Mr. Chairman, I want to compliment my friend from the Bloc not just on his speech this evening, but also on his work and that of his colleagues on the committee over the years. They have made a valuable contribution to the proceedings. Any fair reading of committee minutes will show that their contribution has been second to none, including when the committee was sitting on the west coast of Canada. I have, and I know my friends on the west coast have, very much appreciated the interest the Bloc members have taken regarding our difficulties. I have nothing but admiration for their contribution to the committee.
I believe it was in 1995 that the Coast Guard merged with DFO. That has caused considerable consternation on the west coast. There was a merging of resources.
The end result of that merging was that some vessels do not have adequately trained rescue specialists aboard. Others are tied up while they are supposed to be offshore on search and rescue status. Coast Guard vessels get seconded to do fisheries work when they should be elsewhere. It has created havoc, I think is probably the best word, and at times difficulty for crew members.
I would like to ask my friend if the same sort of difficulties have been experienced in the Quebec region.