My brother and I fish together. He owns licences. I own licences to work. When I say we fish together, we're not allowed to fish together, because DFO won't let us, so we have two different boats.
I'd say we have spent about $1.5 million, so sometimes what's happening is people.... I started fishing in the 1980s when you'd just spend $30 to get your licence, and you went from there. Unfortunately, these are the guys oftentimes who are sitting with the FFAW, with DFO making policies or asking for things to stay the same, and that doesn't reflect the modern-day fishery when I had to spend that much money to get involved. In order for me to make that pay.... I didn't get a licence for $30. It doesn't make sense.
Unfortunately, DFO doesn't consult with everyone. I was at a crab meeting a couple of weeks ago. My immediate family and I own about 20% of the crab in our area, and I was nominated numerous times—and John Will can tell you—to go on the committee at different times, and the FFAW wouldn't accept my nomination, because I didn't believe in their values. They even tried to schedule a meeting for the election on the day of my father's funeral just so I wouldn't be there.
Fast-forward to now, I went as being part of FISH-NL. I was invited to observe the crab technical briefing. After that was over, they had a negotiation about what sort of cuts and stuff you're going to get for that season, and when I went in, there were 40 or 50 empty chairs in the room. It wasn't like we were at capacity. The FFAW representative asked that I be removed from the room, and DFO, fortunately for me, had their wires crossed and said I was allowed to stay, that I was invited. At that time, the FFAW guy got up and left the room and called someone, one of his higher-ups, who called someone higher up at DFO in White Hills, and by the time they got it all straightened out, the meeting was over, but DFO came up and told me I wasn't supposed to be there and that I couldn't come back anymore, like next year or whatever.
I said it was pretty disturbing. We are pretty involved in the area, and I like to think I know a lot about the fishery. I'm not trying to brag or anything, but I just think I do. It is unfortunate that they don't consult with everyone. They have a small little clique of people, and John Will can vouch that they're the ones who get the say. Consultation, I guess, is one of their really weak points.