Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition on behalf of 800 fishers from Newfoundland and Labrador and 50 from Quebec who have been treated unfairly by Revenue Canada.
In 1998 the federal government introduced the Atlantic groundfish licence retirement program, which made it possible for fishers to voluntarily retire from the fishing industry. The benefit they would have received was taxed by Revenue Canada to the tune of 100%, treated as capital gains.
In fact, it was wrong. The wrong information was provided to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans by Revenue Canada. Instead of being taxed 100%, it really should have been 25%.
The fishers call upon the government to now undo this damage and treat them fairly. To put names to some of these fishers, they are: Douglas Harvey of Isle Aux Morts; Allen Munden of Burnt Islands; Beatrice Poole of Belleoram; Samuel Coombs of Shoal Cove West; Henry Doyle of New Ferolle; and Clayton Burton of Little Bay East. These are some of the 850 fishers who have been treated unfairly. They now ask the government to treat them fairly and give them back the taxes they were charged.