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Results: 121 - 150 of 464
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-03-26 16:24 [p.18104]
Mr. Speaker, I want to thank our colleague from South Shore—St. Margarets for her work on committee and for her advocacy on issues important to all Canadians, such as the very difficult question of abandoned derelict vessels. Her views have been shared with our caucus and our government consistently and have led to some of the significant improvements we have made. We have more work to do, and we will continue to do that work with all members of the House of Commons.
One of the things our colleague from South Shore—St. Margarets has talked to me about consistently is improving small craft harbours, which are important economic engines not only in her communities in Nova Scotia but right across the east coast, the west coast, and obviously, Canada's north.
Her specific question on consultation is important. One of the things we did when we were contemplating amendments we were going to propose to the Fisheries Act was to be inspired by the reaction of Canadians to the 2012 changes, which were included in omnibus budget legislation and were pushed through the House of Commons in record time, without adequate scrutiny.
We took two years to listen to Canadians. We received thousands of submissions from across the country. Those changes and the work of the standing committee informed the amendments we made. We are proud of these changes we are proposing to the Fisheries Act.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-03-26 16:26 [p.18104]
Mr. Speaker, there appears to be some confusion. Perhaps the member is remembering when the previous Conservative government ordered committees to shut down hearings, cancel meetings, or cut off witness lists. A Conservative colleague from his own province prepared a rather extensive workbook on how to disrupt committees. Members who were in the last Parliament would remember that important work done by the Conservative Party. It was sort of a how-to manual on disrupting or vandalizing committee hearings.
My colleague has perhaps confused what happened in the last Parliament. I do not order a committee to do anything. I look forward to working with members of parliamentary committees. If colleagues on that committee decided to hear certain witnesses or decided on a certain work plan, perhaps he should address those questions to his colleagues who were on that committee. I do not sit on that committee, and I certainly do not vote on that committee. I certainly would not purport to, in his words, order colleagues on a parliamentary committee to do anything. I look forward to working with them. That is something the previous government perhaps struggled with.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-03-26 16:28 [p.18105]
Mr. Speaker, I have taken note of this obviously important court case in the province of British Columbia. It is difficult to comment on matters that are before the court and may come back to the court.
We look forward to working with indigenous peoples and the Government of British Columbia with respect to the issue of aquaculture.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-03-26 17:11 [p.18106]
moved that Bill C-55, An Act to amend the Oceans Act and the Canada Petroleum Resources Act, be concurred in.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-03-26 17:12 [p.18106]
moved that Bill C-55, An Act to amend the Oceans Act and the Canada Petroleum Resources Act, be now read the third time and passed.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-03-22 14:55 [p.17867]
Mr. Speaker, my colleague again makes a series of assertions based on a proposal that he has not seen. He should be very careful before he asserts a series of things that perhaps are entirely false.
With respect to Mr. Russell, he is a respected elected indigenous leader from Newfoundland and Labrador, and he has decided that his community will benefit from participating in this initiative, something the previous Conservative government forgot to do when it had a similar proposal in 2014.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-03-22 14:56 [p.17867]
Mr. Speaker, I can assure you and all members of the House that it certainly is not me who would spread misinformation.
What I can tell the House is that our decision to include indigenous participation in this important offshore fishery was a historic decision. The previous Conservative government had a process in 2014-15 to add a new entrant to this fishery as well. Its process was very similar to the process that we initiated publicly in September. However, the Conservatives forgot to include indigenous people. We thought it was important to do so.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-03-22 14:57 [p.17867]
Mr. Speaker, what is fishy is colleagues standing up in the House of Commons and asserting a series of things that are not accurate.
What we said is that we would have a public process to encourage industry and indigenous groups to submit proposals of how they could access this important fishery, something that the previous Conservative government did in 2014-15, but it forgot to include indigenous peoples. We selected a proposal that included the best economic benefits for indigenous peoples in five provinces, four Atlantic provinces and Quebec, and we are very proud of that decision.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-03-21 14:59 [p.17791]
Mr. Speaker, we share our colleague's concern about the importance of protecting the southern resident killer whale population in British Columbia. This is an iconic species for all Canadians. That is why our government announced an ambitious $1.5 billion oceans protection plan, with significant investments in science, in partnerships with indigenous communities up and down the coast, to do what is necessary to ensure that these iconic mammals are in fact protected and the species recovers. I am going to be making management decisions around chinook salmon, for example, that will be part of a solution to ensure the recovery of these whales.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-03-21 15:08 [p.17792]
Mr. Speaker, I am interested to hear my colleague's observations with respect to a specific bid. The only challenge is that he has not actually seen the bid he is commenting on. He is taking a series of media reports, which were inaccurate, and asking a question about a bid he has not read.
Our process was transparent. It was inclusive. Our process was designed to add indigenous partners to an important offshore fishery. We chose the proposal that offered the best economic benefits to indigenous people, and we are proud of that decision.
Some hon. members: Oh, oh!
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-03-20 14:59 [p.17742]
Mr. Speaker, let me first welcome our colleague back to the House of Commons. It is great to see him with us in good health.
As he knows, our decision to introduce indigenous participation is consistent with our government's commitment to developing a renewed relationship between Canada and indigenous peoples. The selected proposal was one submitted by the Five Nations Clam Company. It was selected because of its inclusion of indigenous communities across Atlantic provinces and Quebec, allowing the benefits of this lucrative fishery to flow to the greatest number of people.
He understands that tabling the commercial confidences that our department received by competing bidders would be inappropriate.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-03-01 14:53 [p.17547]
Mr. Speaker, my hon. colleague knows very well that our government is deeply concerned about the state of the wild salmon populations in British Columbia. We have invested literally tens of millions of dollars in enhanced science, monitoring, and auditing processes to ensure the protection of wild Pacific salmon remains a priority for our government. It is something our Pacific caucus has talked to us about over and over again.
We understand that there needs to be robust aquaculture regulations. We understand that conservation protection officers and increased monitoring is important, and we are going to work with the Government of British Columbia to ensure we have the toughest rules in place to protect this industry.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-03-01 14:54 [p.17548]
Mr. Speaker, when we made a decision to add a new entrant into this important commercial fishery, we knew that the most important people to benefit from this change were indigenous Canadians on the east coast of Canada and in the province of Quebec.
The previous Conservative government had a process to add a new entrant to this fishery. It forgot to include indigenous people. We had an open, competitive process where seven bids were analyzed in detail, and we chose the one that offered the best economic opportunity for indigenous people, Atlantic Canadians, and Quebeckers.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-03-01 14:56 [p.17548]
Mr. Speaker, we understand and we respect the concerns of the people of Grand Bank and the people who work in that processing facility. My colleague who represents that community in the House of Commons has spoken to me about this important issue. So has the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador.
We are committed to ensuring that the facility in Grand Bank and the workers who earn their living at that important facility have the benefit of an economic opportunity that is sustainable and that is long term. We will continue to ensure that the economic opportunities in Grand Bank remain robust.
However, that party was also planning to bring a new entrant into the fishery, and it did not seem concerned about Grand Bank then.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-02-27 14:59 [p.17440]
Mr. Speaker, what we did know is that the previous Conservative government began a process in 2014-15 to bring a new entrant into this fishery. However, what we knew, which they did not know, was the importance of including indigenous people in the prosecution of that fishery.
We had an open, public process where we received nine submissions, which were carefully analyzed, that included partnerships between indigenous people and other commercial entities to participate in this lucrative fishery. We chose the best proposal in terms of employment opportunity for indigenous people and we are proud of that.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-02-26 14:59 [p.17366]
Mr. Speaker, we are very proud of a process that we began last September to include indigenous communities in this very valuable offshore fishery. I would point out that the process to add a new entrant to this fishery was begun by the previous Conservative government in 2014 and 2015, except the Conservatives forgot to include indigenous communities in that process.
We are convinced that the decision that we took last week is good for the industry, is good in terms of benefits for indigenous communities, and will be good for the people of Newfoundland and Labrador, and Atlantic Canada as well.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-02-26 15:02 [p.17366]
Mr. Speaker, what we are aware of is a valuable resource that is a public resource, that belongs to the people of Canada, and that could be better shared with indigenous communities in Atlantic Canada and in Quebec.
We began an open and transparent process in September. After eight weeks, we were really pleased to have received nine proposals, which were carefully studied by the department. We selected the proposal that will bring the greatest economic benefit to indigenous communities and to the people of Atlantic Canada and Quebec. We are proud of that process and we are proud of the decision.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-02-15 14:17 [p.17290]
Mr. Speaker, not only have we heard the legitimate concerns of veterans, but we have also acted.
Canadians know that our government is committed to the well-being of veterans and their families. Our Canadian Armed Forces members and veterans deserve to know that they will be supported if they become ill or injured. Veterans were disillusioned by 10 years of neglect under the previous Conservative government.
Our government has invested over $10 billion to increase compensation for pain and suffering, and to provide a pension for life, something we committed to Canadians. We will continue to support the brave men and women who served Canada and are now our veterans.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-02-15 14:18 [p.17290]
Mr. Speaker, we believe that those three things are exactly what our veterans deserve, and that is exactly what our government has delivered and will continue to deliver.
It is a bit ironic to hear a member who served in the previous Conservative government talking about respecting veterans. We will take no lessons from a party that cut staff, closed offices, and underfunded veterans programs.
We committed to reopening those offices. We committed to supporting Canada's veterans and to give them a pension-for-life option. That is what we have done. We will not stop continuing to support our veterans.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-02-15 14:20 [p.17290]
Mr. Speaker, as I said earlier, we are doing exactly the opposite of what my hon. colleague says we are doing.
We made solemn promises to veterans during the election campaign. We have not only kept our promises, such as the pension for life, but we will also continue to provide more support to the brave men and women who served this country. We will take no lessons from the former Conservative government.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-02-15 14:21 [p.17290]
Mr. Speaker, our Prime Minister was very clear during the election campaign, as were my Liberal caucus colleagues, and my colleague the Minister of Veterans Affairs. Everyone very clearly indicated that we respect the solemn obligation to our veterans. We kept our election promise regarding the lifetime pension. I hope members will agree that it is rather ironic to hear a Conservative Party member lecture us on respect for veterans. Perhaps he should talk to Julian Fantino about that.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-02-15 14:22 [p.17291]
Mr. Speaker, my colleague should try to be consistent. He cannot criticize us for running a deficit and at the same time ask us to invest more to help veterans.
We have invested more than $10 billion to support our veterans. We made solemn promises during the election campaign. We respect our veterans, unlike my colleague's party when it was in government. We will never stop doing more to support the brave women and men who serve in our armed forces.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-02-15 14:24 [p.17291]
Mr. Speaker, I think we were very clear in the election campaign, but more importantly, since we formed the government over two and a half years ago, that we respect the sacred obligation that Canada has toward our veterans.
Not only did we commit to a pension for life, which is something that my colleague, the Minister of Veterans Affairs, has delivered for the brave men and women who served in our Canadian Armed Forces, but we also committed to reopening offices closed by the previous government. We committed to increasing support for mental health services. We will never stop doing more to support the brave men and women who served in our armed forces.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-02-15 14:54 [p.17297]
Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Prime Minister reaffirmed our commitment to reconciliation and a renewed nation-to-nation relationship with indigenous peoples as we look to create a recognition and implementation of rights framework.
The work has already begun. This morning, I was pleased to extend an offer to the five nations to facilitate the transfer of licences and quotas for groundfish, salmon, and shellfish. This is a concrete action, taken in the spirit of reconciliation. I look forward to doing more with indigenous peoples on the west coast and right across the country to advance this important issue.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-02-13 10:09 [p.17096]
moved that Bill C-68, an act to amend the Fisheries Act and other acts in consequence, be read the second time and referred to a committee.
He said: Mr. Speaker, it is a great privilege for me to speak in the House of Commons on this important legislation. You, Mr. Speaker, are a former minister of fisheries and oceans yourself and will understand the significance of the Fisheries Act in communities like the ones you and I represent, so it is a privilege for me to have this opportunity to stand in the House.
Canada is uniquely blessed with an abundance of freshwater and marine coastal areas that are both ecologically significant and linked to the economic prosperity of Canadians. Our government knows that we have a responsibility to steward these resources for future generations while maintaining economic opportunities for many people and communities who depend on them.
In my mandate letter, the Prime Minister asked me to restore lost protections and incorporate modern safeguards into the Fisheries Act. In 2012, the government got rid of a number of fish habitat protection measures without engaging indigenous peoples, fishers, scientists, conservation groups, coastal communities, or the general public in any meaningful way and without their support. What made that decision even more unacceptable was the fact that the changes were buried in a 430-page omnibus bill in the hope they would slip by unnoticed. Canadians definitely noticed.
Indigenous and environmental groups were especially concerned with changes made to the act and rightly perceived those amendments as weakening what should be of shared concern for Canadians: the protection of fish and fish habitat. Industry partners were thrust into uncertainty with regard to their responsibilities under the act.
Our government has worked and consulted with a broad range of Canadians, and we encouraged everyone to be part of this important conversation. Provinces, environmental groups, fishers associations, indigenous groups, and thousands of Canadians helped shape the amendments currently before the House of Commons.
The proposed amendments to Bill C-68 are part of the government's broader strategy to review environmental and regulatory processes and cover several key themes, including partnership with indigenous peoples; supporting planning and integrated management; enhancing regulation and enforcement; improving partnerships and collaboration, including with industry; and monitoring and reporting back to Canadians.
The Fisheries Act is one of Canada's oldest pieces of legislation. It was enacted shortly after Confederation. It has been amended very little since that time, which is why it needs to be updated and modernized. To that effect, Bill C-68 adds new provisions dealing with the objectives and considerations that must be examined in the decision-making process under the act. The proposed objectives seek to create a proper management and control framework for fisheries and the conservation and protection of fish and fish habitat, particularly through pollution prevention.
The new considerations under these amendments are designed to clearly guide the responsibility of a minister of fisheries and oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard when making decisions under the act. Bill C-68 proposes amendments that would restore protections for fish and fish habitat to ensure that these protections apply to all fish. We are reintroducing the prohibition against the harmful alteration, disruption, or destruction of fish habitat, as well as the prohibition against the death of fish by means other than fishing.
We are also introducing measures that would allow for the better management of projects that may be harmful to fish or fish habitat through a new permitting scheme for big projects and codes of practice for smaller ones, so that industry partners, as well as everyday Canadians, can be certain about their responsibilities but not unreasonably burdened when undertaking small, local projects.
In the past, uncertainty in the act has caused some uncertainty among project proponents with respect to their obligations and responsibilities. The proposed amendments create regulatory authorities that will make it possible to establish a list of designated projects, including the commitments and activities that will still require a licence.
Our goal is to streamline these processes, and we will be engaging with provinces and territories as well as indigenous peoples and stakeholders to decide which kinds of projects should be on the designated project list.
We are also formalizing the creation of a proponent-led habitat banking regime. Habitat banking is an international best practice for offsetting project impacts where a freshwater or marine area is created, restored, or enhanced by working to improve fish habitat in advance of a project's impact.
Habitat loss and degradation as well as changes to fish passage and flow are all contributing to the decline of freshwater and marine fish habitats in Canada today. It is imperative that Canada restore degraded fish habitats. That is why amendments to the Fisheries Act propose requiring the consideration of restoration as part of project decision-making.
These amendments provide clearer, stronger, and easier rules to establish and manage ecologically significant areas and provide stand-alone regulations to protect sensitive or important fish habitats. Given the important ecological characteristics of sensitive areas, certain types of work and activities may be prohibited and others may be identified as being subject to a special information gathering under a new authorization regime.
During the review of the 2012 changes to the Fisheries Act, we heard over and over again about the need to improve access to information on government activities related to the protection of fish and fish habitat. Indigenous communities, industry associations, environmental groups, universities, and my colleagues on the House of Commons standing committee all talked about the importance of transparency in the decision-making process under the act.
In order to re-establish public confidence, we are proposing amendments to establish a public registry, which would be available online. By enabling greater transparency, the registry would allow Canadians to hold the government to account in its federal decision-making with regard to fish and their habitat.
Fisheries resources and aquatic habitats have important social, cultural, and economic significance for many indigenous peoples. The respect for the rights of indigenous peoples as well as taking into account their unique interests and aspirations in fisheries-related economic opportunities and the protection of fish and fish habitat are important means of renewing our relationship with indigenous peoples.
For instance, the Fisheries Act is being amended to require the minister to consider any potential adverse effects resulting from decisions the minister might make in accordance with the rights of Canada's indigenous peoples, as set out in section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982.
In addition, our government recognizes the importance of the traditional knowledge of Canada's indigenous peoples in sound decision-making regarding fish and fish habitat.
Indigenous peoples across Canada, and other Canadians from coast to coast to coast, can rest assured that the government will act to protect the confidential traditional knowledge that indigenous people would share with the government under the provisions of this legislation.
Many indigenous communities are in close proximity to areas where projects that may affect fish and fish habitat are proposed, and many communities see new roles for themselves in how these decisions are made.
We have proposed long-overdue amendments that would provide for the making of agreements with indigenous governing bodies to further the purposes of the act, as we have done in the past with provinces and territories.
There are currently no legislative or regulatory requirements in place with respect to the rebuilding of depleted fish stocks.
The commissioner of environment and sustainable development, as well as our colleagues on the Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans, have recommended that any revisions to the Fisheries Act should include direction for the restoration and recovery of fish habitat and fish stocks.
Environmental groups have also called on the government to adopt measures aimed at the rebuilding of depleted fish stocks within the Fisheries Act. This is why we are proposing amendments that would require decisions affecting a stock in the critical zone to consider whether there are measures in place aimed at rebuilding that stock, and, when a minister is of the opinion that habitat degradation is a cause of the decline of the stock, whether measures are in place to restore such habitat.
This positive obligation on governments and greater transparency, we believe are essential to strengthening the Fisheries Act.
We also heard Canadians' views on other important issues related to the Fisheries Act. Although the number of aquariums that keep cetaceans in captivity for public display has fallen overall, this is still a sensitive issue that Canadians are deeply concerned about.
Our government recognizes that it is now wrong to capture these magnificent creatures for public display. Consequently, we are proposing amendments to the Fisheries Act that would prohibit the capture of a cetacean when the intent is to bring it into captivity, except in circumstances where the cetacean is injured, in distress, or in need of rehabilitation.
The Senate has, for a long time, done good work in respect to this important issue. I want to salute former Senator Wilfred Moore of Nova Scotia and others in the Senate who have continued to press this important issue in the minds of Canadians.
Some 72,000 Canadians make their living from fishing and fishing-related activities. Most of them, including self-employed inshore harvesters, are part of Canada's growing middle class. In many places across Atlantic Canada and Quebec, the fishery is the economic, social, and cultural heart of communities. As the fisheries minister, one of my duties is to ensure that these important traditions endure. However, threats remain to this way of life. Fish harvesters, particularly in Atlantic Canada and Quebec, have told us time and again that they need greater protection for their economic security, and they need help to ensure their economic independence.
It was clear to me that these important policies, like the owner-operator and fleet separation policies, were being circumvented by controlling agreements, which threaten the independence of the inshore and midshore fleets by removing the control of licences from individual harvesters to larger corporate interests. The amendments we are proposing would entrench existing inshore policies into law, with all the legal enforcement power required to protect small coastal communities and independent inshore harvesters.
I stand firm in supporting the economic and cultural fabric of these coastal communities. Our government has recognized that a licensing regime that supports independent inshore harvesters is critical to the economic livelihood of these communities and the families and Canadians who depend on them.
As I said, we looked at ways to strengthen the independence of the inshore sector and enforce the act more robustly. That is why we are proposing amendments that enshrine a specific power in the Fisheries Act, rather than a policy, in order to develop regulations that support the independence of inshore commercial licence holders. The amendments proposed today would entrench into law the power to make regulations on owner-operator and fleet separation policies in Atlantic Canada and Quebec.
In so doing, this act helps to protect middle-class jobs in our coastal communities by ensuring that present and future fisheries and oceans ministers may consider the preservation and promotion of the independence of licence-holders in commercial inshore fisheries in the decision-making process.
I want to thank a number of organizations that have played a key role in these amendments with respect to owner-operator and fleet separation. The FFAW, the Maritime Fishermen's Union, le Regroupement des pêcheurs professionnels de homard du sud de la Gaspésie, the Gulf Nova Scotia Fleet Planning Board, the Prince Edward Island Fishermen's Association, and the Canadian Independent Fish Harvester's Federation have been instrumental in this important work.
Fishing can be a dangerous occupation, involving many risks not only for fish harvesters, but for the marine environment as well.
With the unprecedented death of 12 North Atlantic right whales in the Gulf of St. Lawrence from June to September last year, we know that Canadians expect prompt and urgent action by their government. This is why we are proposing amendments to the Fisheries Act that provide a new fisheries management order power to establish quick and targeted fisheries management measures. These measures will be used for 45-day increments where there is a recognizable threat to the conservation and protection of our marine ecosystems. The proposed fisheries management order power is meant to address emerging issues when a fishery is already under way and when time-sensitive and targeted measures are also paramount.
In my mandate letter, I was asked by the Prime Minister to increase the proportion of Canada's marine and coastal areas that are protected to 5% by the end of 2017, and to 10% by 2020, which is the target we are now on track to achieve. I am pleased to report to the House that we have not only achieved our 2017 target, but we will continue to work diligently to ensure that we surpass the 10% commitment through the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity.
To help us fulfill these international commitments and obligations, we are proposing amendments to the Fisheries Act that provide ministerial authority to make regulations to establish long-term spatial restrictions to fishing activities under the act specifically for the purpose of conserving and protecting marine biodiversity.
We are also proposing amendments that will strengthen the act. During the many public engagement sessions that were held, Canadians made it clear that they wanted to see more fishery officers, conservation officers, and patrols, as well as more offenders being caught and punished.
To incorporate modern protection mechanisms into the act, some amendments are being proposed to clarify, strengthen, and modernize enforcement powers under the act, for example by empowering fishery officers to intercept any vessel or vehicle and require it to be moved to a place where an inspection can be carried out.
The proposed amendments also seek to increase the authority of the courts with respect to seizure and forfeiture under the act, and allow the use of alternative measure agreements to address certain contraventions.
As I mentioned earlier, the Fisheries Act is one of the oldest and most important environmental laws in Canada. It was passed in 1868, just one year after Confederation, and did not change much until the late 1970s, when habitat protection provisions were first added by one of my predecessors, who, coincidentally, was my father, Roméo LeBlanc.
Then, as now, the act remains a model among Canada's environmental laws. That is why we have ensured the amendments we have introduced to the Fisheries Act include updated and modern tools that are the hallmarks found in other environmental legislation. We are proposing modern provisions such as the power to create advisory panels, fee-setting authorities, and provisions respecting the collection of information.
I consider myself privileged to stand in this House, as my father did in 1977, to introduce amendments to the Fisheries Act that served his generation. I hope that this new modernized act will live up to my father's legacy and do for our generation what he and the previous Parliament did for theirs.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-02-13 10:30 [p.17099]
Madam Speaker, it will come as no surprise that I do not share my hon. colleague's opinion that the government is trying to kill middle-class jobs.
In fact, we believe that these amendments will support the Canadian economy, by first of all protecting jobs that are dependent on inshore and midshore fisheries in Atlantic Canada and Quebec. It is a critical part of ensuring that the economy of that part of the country is protected.
With respect to the specific comments my colleague made, precisely because we want to ensure that Canadians are able to fulfill their obligations under the Fisheries Act, we have decided to have a code of best practice policy for the kind of projects my colleague referred to, such as with the electrical associations. These Canadians have told us they want to comply with the Fisheries Act, want to ensure they are not damaging fish and fish habitat, but they want a regime that allows them to be compliant and does not overly burden them like some of the scare tactics we have heard in the past. Our policy achieves exactly that balance.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-02-13 10:33 [p.17099]
Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague from Port Moody—Coquitlam for the work he and colleagues did on the Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans. We think that the 32 recommendations they made are largely incorporated into the amendments we are proposing in this legislation. We obviously look forward to working with him and other colleagues on the committee.
I share his sense of impatience. I wish we had been at this stage some months ago. However, we thought it was important to consult with Canadians and listen carefully to what people had to say in order to benefit from the best advice we could get from partners, provinces, indigenous and environmental groups, and associations representing fishers. We took time to get it right. I look forward to working with my colleague from Port Moody—Coquitlam and other members, if they think there are ways to improve, amend, or strengthen the legislation. We would obviously welcome those suggestions and look forward to that process.
He referred to the owner-operator circumstance on the west coast. We understand that this is a permissive part of the legislation. In Atlantic Canada, these policies have existed successfully for a long time. I have heard people on the west coast say they want to have that conversation, and we would obviously be open to talking to the industry and harvesters on the west coast to see how these successful policies could also benefit communities there.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-02-13 10:36 [p.17099]
Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague from Egmont for his question, and also for his understanding and his advocacy in this important work.
The Prince Edward Island Fishermen's Association has spoken to me a number of times about how lucky it is to have an advocate of his experience standing up for fishers and for that industry, which is so important in his province and for Atlantic Canada. It is a privilege to work with my colleague.
I had made some comments at a speech in Nova Scotia last summer. Some particular interests have distorted those comments in the subsequent period. In no way is there a plan or a desire on the part of the government to prevent the transfer of these licences that, as my colleague has noted, have successfully allowed for retirement planning, financial planning, and intergenerational transfers amongst harvesters. This is something we want to encourage.
What I did ask last summer, and I feel that we need to have this conversation, was how we could work with these harvesters and these communities to help support this intergenerational transfer. The cost of these licences in some cases is becoming prohibitive. Are there financing mechanisms that can be looked at, where the independence of these harvesters can be preserved, while at the same time encouraging this important transfer that my colleague referred to?
I will do anything I can to work with harvesters to support that.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-02-13 10:38 [p.17100]
Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his kind comments, particularly with respect to my father. That is obviously of significance for me, and I thank him.
We recognize that Canadians expect a rigorous level of enforcement, both close to shore, on the wharf, on the rivers, and also on the high seas. I have been extraordinarily proud of the remarkable work done by the men and women of the Royal Canadian Navy and of the Canadian Coast Guard in this important endeavour.
Global partners have told me that they want Canada to be more present in global enforcement with respect to illegal, unreported fishing activities. We intend to invest considerably, as we have done in the last two years, in this effort. Nobody should think for a minute that we will not be prepared to take our important responsibility to enforce this legislation in every part of our coastal waters.
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
Lib. (NB)
View Dominic LeBlanc Profile
2018-02-13 10:59 [p.17103]
Madam Speaker, this is an important discussion for the House to have. I look forward to hearing from many colleagues on this important debate and to working with colleagues in the Senate and our colleagues on the House of Commons standing committee.
It will not surprise members that I do not necessarily share the pessimistic view my colleague advanced on these improvements and the strengthening of the Fisheries Act. Farmers, small community work projects, and small municipalities across the country, many in constituencies like mine and those of colleagues in the House of Commons, have told us of the importance of being in compliance with the Fisheries Act.
Canadians want to know that the practices they are undertaking are not harming, altering, or damaging fish or fish habitat. However, there was a reasonable sense in the past that perhaps the burden had become such that people did not know if they were in compliance or what their obligations were. We think that one way to answer the very real concerns of people in the agricultural community, for example, is to have these codes of practice. If one followed a code of practice, it would be well understood that one was in compliance with the act.
I am wondering if my colleague would offer a view on whether he supports the strengthening of the owner-operator and fleet separation policies in Atlantic Canada and Quebec, which are important for the jobs he talked about earlier of middle-class Canadians.
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