Madam Speaker, today in Atlantic Canada, thousands upon thousands of fishers and plant workers are worried about their jobs, worried they will not have money for their families.
The lobster fishery has all but closed, with prices the lowest they have been in 25 years. The cost of harvesting is greater than the prices the fishers can command for their catches. The cost to these fishers' families when boats remain tied to wharves for lack of commercial viability is greater still. Brokers and buyers have either halted or drastically reduced the buying of lobster.
This means that fishers and their crews are without income in what could be their busiest time of the year. The lobster fishery is in crisis. Unfortunately, it is not alone. The crab and shrimp fishery are in crisis as well.
Tom Best, in Petty Harbour, told me recently that crab fishers are not making enough money to make boat payments, let alone make a living. Just last week, processors stated they would not buy any shrimp this summer. Plants will not be able to open. Fishers have nowhere to sell their catch.
Earning enough to qualify for employment insurance is unlikely with the possible amount of catch impacted by ice delays, dwindling plant operations and rock bottom prices.
The government has all but ignored the fishery. This multi-billion industry is under direct federal jurisdiction. Yet, the minister has not addressed what she is going to do to help. Instead of heeding calls to make meaningful changes to provide immediate relief to fishers, such as ending the collection of licence and monitoring fees, the government seems to be hoping that the problem will go away.
Instead of taking a proactive approach, investing in product research and development and industry infrastructure, such as lobster holding bins, for example, the minister refuses to take action on these serious issues. Instead of investing in the fishing industry through rationalization and restructuring projects, such as what the United States is doing, the government is squandering opportunities to impact competitiveness.
In response to a question I asked the minister last month, the minister tried to pass off a marketing announcement, which consists of funding that is worth less than 1% of the industry's multi-billion dollar annual value, as some sort of plan.
While it is true that this marketing initiative will stand to positively impact the sector down the road, it does nothing to help the lobster fishers or crews today. The fact is that fishers of the lobster, crab and shrimp industry cannot break even in this economic climate with the prices so depressed, and their families are without any meaningful help from the Conservative government. The pressure on these families is mounting daily. Fishers and fishing communities have waited long enough for their concerns to be addressed by the government. They need real action now.
This is not a failed or unviable industry; it is an industry in the midst of temporary downturn. Now would be the perfect time to act by implementing government supported capacity reduction in warranted areas. Now would be the perfect time to reduce restrictive regulatory burdens and ensure cost savings to the fishery. Now would be the time to act in securing credit for the hard hit industry.
I ask the minister to recognize the serious problems in the industry and to start to address them.