of disrepair of the small craft harbours in each region; the need for funding as a government priority, and you wanted to identify the most critical needs; review of the formula for allocation of capital funds to each region; volunteer fatigue, which we addressed in part; development of new CHS infrastructure in Nunavut; consistency of management across the different regions by region; and a look at success stories in divesting harbours by transfer to a local interest. I believe Mr. MacAulay had a specific example in mind for a success story.
That is that. There is a lot in what we've heard so far that we could use already. Now it's for you to decide where the gap is, and how we should fill that gap. Do we need to travel for that?
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Fabian Manning
I don't think time would allow us to travel if we want to present the report before Christmas. That's basically where we're at now. Organizing the travel and getting the okay for the travel I think is going to be next to impossible between now and Christmas.
So I think we have to take the advice of Mr. Blais and try to bring some witnesses here from the regions we talked about and have the harbour authorities, people who are involved with the harbour authorities, the volunteers themselves, not necessarily someone in government. Just let them tell us how tired they are and the frustrations they have and the concerns they have.
Maybe we should develop a list. Maybe we should get together as a subcommittee and talk about that and develop a list and have some people here. Maybe what we can do on Monday....
Go ahead, Mr. Calkins.
Conservative
Blaine Calkins Conservative Wetaskiwin, AB
I appreciate what you were saying, Mr. Chair. The question I had was this. I believe the committee was asked to prepare a list of places where it would like to go, and in lieu of the fact that we're going to instead invite people to testify before the committee, I would like to know the mechanism by which I, as a committee member, should be proposing people to come here rather than go there.
You've suggested that it be through the subcommittee. I'm not sure whether the committee is in agreement with that or not, but I'd certainly like to have some agreement and some mechanism to do it.
Liberal
Lawrence MacAulay Liberal Cardigan, PE
I would like to follow that by saying that he could use this as a guide to those whom we might take in here, or what witnesses we might have. I fully agree with you, and we can use this as the guide—