Mr. Chair, it seems somewhat inconsistent, and I brought this question to the floor before. Really there is no answer. The decision has been made. It is the wrong decision. It was a decision that has been appealed, the granting of the Tim Rhyno licence. He had gone through an appeal process a number of times with the previous government and he was refused. All the correspondence from DFO had recommended against it at all levels of the appeal. However, went it reached the minister's predecessor, that changed. The current minister is wearing the decision of the former minister and that is not fair.
If nothing else happens tonight, the alarm bells have to go off. If we thought it was a tough year last year in the fishery on the east coast, that was only a shower. This is going to be a tsunami and I am not trying to scare anybody. I am just trying to tell the truth as best I know it. The price is down. The harvest is down. People are being sent home from the plants already.
The government has to be prepared. Last year it announced a $15 million bailout package to much fanfare. We thought it was a little light at the time. We were hoping for a $50 million bailout package. It could have announced a $50 million package because it made the criteria so limited, so low that no one would get it anyway. It only spent half the money. It could have announced it $100 million. No one was getting it anyway.
People are going to hurt. Families are going to hurt. The government better be prepared.