Mr. Chair, I appreciate the words of my hon. colleague, who tries to teach a lesson in being non-partisan. We all have been privy in the House to the government talking about the seal hunt in very partisan terms over the last month. This did a disservice to the energy that should have been focused on the European parliament and not within this Parliament. If there is partisan rhetoric going around, the government is going to have to share its own burden in that respect.
When it comes to the impact on the north, there is a tremendous impact upon Inuit peoples and northerners, but no less impact upon the people who ring the coastline around the island of Newfoundland, along the shores of Labrador, down into the Magdalen Islands and other parts of Atlantic Canada. It has a different type of impact in certain parts of Atlantic Canada with a bit of different emphasis.
I want to put this on the record. We have asked for some assistance for our sealers this spring because they have been going through a difficult time with ice conditions and the low price of pelts. They are going through an ever-increasing difficult time now. We called for assistance from the government to help our sealers. Are there any plans in place on the part of the government to assist our sealers, Inuit, non-Inuit, aboriginal, non-aboriginal, people in the north and parts of Atlantic Canada as we go forward?
The government has to take action on the international scene, which there seems to be some hesitation about, but it also has to look at what we can do domestically, within our country, to help our sealers as well. I would like to hear from the government on that.