Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak to an issue that I raised in question period about the cuts to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency at the terminals for Marine Atlantic in Port aux Basques and Argentia.
As a result of that, we are putting in danger potato crops in P.E.I. and New Brunswick. The soil is infested with what is called potato wart and once that soil is transported from Newfoundland and Labrador to other parts of the country, there is a risk that it will infect crops.
Doing away with the jobs that are charged with the responsibility of washing down all of the vehicles before they leave Newfoundland and Labrador is putting at risk those crops because if they are not washed, then that danger is very real.
The government has said that even though it is cutting those jobs, the vehicles still are going to have to be washed. The problem is that no one knows who is going to do that, where it is going to take place, and it is a serious issue. We raise this issue again to point out how serious it is and to see whether we can get the government to reconsider the position it has taken.
I am told there was absolutely no consultation whatsoever on this. Those of us who are familiar with where the ferry is in Port aux Basques, in particular, know it is in a very secure area. Once vehicles go into Marine Atlantic's ferry terminal, they cannot come back out because they are in a secure area in order to board Marine Atlantic's vessel.
The problem is that at least right now when the vehicles go into the terminal area where they are washed down, then we know they are on site and will not go anywhere else where there would be contaminated soil. If, as suggested, this can take place outside of the terminal area, that poses a real problem. Again, if the vehicles are washed off the ferry terminal premises, there is a chance that they will pick up contaminated soil from where they have been washed to where they have to go to the ferry terminal. It is a serious issue and we do not think enough thought has gone into this.
These jobs are supposed to be gone as of April 1. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is supposed to stop providing cleaning of the vehicles April 1, 2014. Once that happens, there has to be something in place. The government has said that this could be turned over to the private sector, that there is an opportunity for it. However, no one has stepped up to the plate at this point and we are seriously concerned that if no one does, then the government is not acknowledging the consequences of this. While it says that the vehicles will still have to be washed, it has not said how that will happen.
That is a serious problem for us. We are trying to find some way of ensuring that the vehicles continue to be washed, but at this point in time no one has stepped up to the plate. The vehicles need to be washed. How will that happen if the government does not continue to do it?