Evidence of meeting #55 for Fisheries and Oceans in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was stock.
A recording is available from Parliament.
9:55 a.m.
Conservative
9:55 a.m.
A voice
Yes.
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Conservative
Mel Arnold Conservative North Okanagan—Shuswap, BC
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I want to follow up a little on Mr. Morrissey's question on the mackerel catch data and so on. I was contacted by a fisherman in Nova Scotia last fall, who provided me with DFO's catch data for the last five years for the gulf, which was zero for those five years. Yet, he had legally purchased a million pounds of mackerel. A second person there had purchased half a million pounds of mackerel for bait.
Why is there such a discrepancy between DFO's catch data and what these buyers were able to buy legally? Can you explain that discrepancy?
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Conservative
9:55 a.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
I'd like to get more information on that, if that's okay.
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Deputy Minister, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
Yes. Does that work?
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Conservative
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Liberal
Ken McDonald Liberal Avalon, NL
I have a quick statement that will only take probably 30 seconds, and then Mr. Finnigan can go.
A big thank you to the group for appearing today. I'm delighted with some of the information you've shared with us. I think back to my getting elected in October 2015 and getting involved in the fisheries committee, where we find out things, see things, and hear things.
As an MP from Newfoundland and Labrador, to know what has happened with our cod fisheries since 1992, and probably before that, it is somewhat embarrassing representing people and trying to explain to them why there is no plan yet or why the cod fishery hasn't returned to a sustainable commercial level, especially now when we see, as Mr. Stringer mentioned, things happening in the shellfish industry that are beyond anyone's control. We have people who have millions of dollars invested in enterprises who waiting for the codfish to return, and one won't balance off the other when it does return. The transition is going to be very difficult for people.
To do that right and to have a plan in place, I think, is very important.
9:55 a.m.
Conservative
The Vice-Chair Conservative Robert Sopuck
Thank you, Mr. McDonald.
Staff, you are aware, and the department is aware, that this committee did extensive work at looking at revising the Fisheries Act. We are very eager to receive the department's response. We know you have 120 days from when it was tabled. I think I can speak for the committee when I say that we're requesting a response as quickly as possible, because that's such an important piece of work.
We hope you found our cod study and the salmon study very helpful. We very much enjoyed conducting the studies ourselves, and we operated in a very collegial manner. We all feel so strongly, regardless of political stripe, about the importance of these fish stocks. We're pleased to see movement, as Mr. Landry talked about, dedicated Atlantic salmon work. Hopefully our report had a little to do with that. In spite of the shortcomings of the striped bass issue, there was a major expansion that I think was partly due to the work this committee did. We very much appreciate what the department has done.
With that, I will adjourn the meeting, and we will go in camera for just a couple of minutes.
[Proceedings continue in camera]
