Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the hon. member for advance notice of his question. Living as he does in Saanich-Gulf Islands, obviously his constituency is very concerned about this issue.
We are very concerned about it also. That is why on April 1 of this year we will be implementing legislation to include a federal contribution of $100 million in funding to ensure that we have quick response when spills do occur. We are also looking at private sector funding of between $80 million and $100 million
to ensure that those ships involved in oil spills are paying for the pollution they cause.
We are looking for co-operation with the provincial government of British Columbia to make sure that the coast line is clear. I know that my colleague the Minister of Transport has been working very hard on this issue. I intend to meet very shortly with the provincial minister of the environment for British Columbia to ensure we have a joint federal-provincial response on an issue that is of crucial concern to British Columbia.