Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from my home province who also sits with me on the fisheries committee. It is a pleasure to be here to discuss the policy that he is looking for some clarity on. It is great to have another opportunity to set the record straight on the Pacific salmon allocation policy.
Wild Pacific salmon are a keystone species on the west coast. As the member likely knows, the minister was recently in B.C. to announce close to $413 million in new funding for the Pacific salmon strategy initiative. This funding will be critical to continue our government's work to rebuild wild salmon. It will strengthen science and monitoring, enable essential habitat restoration, modernize salmon fisheries and expand collaboration with partners.
While in B.C., our government also announced a next step in strengthening the long-term conservation and rebuilding of wild Pacific salmon with the expansion of mass marking of all DFO hatchery-origin chinook salmon in southern British Columbia. Expanded mass marking enhances our understanding of science, providing a clearer picture of wild salmon populations and the performance of our hatcheries. When it comes to the management of wild salmon, it starts with healthy salmon stock.
The 1999 Pacific salmon allocation policy outlines principles that guide the allocation of Pacific salmon catch among first nations, commercial and recreational fisheries. The policy does not define specific allocations for individual fisheries. Following the B.C. Supreme Court's 2018 Ahousaht decision, our government committed to review and update the policy in collaboration with first nations and stakeholders. DFO has been clear from the outset that the renewed policy will continue to prioritize conservation, followed by aboriginal and treaty fishing rights, including the five nations court-affirmed right to sell fish.
The salmon allocation policy review will not extinguish any sector's access to Pacific salmon. Pacific salmon will remain a shared public resource managed by the Government of Canada on behalf of all Canadians under the Minister of Fisheries authorities in the Fisheries Act and its regulations.
Since 2019, DFO has undertaken an extensive, multi-year engagement process with first nations, the recreational and the commercial fishing sectors. The recent eight-week open, public and extended consultation on the discussion paper, developed with partners and stakeholders, provided an opportunity for DFO to share input gathered to date and to seek input from first nations, and commercial and recreational harvesters, as well as all other stakeholders.
Discussion papers exist to engage directly with interested parties to get their feedback and considerations. They are not prescriptive. They are a tool for feedback. All viewpoints provided by first nations and stakeholders will be considered in the salmon allocation policy review. No decisions have yet been made. The salmon allocation policy review is still under way and work continues through the formal salmon allocation policy multi-party working group, which provides representatives from first nations, the—