Thanks, Robert.
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you to the witnesses for appearing before the committee.
I remember back in the early 1990s when John Crosbie shut down the northern cod fishery. He was asked a question at the time, whether or not there would be any restriction on Newfoundlanders and Labradorians being able to fish for their table. His answer was, “B'y, if the stocks ever got that low that you couldn't fish for your supper, she'd be gone, b'y.”
We're at the point now where there have been restrictions on recreational fisheries for a number of years and, as you pointed out, Mr. Stringer, in your opening, in Newfoundland and Labrador the fishery is restricted to two specific fishing seasons that allow for a total of 32 days of fishing. Now the minister was good enough last fall to extend the fishery because of inclement weather, and that was good because in certain cases lives have been endangered when people go out to fish when the weather is not fit.
I've got a question for you, right off the bat. The 32 days that you're allowed to fish for cod for your table—the recreational fishery in Newfoundland and Labrador—how do the 32 days compare to the Maritimes and the total number of days that you can fish there in a season?
The second question is, you also mentioned, Mr. Stringer, about a licence being required to permit any recreational fisheries activity, with the exception of course of Newfoundland and Labrador and the recreational cod fishery and some shellfish fisheries.
People are upset in Newfoundland and Labrador in that they're restricted from recreational cod fishing in Newfoundland and Labrador more so than in the Maritimes. Why not go back to a licence system whereby Newfoundlanders and Labradorians can fish over the course of a season and they're not restricted to two fishing times? That would cut down on health and safety concerns, again, going out in the water when it's not fit to go out on the water. Is the department looking at that or would the department look at that?