If you want to stay up late at night to try to bring this together and say there is some kind of conspiracy that Canadians can control.... That is not the case at all.
Internationally, and in relation to subsidies, etc., the bottom line is the attempt by all nations to curtail unregulated illegal fishing so we can control the fisheries on the high seas as well as within domestic waters--conservation being the concern--to make sure we don't destroy stocks. All of that comes down, even with our marketing now, to certified products. A number of our major companies are going in that direction to make sure their fishing resource is sustainable, that it's well managed, etc. With more boats going into the fleets, they're trying to prevent illegal activity, where some countries are subsidizing the construction of boats to illegally raid the stocks, etc. The basic attempt is to stop that.
It's like everything else. When you go to stop something and go overboard in your attempt, sometimes it affects others. The fishing nations of the world realize that, and that's why they won't support the extension of some of the suggestions.
In relation to NAFO, let me be very clear. In the new NAFO text, the only way anybody can play any part in relation to service management, or whatever, inside our 200-mile limit is upon invitation. Even when they are invited, when the decision is made for them to come, we would again have to agree to them coming in. Why would we do that? The only reason I can think of is for scientific work. Last year we did work inside our 200-mile limit with Spain. They have done work with us, internationally, and some of the other countries are willing. Why are we all going off in the same direction, duplicating, triplicating, the work, etc., when we should be working together, internationally, to protect our stocks?
I have no hesitation at all in saying that our stocks and management abilities are well protected and nobody else can encroach on that.
In relation to this convoluted stuff that has come up here, we have to be conscious of it. There are some countries in the world that are not affected by any of this, and they can get their foot in the door by trading off and bringing down others. There are many of us around who operate a solid, scientific-based fishery.
We realize that you can't fish if you don't have a wharf to fish from. That's pretty basic stuff, but that's where we are right now.
In relation to people employed in the fishery, during the dead time of the year, what's the difference between fishing and working in the forestry or with Woolco or whatever? If you're laid off, you're laid off, and you should draw unemployment insurance. We have to be conscious of that, but we will never trade off with anybody or anything in light of losing any of these benefits. It's not going to happen.
Again, as I said, we all have to be conscious of that.