I've now had the distinct pleasure of being on this committee since 1997. We've done over 28 comprehensive reports, I believe, 25 of which were unanimous. The reality is that each and every one of those reports has assisted the minister and the department in getting through some tough situations, be it the seal harvest that we were concerned about or other concerns of that nature.
Mr. Calkins, we're not just legislators; we're also here to understand the issues facing fishermen and their communities across the country. Many of those issues have nothing to do with the legislative nature of things. I've seen a variety of chairs and members come and go, but the reality is that I've never once seen a report where a minister hasn't come back, thanked the committee wholeheartedly, and then actually used some of those unanimous recommendations to improve the lives not only of the people working in the department, but also of the fishermen and their families.
Many times the committee has been asked for help—by Mr. Kamp himself and previous parliamentary secretaries who have been here—and when we can get a recommendation that's unanimous to help the minister in a particular area like the seal harvest, for example, it goes a long way in showing a united front.
Again, I go back to the fact that we're not just legislators. We're also here to assist the minister and the department in the many complicated issues that face us on a day-to-day basis.
I suggest that we go on to the question, have our say, and try to remove BlackBerrys from the committee so that we actually pay attention to witnesses, but that doesn't get me many friends. We'll go on from there.