Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for her concern for her and many other coastal communities.
I am proud to be here today to talk about the actions this government has taken to address the important issue of abandoned and wrecked vessels, an issue affecting many communities across Canada.
Our government has been looking at the best practices on the issue of abandoned and wrecked vessels. We have considered these carefully and have adopted the elements that make the most sense for Canada into a national strategy on abandoned and wrecked vessels. This strategy was announced as part of our unprecedented $1.5 billion oceans protection plan in November 2016.
In May and September 2017, two funding programs for the removal and disposal of small priority boats were launched, including one with a public education component and a vessel recycling and design research component.
We worked with other levels of government to identify options to improve vessel ownership identification systems and initiated a study on identifying gaps in our vessel registration systems for large vessels.
We have worked with the Canadian Coast Guard to develop a national inventory of abandoned and wrecked vessels and a methodology to assess the risks associated with these vessels.
We have also been engaging Canadians in discussions on options to create a robust polluter-pay approach for future vessel clean up with owner financed funds.
Very important is the fact that on October 30, 2017, our government tabled Bill C-64, the wrecked, abandoned or hazardous vessels act, the key legislative component of our plan.
Bill C-64 is extremely comprehensive in its approach to tackling the issue of wrecked, abandoned or hazardous vessels. The proposed legislation will bring the Nairobi International Convention on the Removal of Wrecks into Canadian law and strengthen vessel owner liability. It will address irresponsible vessel management, including a prohibition on abandonment. It will enhance federal powers to take proactive action on problem vessels.
We will continue to collaborate with provincial, territorial, and municipal governments; indigenous groups; and coastal communities to implement our comprehensive national strategy on abandoned and wrecked vessels. We look forward to all members' support of Bill C-64 as it goes through the parliamentary process to implement this important legislation that will help protect our coasts and shores.