Thank you, Minister, that information will be well received by the industry.
My second question goes to the growing awareness within the industry that the oceans can no longer be used as a dumping ground. There are consequences to the industry, to the very stocks that the fishermen depend on.
One is the issue of plastics within the oceans. The other is the area of illegal fishing and ghost fishing. Given your leadership role, as Canada is the G7 leader in this area, how do you look to bring more awareness on these two critical issues and how can we begin to address them? For some time, it was an issue that was swept under the rug, but it is one that we're seeing every day. In fact, there's new awareness today of the death of a lot of seaborne mammals because of plastics, and this is an issue that has to be dealt with.
How do you view your position, your ministry, in reacting to those two significant global issues that will have a very real impact on coastal communities in Canada?