Herb Dhaliwal

[Aboriginal Affairs, March 16th, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member should know that we have purchased under the volunteer retirement program as his party and other parties recommended.

However, the vast majority of the licences are fished by aboriginal people. There may be exceptions where they may not have the equipment and may not have the training to do that, but our objective is to make sure that aboriginal people have the equipment, have the training and the skill to fully benefit from the licences they purchased and the right to go out and fish commercially.

[Coast Guard, March 16th, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, I assure the hon. member that the coast guard's priority is the safety of Canadians. It will do everything possible to make sure that those buoys are properly maintained and protected.

We have a program to improve our coast guard response teams. I announced last year a major investment in the coast guard so we could ensure that we provided the service to protect Canadians. Safety is our number one priority.

[Fisheries, March 13th, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, what is really dramatic is the opposition leader coming to do a press conference in his wetsuit. That is what is really dramatic.

It is the Alliance Party members who stand up in the House all the time talking about providing guns and providing protection for our enforcement people. They cannot make up their minds what they want. One day they want them to get guns and flak jackets and the next day they are not interested in giving them all those protections.

[Fisheries, March 13th, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, it is important to make sure that we take our responsibilities seriously in protecting fish habitat. There are times when department officials do take enforcement action. That is part of their job, which they do every single day, and they do a tremendous job.

In this particular case, I will certainly look into all the facts because usually members opposite have their facts all wrong. We will look at it and review it.

[Natural Resources, March 12th, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member did not state which minister, but I will certainly note it and get back to the hon. member.

[Fisheries, February 23rd, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, as I said in my earlier answer, I will take this question under advisement.

Fish enhancement is an important part of DFO. I am not familiar with all the details in this question, but I will get back to him with a full response.

[Fisheries, February 23rd, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, fish enhancement has been an extremely important part of DFO and we do that across the country.

I am not familiar with the particular hatchery the hon. member has referred to, but if he provides the details for me I will certainly want to get back to him and make sure I provide a full answer to his question.

[Coast Guard, February 23rd, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member is totally wrong. If he would look at the facts on what we have done in search and rescue, he would see that we have actually improved search and rescue and continue to do that.

The government is very committed to the public safety of Canadians. This is a priority for us. Our coast guard men and women will continue to do the excellent work they have been doing right across the country.

[Coast Guard, February 23rd, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, the government has taken a number of actions to improve our search and rescue. When we came into government, we put the fisheries and the coast guard fleet together to create synergy so that we could provide more service and respond more quickly.

The hon. member should stand up and congratulate the government. Last year we made an announcement of $115 million to improve search and rescue across Canada.

[Coast Guard, February 22nd, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, I think the hon. member should make sure that all the facts are there so we can review them. I think it is irresponsible for the hon. member not to look at the facts and move toward sleazy political points on the back of a family that is very hurt at this time. It is shameful for the member to stand without knowing all the facts.