Brian Tobin

[Coastal Fisheries Protection Act, May 10th, 1994]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-29, an act to amend the Coastal Fisheries Protection Act.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed.)

[Fisheries, May 3rd, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, the question is a bit late because the Minister of Human Resources Development and the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans committed months ago, not only to the dozens of meetings we have already held but to the many more meetings that are to be held to ensure that the program is properly implemented.

Despite the very difficult and real circumstances, despite the impact on people's lives, from which none of us gets any joy or seeks any advantage, may I say that one of the reasons this has gone superbly well has been the completely open attitude, the flexible attitude, the caring attitude and the consulting manner of the Minister of Human Resources Development, and that will continue.

[Fisheries, May 3rd, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I look forward to the opportunity to answer the member's question and in the process to set the record straight. I know the member is much interested in having the record set straight.

The straight facts are that all major unions associated with the Harvesters Council of Canada, all provinces of Atlantic Canada and the province of Quebec, all stakeholders on the private side, and literally everybody who moves, walks, talks, breathes and has any interest in the fishery, have been more broadly consulted by the Minister of Human Resources Development about this policy-and I might add by the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans-than on any other policy heretofore introduced by a government anywhere on the planet earth.

Yes, this is one of the matters that was discussed.

[Groundfish Licences, April 27th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for the question. Indeed, he and virtually every other member of the Atlantic caucus raised the issue of frozen or inactive groundfish licences with me.

Following consultation with members of the Atlantic caucus and consultation with the Canadian Council of Fish Harvesters, I have come to a decision to put in place a new professional standard affecting the fishermen that will have the effect of thawing or releasing the freeze on the vast majority of those so-called frozen groundfish licences.

This decision will have the effect of contributing nothing to capacity as it affects only professional or bona fide fishermen. It will increase not one cent the cost of the Atlantic groundfish strategy, but it will do a great deal in the sense of fairness and, may I say, simple justice to restore the trust between fishermen, professional fishermen, bona fide fishermen and their government.

I thank the member and indeed all members of the Atlantic caucus for their active input in assisting me in making this decision. I think we sure tried.

[Pacific Salmon Treaty, April 26th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for his question on this important and troubling negotiation.

We have done everything we can to move the negotiation forward and to avoid confrontation with the Americans on the Pacific salmon management plan this year. As recently as last week the Prime Minister raised this question directly with the President of the United States as an important unresolved matter between our two countries.

I will be in British Columbia this week meeting with stakeholders in the industry and seeking their advice before Canada proceeds further on this matter.

I can say that the United States is indicating thus far it wants more access to Canadian salmon, to the tune of $60 or $70 million a year more access. It wants Canadian fishermen to have less access to our own salmon and U.S. salmon. In fact it wants the imbalance that has been in place over the last nine years to continue. I can tell the House that is not going to happen.

[Points Of Order, April 22nd, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, during question period I referred to Hibernia's having created 5,300 direct jobs. That information was wrong and I want to stand to correct the record. The number is actually 6,282.

[Snow Crab Fishery, April 22nd, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for his question. Indeed, he has brought to the attention of the House one of the more difficult situations in Atlantic Canada. That is the incredible irony in the comparison between those who have plenty and those who have very little or nothing. It is causing great tensions in our communities. Frankly, in some communities in the province of Quebec in the last week fishermen are in conflict with each other. None of us want to see that in Atlantic Canada.

I have spoken to representatives of both the crab fleet and representatives of groundfishermen in the last 24 hours from Quebec, New Brunswick and elsewhere in the region. The fishermen have begun a dialogue across the gear sectors. The fishermen are suggesting they will attempt to reach a means of seeing a better sharing of the wealth of the resource in question.

I want to give them that chance to work among themselves and to hear what they recommend, I hope during this weekend, so that we can have a working solution in time for the beginning of the crab season next week.

[Hibernia, April 22nd, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, the member makes the comparison with Pearson airport and other projects. These are projects that had not begun, where hundreds of millions, or billions of dollars had not yet been spent, and where 5,300 Canadians are currently employed.

The policy of the Reform Party is, notwithstanding expenditures of billions already under way, to shut down a project and to throw away those billions, to throw away the lives of 5,300 Canadians who are currently employed and to bankrupt hundreds of secondary supply companies currently involved in this project.

Let me complete my answer by quoting Wood Gundy which has done an independent assessment of this project: "We believe that the upside potential from developing Hibernia and the returns that should be generated from the project offset the levels of risk that currently exist".

The assessment went on to compare this project with the Syncrude project of western Canada which now profitably produces approximately 12 per cent of the total Canadian production.

We believe in the west, we believe in the east, we believe in people. We do not abandon Canadians or projects halfway completed in the heartless fashion as proposed by this so-called Reform Party.

[Fisheries, April 20th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member talks about empty hope. We are not talking about empty hope. We are talking about a $1.9 billion program. It is the only new major expenditure in the February 22 budget. That expenditure represents the commitment of the Prime Minister and the government to the people of Quebec and Atlantic Canada affected by the fisheries crisis to stand by them in their time of crisis and to help them rebuild their lives. The member ought to recognize that.

We have said clearly there are three legs to this program. The first is assistance for individuals. That we have delivered on. The second is to restructure the industry. That process begins over the next six weeks through consultation. The third is to diversify the economy of Atlantic Canada and Quebec.

I have the greatest confidence the Minister for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency and the minister responsible for FORD-Q will work hand in glove with the Minister of Human Resources Development and me to see that commitment is delivered in spades.

[Fisheries, April 20th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, quite frankly I am surprised at the attitude of the hon. member, given his previous experience with the fishery.

The fact of the matter is the Government of Canada is not reducing the groundfish sector. The Government of Canada is not shutting down the groundfish sector. The hard truth rather than the easy rhetoric is that the groundfish sector today is closed. There are 14 moratoriums in place. People in the groundfish sector are not working today and a great many, the majority, have not worked for two years.

The issue is not whether or not we are going to shut the sector down, but how much of the sector we can reopen, how much of the capacity we can employ based on the ability of the resource to sustain that sector.

We are taking the hard and difficult choices but the honest choices to work with communities, fishermen and plant workers to restore as much of the industry as possible and, where that is not possible, to give them the truth so they can make the decisions to rebuild their lives.

Does the member want us to do something different? If he does, we will not.