Evidence of meeting #42 for National Defence in the 40th Parliament, 3rd session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was aircraft.
Conservative
Laurie Hawn Conservative Edmonton Centre, AB
I have no objection, if you want to do that.
We'll probably get to it, because IMP, then, obviously deals with somebody at 400 Cumberland and puts the request in, and so on. I'll just leave that for now.
I have just a quick comment. It's a little tougher to get an airplane going than to get an ambulance going.
Secretary, Local 90120, Union of National Defence Employees
It's much harder.
Conservative
Laurie Hawn Conservative Edmonton Centre, AB
It's a bit of an apples and oranges thing. I can hop in my ambulance and start it. It's a little tougher....
As an Individual
Well, all of us have kind of said that, because that's the basis. What I'm talking about is the double standard. It is having it ready and having it be off as quickly as it possibly can be.
Earlier I listened. I heard him say that only 17% of the incidents actually happened between 8 and 4.
Conservative
Laurie Hawn Conservative Edmonton Centre, AB
Actually, it was 20%. According to 103, it's 20%, but whatever.
As an Individual
They'd kill me if I actually said, “Why don't you reverse it?” If only 20% is happening between 8 and 4, and you have 80% happening after four o'clock and on weekends....
Conservative
Laurie Hawn Conservative Edmonton Centre, AB
So we should put them on 30 minutes from four o'clock in the afternoon to eight o'clock in the morning, and let it be two hours from....
Conservative
Laurie Hawn Conservative Edmonton Centre, AB
Yes, there is some obvious logic there, but it's not quite as simple as that.
As an Individual
Obviously, you talk about logistics, but it's just something that stands out to me if you're talking numbers.
Conservative
Laurie Hawn Conservative Edmonton Centre, AB
And I think it's fair to say that everybody in the system is trying to make things better. The guys at 103 are obviously doing a great job. I don't think anybody would question the kind of job those folks are doing.
Conservative
Laurie Hawn Conservative Edmonton Centre, AB
It's spectacular.
Now, I had another question.
Actually, it is back to Mr. Feltham. When we talked about training and the work the industry is doing and so on, which is great, and that's essential, you talked about medical training and masters and officers of the watch training. Are you where you need to be on that? Again, it's one of those things I guess you're always trying to do better.
As an Individual
I think right now, to answer your question, in Canada, and probably in the world, Newfoundland is probably leading the country in the qualified people running their boats and the qualified in MEDs and that. I guess the answer is no, you're never to where you're to, but the feeling within the industry is that we've done more than our part. We've certainly brought it to a level that was never there. We've seen where we're saving lives because of that. So we feel that we have to build on that. We feel that government has a responsibility to do that.
Conservative
Laurie Hawn Conservative Edmonton Centre, AB
Is there any such thing as a perfect system that will give you 100%? The sea is a dangerous place. We will always lose people at sea.
As an Individual
I don't know if we'll always lose people. We had a year when we lost none, okay, in 2003--
As an Individual
--if my memory serves me correctly, in the fishing industry. But when we decide, whether it be offshore oil or we're going to harvest the sea, or whatever it is, there has to be a system there. It's going to happen. We have to develop a system. When we as a government are not as good as our next-door neighbour down the street, or we as a government are not as good as the ones across there, you start to question why.
The 17% that occurs between 8 and 4...I mean, these are numbers that are hard to accept within the industry. There's no question about that.
Our industry has changed. We haven't looked at it. Let's not err on the.... I mean, you're fishing around the clock now, at least from April to November--fishing around the clock. It's changed. Search and rescue has to change with it, to some degree. Can we go all the way? I don't know if we can go all the way in one step, but we've got to start going forward. We're not moving. This is the point; we're not moving.
Conservative
Laurie Hawn Conservative Edmonton Centre, AB
Nobody would disagree that everybody needs to do the best they can with what's at hand. You try to get more at hand to do more all the time. That's what I think everybody, certainly everybody in this room, is committed to doing. Your testimony today and your stories and your experience and your sharing of it is helpful and worthwhile, and I thank you for that.
I think my bell rang a couple of minutes ago.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Maxime Bernier
I just want to ask all the members if they agree to listen to Mr. Cooper for two minutes. He is the deputy site manager. He wants to speak to our committee for two minutes.
Jack.
NDP
Jack Harris NDP St. John's East, NL
Is this like a rebuttal or something? It's a bit unusual. He sort of jumped in at the bottom and said he wants to comment on some of the things that this gentleman said. Is that something we're prepared to allow on an ongoing basis?