Mr. Speaker, three years ago, the previous Conservative government shut down the Kitsilano Coast Guard base, despite pleas from MPs, the City of Vancouver, the Province of British Columbia, and the Vancouver police and fire departments. Conservatives were warned that lives and the environment would be put at risk, so there was no surprise at the huge delay in identifying and cleaning up the 2014 bunker fuel spill and the expanded time for rescue craft to arrive from Sea Island.
Our Liberal government made a commitment during the election to reopen Kitsilano Coast Guard base and the marine communications on B.C.'s coast. I was pleased to see that commitment in the Ministry of Fisheries and Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard's mandate letter from the Prime Minister. The voices of the people of Vancouver were heard.
I had presented thousands of petitions in the House and held rallies to get the previous government to reverse its decision, to no avail. I look forward to being there when our new Liberal government reopens the Kitsilano Coast Guard base in the near future.