I know Ryan is here, and I think Mr. Etchegary is here as well.
If you want to supply us with a short bio of yourselves, that would be great, and we'll say before four o'clock or as soon as you can.
That's a good point, Mr. Doherty.
Thank you, folks.
Let's get started. We're running a bit late, but as you can see, we have four esteemed witnesses in front of us to start this off.
I want to start by saying that the study in and of itself in the motion put forward by Mr. McDonald is this:
That the Committee commence a study of the Northern Cod Stock and its relevance to associated species. This study would evaluate the replenishment of the stock and what other species are affected by it in the region. The study would also look at sustainable harvesting technologies for the future of the cod fishery; and that the Committee report its conclusions to the House.
This is why we are here today.
We have our first group of witnesses. First of all, we have the Honourable David Wells, Senator David Wells from Newfoundland and Labrador.
It's good to see you again, Senator Wells.
We also have with us the former provincial fisheries minister and federal natural resources minister, the Honourable John Efford, and the current fisheries and aquaculture minister, Steve Crocker, from the Department of Fisheries, Forestry and Agrifoods.
It seems you're pretty busy these days, Mr. Crocker.
Also from the Department of Fisheries, Forestry and Agrifoods, we have the deputy minister, David Lewis.
We're going to supply you with 10 minutes each. You don't have to use the whole 10 minutes, of course.
We're going to start with you, Senator Wells. You have the floor.