In our area, most of the loster fishermen are between 30 and 50 years of age. Some of them fish with their sons. The sons will take over the business. I know that the fishers would like to see the young people return to their homes and take over, but the young people are seeing what is going on and ask themselves what the future hold for them in Gaspésie if the government does not do anything.
In our area, the people who work in both of our factories are not old. The workers are young. However, our dock is in ruin. Lobster fishermen and other fishermen are fishing off the coast line of neighbouring towns. They are unloading elsewhere. At the rate things are going, both of our factories will shutdown. What will remain then of these two small towns? The factories are providing the people jobs. It is all that we have in our small town. One of our factories is among the oldest in Eastern Canada. We would like to preserve it.
I can understand young people. For now, there are newcomers, but were they remain? We work hard to bring our young people back. I, myself, I am a mother of two children who live outside of town. They see that there is no future here now. But what little we do have, we want to keep.