Good morning. I've been fishing for 34 years, as a crewman and an owner. I'm going to talk about the human aspect, since my fellow crew members have pretty much said what there was to say about politics, research and so on.
I have four crew members on board, and they are all members of my family. When I arrived this morning, I told them they were going to die. Those are the exact words I used. I told them I couldn't give them what I didn't have. I've only been an owner for five or six years. I told them I could only give them 12 employment insurance stamps, $1,000 a week, which totals exactly $12,000. Who here can live on an annual income of $12,000? Not a lot of people, isn't that right? That's the reality.
These men have been fishing with me for 25 or 30 years. I'm speaking generally, about all the boats. On average, all the men in the fleet have about 20 years' experience. When we tell them they're going to die, what do you think those men think when they go to bed at night? I put myself in their shoes. We talk about this and I feel sick. It's unrealistic.
In life, you do a job, and it's so you can earn a living. Then we're told that tomorrow morning we're going to die. I don't know but if you have a shred of humanity, you're going to think that what has happened makes no sense. It's hard to talk about that. I look at all the fishermen. I've been in this occupation for 34 years and in two or three years we'll be putting it all in dry dock. Already 10 or 20 of them are up on blocks. The northeast will become like Newfoundland: a ghost country.
I hope you understand the situation with the fishery and fishermen. People no longer know what to think. When a father tells us he won't even be able to pay his daughter's university tuition fees, I say like the other guy, “It's all on the chopping block.”
Thank you for listening to me. If you have any questions, I'll be able to answer them. I'll be pleased to speak to you.