Fisheries Committee on March 6th, 2008

[Peter Stoffer, NDP, Sackville—Eastern Shore, NS]

If a committee member says something that's completely false, that's not right. I never said that, sir. I said--and the other professors agreed--that we should have indigenous exemptions to the grounds.

[The Chair, Conservative, Fabian Manning]

Hold on, now; hold it. Order.

You can take it outside if you want to, but we're going to finish up here with the questions.

[Gerald Keddy, Conservative, South Shore—St. Margaret's, NS]

I would be very concerned about indigenous exemptions. In Nova Scotia we've done a good job of bringing first nations into the fishery without increasing effort; and I would expect that with the way the Marshall decision works in Nova Scotia, it would be acceptable to the WTO, because it's based on conservation and doesn't increase effort.

Mr. Ruseski, would you or someone else want to answer that, based on the knowledge that you may have? I'm not expecting you to be the expert on the Marshall decision, but that's how it works: it's based on conservation and doesn't increase effort.

[Gorazd Ruseski]

My understanding of the way that program operates is that it is intended to be capacity-neutral.

[Gerald Keddy, Conservative, South Shore—St. Margaret's, NS]

Absolutely.

[Gorazd Ruseski]

With that in mind, that would certainly be the position of DFO and the position of Canada in these negotiations that those kinds of programs, particularly where they are designed to be capacity-neutral, should not be part of the prohibitions that are described in this first-draft chair's text.

[Gerald Keddy, Conservative, South Shore—St. Margaret's, NS]

Thank you.

My next question--I realize I have limited time here--is on employment insurance, and it's a topic that I think all of us on the committee have some concern about. Employment insurance is an income subsidy put out there for seasonal workers. It's applied to many areas in Canada. It's applied to industry and in a number of different areas. It doesn't work any differently in the fishery, and it does not increase effort in the fishery.

I've heard some comments that somehow employment insurance is being changed. We have a draft agreement that's subject to change and that every country will want to haul things out of, including such things as supply management. I've been through the supply management debate for the last seven years, since the Doha Round, and supply management is still there. It's supported by the previous government, it's supported by this government, and it's not about to be given up.

I think we have to deal with the actualities here, not the possibilities of what could happen three rounds down the road. And at this time, I would expect that the government, and the minister in particular, would recognize that EI is part of the Canadian fabric and is something we would want to protect. Have you any reason to believe otherwise?

[John O'Neill]

No, sir. As I've stated, it is Canada's position that income support, or all social safety net programs, do not properly belong within the mandate of this negotiation.

[Gerald Keddy, Conservative, South Shore—St. Margaret's, NS]

My next question becomes one of....

Do I have time?

[The Chair, Conservative, Fabian Manning]

Well, you can have a short one.

[Gerald Keddy, Conservative, South Shore—St. Margaret's, NS]

With regard to capacity and the inshore fleet, the question was brought up about buying out licences. As long as you're not increasing your capacity to catch, as long as you're not increasing your TAC, what difference does it make to our negotiations--if you have one fisherman or ten fishermen--as long as you haven't increased, you're still based on conservation, and you haven't increased your TAC?

Rationalization is something that's been occurring in a number of the fleets.

[John O'Neill]

That's right. There are a number of--

[Gerald Keddy, Conservative, South Shore—St. Margaret's, NS]

And I don't see it prevented by these negotiations.

[John O'Neill]

We would be working to make sure it isn't; rationalization is something that's needed in the fisheries sector around the world, and something that all countries recognize has to happen.

[Gerald Keddy, Conservative, South Shore—St. Margaret's, NS]

Especially in the high-seas fleets; we have a number of--

[The Chair, Conservative, Fabian Manning]

Thank you, Mr. Keddy.

We're done here, but we'll leave the floor open to our guests. Would either of you want to make some closing remarks, or on behalf of the others? No?

[John O'Neill]

Thank you.

[The Chair, Conservative, Fabian Manning]

We thank you once again for your appearance here today. You certainly have given us some food for thought.

We're going to take a short recess and return to some committee business.

Thank you.

[Proceedings continue in camera]