Yes. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
This is a very tough and bleak picture you're painting. We've heard from you that the industry standard on the break-even price is approximately five dollars a pound. If the industry is now fishing for $3.00 to $3.25 a pound, in essence harvesters in Atlantic Canada seem to be subsidizing Red Lobster and The Keg Steakhouse. That has to be difficult on harvesters.
The response to that circumstance is different across the Atlantic provinces. I know individual fishermen and regions have approached the circumstance differently. What you have stressed is that there is a need for an Atlantic-wide approach. You all stated a value to a federally funded capacity reduction or licence retirement and a need for greater access to capital; you mentioned that the current mechanisms and stimulus are not working for the fishing industry—I think I heard you correctly on that—and also mentioned the need for income support and EI changes for fishers, among other elements. That's what we've heard.
One interesting thing that has come out recently in the past number of days is the circumstance in P.E.I. There was what's termed a “leak” within the P.E.I. legislature of a lobster industry support program. The premier of the province called it a leak—not a proposal, but a leak. It seems to indicate that there was something on the table between the federal government and the provincial government of P.E.I. that was being worked out, potentially using community adjustment funds. I say that because, if federal community adjustment funds were to be applied to a lobster strategy, it would have to be both levels of government that were involved in it. And yet an opposition member from the provincial legislature provided information to the House that the premier called a “leak”.
We want things to happen in P.E.I.; we want a program to occur there. But you also said there's a need for an Atlantic-wide program.
Is there a concern there? I'll ask Ms. Inniss and Mr. McCurdy—and Mr. Frenette, if you would reply as well. Could the federal government be one-offing this and only dealing with one province at a time, and only dealing in this particular case with P.E.I., using community adjustment funds? Why would this be called a “leak” rather than a “proposal”?
Earle, would you be able to provide us with some insight?