In the same vein as the first amendment that we proposed, we want the minister of Fisheries and Oceans to act, so the wording is “must”. Again, this is something that is focused on environmental hazard to the coast. We heard testimony from Anna Johnston from West Coast Environmental Law Association expressing concern that the minister's and receiver of wreck's powers under the act to deal with wrecked, abandoned, and dilapidated vessels are discretionary in nature, calling into question whether or not these decision-makers will take the necessary actions to address the backlog. A change to “must” and “may” removes discretion, increases accountability, and gives coastal communities more confidence that the act as written will be implemented.
On February 26th, 2018. See this statement in context.