Brian Tobin

[Fisheries, April 18th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for his question and advise him that I met just before question period with the AFAWU from British Columbia in my office to discuss a wide range of issues affecting the province of British Columbia.

With respect to the member's question I quite frankly am unable, because I am not properly prepared, to answer the question, although I will take the matter under advisement. I want to assure him that anything that interferes in a serious way with habitat and fish will be investigated and a stop put to it if the problem is as serious as has been described.

[Fisheries, April 12th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, both the Department of Fisheries and Oceans and the Department of Human Resources Development have been engaged in the broadest consultation on the future of the fishery that has ever been undertaken by the Government of Canada in its history. We think that consultation is going to result in a positive, constructive and realistic announcement within a matter of a few weeks.

If the member is serious about wanting to know more he should take me up on the offer that I have given to the fishermen from the province of Quebec, fishermen from the Gaspé region, and come and receive a full briefing on the subject.

I would be interested in hearing the member's positive and constructive comment on this difficult situation. It is easy to make noise. Sometimes it is more difficult but more worthwhile to try and make some sense.

[Fisheries, April 12th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for his question and for his interest in this matter. I offer him the same courtesy as I have done so in writing to both him and his leader and that is for a full briefing on any matter that affects the fishermen of Atlantic Canada.

I can tell him that while he has not found the time the fishermen and their unions in Quebec have found the time and I have met with them repeatedly on this subject. Were he as well briefed as they, he would know that within a matter of a few weeks both the Minister of Human Resources Development and I will announce a wide-ranging and comprehensive response to the fishing crisis in Atlantic Canada, one that is generous, one that recognizes the depth of the crisis in the region, but one that is responsible in terms of the fiscal capacity of the government of the day.

[Fisheries, April 12th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for that very difficult question.

As the member well knows the Prime Minister made clear on behalf of this government that we intended to deal with the problem of foreign and domestic overfishing and that we would do so by agreement if possible and by unilateral action if necessary.

I am pleased to report to the member that this morning in Brussels the European Council of Ministers unanimously ratified the February 17 moratorium on 3NO cod. The government promised action. We have begun the process of taking effective

action. More action will follow in the weeks and months to come.

[Fisheries, April 11th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for his question.

We have recent reports of Spanish and Portuguese vessels taking undersized fish outside the 200 mile limit. There have been about 13 citations issued this year. Most of those citations have been issued for the catch of undersized fish on the Flemish Cap. As the member knows, this is an area where Canada does not conduct the fishery.

Nevertheless these catches of undersized fish are in violation of the conservation rules that we would apply to ourselves and in violation as well of NAFO conservation rules.

This morning I spoke to the European Fisheries Commissioner. I brought this matter to his attention and sought and received his assurance that member states of the European Union will prosecute and penalize those who engage in this kind of improper and illegal fishing activity.

[Fisheries, March 25th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I have an obligation under section 35 of the Fisheries Act to protect habitat. That is an obligation I have in law.

This government has not hesitated to take the most difficult decisions in the name of conservation of habitat. This is the government that took the decision to close down a food fishery, a basic hook and line fishery, in the name of rebuilding critical cod stocks. Decisions, like those to not allow pollutants contrary to the Fisheries Act into critical spawning areas, would be easy for us to take.

This government will not compromise conservation of habitat for any reason. We have acted forcefully and we will continue to act forcefully in the interests of conservation.

[Fisheries, March 25th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Delta for giving notice of his question.

I want to assure the hon. member exactly as I have assured the member for Central Nova. Neither the Department of the Environment nor the Department of Fisheries and Oceans under section 35 of the Fisheries Act has yet completed a full and proper assessment of the proposal that has been put forward for the effluent diffuser into the Northumberland Strait. No such decision has been reached nor will it be reached until a full and proper assessment is done and until a full consultation occurs with the fishermen from that region.

[Questions On The Order Paper, March 22nd, 1994]

The Department of Fisheries and Oceans has taken a number of steps to address concerns raised in the 1992 Auditor General's report.

In February 1993, a general manager at the executive level was appointed for the program with headquarters in St. John's, Newfoundland. This concentration of full line autority for managing program resources across all regions has streamlined decision making and reduced opportunities for diverting funds away from the program. The consolidation of two regional offices and a reduction of staff complement through attrition has resulted in increased efficiency at decreased costs.

Steps have been taken to ensure the implementation of a national FVIP data base by the first quarter of fiscal year 1993-94. This will provide needed management information for ensuring more efficient administration, establishing appropriate rate structures, maximizing revenue and setting national standards in a number of areas.

A training program developed for field officers on vessel appraisals and claims adjustments is now in progress. The first two week session began on February 28, 1994 and the second two week session started March 12, 1994. Training will also be provided as part of the data base implementation.

Updated procedures for the review and approval of claims now ensure that claims are forwarded to head office with proper documentation. As a result, HQ approval has been reduced to one week thus improving overall service to clients.

A report has been prepared assessing the reasons for the declining insurance base and recommending measures to reverse the trend. This report is now being analyzed.

[Fisheries, March 21st, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for his question, acknowledge his great expertise in the area of international law and take this opportunity to say yes, indeed we are taking every opportunity through every forum available to us, most recently at the UN conference on high seas fishing and at the FAO in Rome.

We are taking every measure to try to ensure that international law is binding, that we can develop binding dispute settlement mechanisms, and that Canada can through agreement put an end to the problem of foreign overfishing.

Let no one believe otherwise. If we cannot resolve this problem by agreement we will resolve it by unilateral action by Canada.

[Flags Of Convenience, March 21st, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I assure the hon. member once the issue of flags of convenience has been fully considered and authorization has been given both by cabinet and Parliament, because ultimately Parliament will be consulted on this matter, Canada will make no distinction on the origin of the flag of convenience no matter what country it comes from.

Those vessels and ship owners ignoring Canadian conservation rules and multilateral arranged conservation rules merely to exploit the stocks down to the last fish, thus destroying a good part of the economy of Quebec and the four Atlantic provinces, will be treated in identical fashion. The fishing activity will be stopped and the vessels will be taken off the nose or tail.

I have one final comment. I personally have no knowledge, as I stand here and speak, of any Canadian involvement in this kind of measure. However I want to assure the member that were a Canadian company involved it would be my instinct to name such a company and to bring the entire shame and anger of the nation down on that kind of activity.