John Cummins

[Fisheries, September 21st, 2000]

Yes, Mr. Speaker.

[Fisheries, September 21st, 2000]

I did check my facts, Mr. Speaker. There is no doubt of the source of the offer. It was the minister's mediator, the eminent Canadian.

A fisherman from Miramichi asked me last night “What kind of country do we live in when our government would bribe its citizens to look the other way while the law is being broken?”

[Fisheries, September 21st, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, today the minister claims to be shutting down the lobster fishery on Miramichi Bay for conservation reasons. Yesterday he was offering fishermen on the Miramichi $12,000 to turn a blind eye to illegal fishing on the bay.

Rather than protecting the resource and shutting down the fisheries, the minister chose what he thought was the path of least resistance: hush money, paying fishermen to look the other way while the lobster resource is under attack, while the viability of their fishery is jeopardized and while illegal fishing continues unabated. How can he justify this distasteful offer?

[Fisheries, September 20th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, last week the minister was quoted as saying that there were two thousand traps in Miramichi Bay. At a modest catch of 10 pounds of lobster per trap, per day, that is 20,000 pounds of lobster coming out of Miramichi Bay every day at a time when the bay is closed for conservation purposes.

The minister continues to jeopardize conservation. He is threatening the viability of the fishery. Why will he not get the traps out of the water now?

[Fisheries, September 20th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, the reported deal at Burnt Church is not a deal. It is a capitulation. Illegal traps remain in the water.

Yesterday the minister said “Mediation cannot be a shield for unauthorized activity”. He said that he “would not jeopardize conservation of the viability of the fishery by letting fishing continue unabated”.

This deal allows fishing to continue unabated. It jeopardizes conservation. It legitimizes illegal activity. When will the minister get the illegal traps out of the water?

[Fisheries, September 20th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, there is leadership on Miramichi Bay. It is not with the federal government, Bob Rae or the fisheries minister. It is with commercially licensed fishermen who have been so patient these past few weeks. They are the heroes of Burnt Church because they chose to exercise restraint, even though their livelihood was being put at risk and even when conservation was being thrown out the window.

These people watched as their fish stocks were poached. And then watched our government reward the poachers, and still they exercised restraint. They heard their fisheries minister tell them he would end the illegal fishery and protect their stock. And then they saw him do nothing.

These people chose to be responsible even when their minister was not. They could teach him a thing or two. They recognize that actions have consequences and the law must be obeyed. We wish the minister had their wisdom. The official opposition salutes the commercial fishermen, the real leaders on Miramichi Bay who chose to exercise restraint.

[Fisheries, September 19th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, the minister's dithering has created the problem. The crisis on Miramichi Bay was created by the minister. He was ill prepared for the Marshall decision. He ignored the Marshall clarification. He has refused to make conservation his priority. He has refused to enforce the law.

Will he once and for all do his job, uphold the law and get rid of the illegal traps?

[Fisheries, September 19th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, fishermen on Miramichi Bay are angry. More than a thousand traps are in the water now, not 40. More than a half a million pounds of lobster have been harvested. That is over ten times what the minister allowed for.

He caved in to threats and allowed the fishery in the first place. He caved in to threats and refused to haul the illegal traps. Time has run out. The jig is up. The minister's back is against the wall. When will he do his duty and haul the illegal gear?

[Fisheries, September 18th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, the minister is trying to sell mediation but he is ignoring conservation. He is creating confrontation. When will he haul the traps?

[Fisheries, September 18th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, the fisheries minister appointed Bob Rae as mediator in Burnt Church. However what is at issue here is not a matter for mediation. It is a matter of conservation.

Miramichi Bay is closed to commercial fishing for conservation reasons. The minister's own office admits that the 40,000 pound quota he allowed during this closed time has been caught. It was caught weeks ago.

Why will the minister not act to protect the lobster in Miramichi Bay and remove the illegal traps?