Mr. Speaker, the bunker fuel oil spill in English Bay last week brought to light the devastating effect of the government's millions of dollars in cuts to marine safety and its bad decision to close Vancouver's Kitsilano Coast Guard base.
The Minister of Industry insisted that the spill response to this incident was world class, when in fact it was anything but. In fact, some of his words were later proven to be completely incorrect.
The former Kitsilano Coast Guard base commander Fred Moxey said it would have taken them six minutes to respond, but instead, it took the Richmond Coast Guard more than six hours, and it was 12 hours before the oil was actually contained.
This toxic spill fouled our inner harbour and beaches in calm seas on a calm day. Yet imagine what would have happened for a large-scale spill in a remote part of the coast. The government was totally unprepared to respond properly and failed in its duty to lead the response.
Vancouver residents and marine volunteers and experts were vocally against the closure of the Kitsilano Coast Guard base. The Liberals would reopen it and restore services for marine safety in our area.