Mr. Speaker, the government is restricting snow crab harvesters in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, claiming it is protecting the North Atlantic right whale, but it is actually causing more harm. Heavy ice delays, coupled with the government's decision to reduce the number of traps available, may cause fishermen to fish right through the migration season of the whale.
Will the Minister of Fisheries commit to raising the trap limit so that fishermen in New Brunswick and P.E.I. can get their traps out of the water before the whales arrive?