Thank you.
Mr. Stringer, Mr. Balfour, and Ms. Pégeot, it is a pleasure to have you here before our committee to discuss these amendments, but as your presentation discussed a great deal about Bill C-38, I would just say that in light of the enormous changes that were made to the Fisheries Act last spring, it's troubling beyond belief that this is the first time we see officials from DFO.
One of the constant refrains we have heard from witnesses, stakeholders—the few we did hear from—was their complaint that they hadn't been consulted. Had there been proper consulting and vetting of the various provisions and changes to provisions that came through, maybe you wouldn't be here again trying to make these changes.
While I appreciate the fact that you're trying to correct some of the problems that came up because of the way Bill C-38 was...and the Fisheries Act was changed, I know that a lot of other concerns raised by stakeholders haven't yet been addressed.
As you indicated, there were fairly significant amendments to, for example, section 35 of the Fisheries Act that have yet to come into force. The commitment made by the minister was that, before those changes came into effect, the regulations would be developed, and they would be developed through extensive consultation with stakeholders. Now, my understanding, from speaking with people across the country who are directly affected by these changes, is that there has not been that consultation.
I guess that would be my first question to you: when will this consultation commence, and is the January 1, 2013, deadline for those regulations to take effect still in place?