Thank you, Keith.
My name is Dwight Ball. I want to thank the committee for taking the time today to meet with us as well.
I'm the leader of the official opposition of Newfoundland and Labrador. One of the key messages we want to convey today is that the economic impacts of any cut to the shrimp quota are significant, in particular when the cut is not distributed evenly between the inshore and the outshore fleets.
The inshore fleet is losing an equitable share of the shrimp resources based on this LIFO policy. Every 1,000 tonnes of quota reduced to the inshore sector in 2014 equates to approximately $1.5 million in lost revenue to inshore fishing enterprises, a loss of 20,000 person-hours of employment in inshore processing plants and of approximately $250,000 of wages, and more than $2.5 million in lost revenues to the 10 shrimp-producing plants.
The quota allocation decisions recently made by the federal government do not consider economic impact on rural communities and will affect more than 250 small-boat enterprises in the inshore fleet sector and more than 2,200 plant workers and businesses throughout the province that supply this industry. Overall, more than 100 communities in which the inshore shrimp harvesters and plant workers reside will be negatively impacted.
The total landed value of shrimp harvested in the province's offshore and inshore sectors in 2013 was $187 million. This speaks to the tremendous economic activity that the shrimp fishery generates in our province of Newfoundland and Labrador, and in particular in the rural areas of the province. A better distribution of the shrimp resource will ensure the economic well-being of those rural communities that are relying upon it.
I now ask my colleague Lorraine Michael to continue this discussion.