Welcome back, committee members, and welcome to our guests.
For translation, English is on channel one and French is on channel two. I'm from Newfoundland and Labrador, so we may need another translation for me. I'll try my best.
We are the Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans of the Parliament of Canada. We are in the process of conducting a report on the small craft harbours program of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. We began this process last fall. We heard in Ottawa from people involved with the department, the national harbour advisory board, and some others. This week we have travelled to Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia, and today we're in Quebec.
Part of our process is to hear from people in the communities. We heard from some harbour authorities earlier today, and we're delighted to have representatives of municipalities with us here now. Our process is basically an effort to try to enhance the small craft harbours program. Most of the committee members, including me, represent rural areas of Canada. We have many harbour authorities in our ridings.
As an example, in my riding of Avalon in Newfoundland and Labrador, I have 68 harbour authorities that I deal with. It's the busiest file in my office.
So it's very close to all our hearts that we try to find ways to improve and enhance this program. I certainly want to thank you for taking the time on a beautiful Friday evening to come and state your case before us and give us the opportunity to ask some questions.
The process is very straightforward. We open the floor to the witnesses and give them an opportunity to make their presentations. We then open the floor to questions from committee members.
The committee is made up of the four parties in the House of Commons--the Conservatives, the Liberals, the Bloc, and the NDP. We have a very good committee. As a matter of fact, it's maybe one of the better committees in the House of Commons. I'm not saying that as chair, but we do have a great working relationship. Many interests are common among all the members here, and we try to proceed in that manner.
We have an excellent presentation that was made to us from one of your groups. It is in the French language only. I'll ask, if I could, for the cooperation of the committee members to pass this around to everybody. Julia, our clerk, will have it translated at a later date; it's just to give you an idea.
Is that okay with all committee members?