Mr. Speaker, I rise under the provisions of Standing Order 52 to ask that the House now adjourn to examine what can only be considered to be a crisis on the west coast of Canada.
The disappearance of 1.3 million salmon from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans management surveys ought to give rise to an immediate examination of our policies on the west coast. This crisis is now attached to the commercial fishery, to the aboriginal fishery and to the sports fishery in the salmon sector, to say nothing of other species as well.
Considering what has occurred on the east coast as a result of years of ignoring the reality of what was happening to the resource, a similar situation may exist on the west coast. One point three million salmon have disappeared and no one knows what has happened to them. This ought to result in a special debate in the House of Commons. It is a non-partisan issue, a non-political issue, but one that I know all political parties here, as well as others, would feel very strongly about.