Statement made on 08 October 2009 by Senator Fernand Robichaud
Hon. Fernand Robichaud:
Honourable senators, I want to continue my remarks about the difficult situation in which lobster fishing communities find themselves because of a disastrous fishing season due to the prices paid to the fishers.
All sectors of the economy have been seriously affected since the current recession began. Some sectors have received more help than others. We must not lose sight of the fact that all workers, including fishers, are affected. Lobster fishers are especially vulnerable, because their catch is considered a luxury item and it is sold on major world markets such as Boston, New York and Paris. The extent of the current recession is obviously having an impact on the lobster market.
Honourable senators, how has the recession affected the latest lobster fishing season? The answer is simple: lobster landings are not finding takers at the usual rate. Demand is down, and prices are falling dramatically. Fishers in my area of the Northumberland Strait got only $2.75 a pound for canner lobsters and $3.25 a pound for the biggest lobsters sold on the market. This is especially disturbing when you consider that in 2004, according to the president of the MFU, a Fisheries and Oceans study said that $4 a pound was the minimum price at which a lobster fishing enterprise could survive.
Honourable senators, since the industry representatives appeared before the Standing Senate Committee on Fisheries and Oceans in May, the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans has announced $10 million to improve marketing, $50 million in long-term assistance for the industry and $15 million to help low-income fishers. Although reaction from representatives of the fishers was rather lukewarm, in general they viewed it as a first step in the right direction.
Three weeks ago, on September 22, the minister announced the eligibility criteria for the $15 million program for low-income fishers. Every fisher will receive $5,000 on condition that they earned $50,000 or less and that their income has decreased by 25 per cent from the previous year.
Some Atlantic fishers say that they will not be eligible because their gross income is more than $50,000 but, due to very high operating expenses, their net income is quite low. It should be remembered that the cost of fuel and bait have driven up operating expenses considerably in recent years.
As for the $50 million for industry sustainability, fishers believe it should be five times as much. What needs to be done and what our committee recommended is to introduce a licence buyback program, in co-operation with the industry and representatives of the fishers, in order to rationalize lobster fishing.
Our committee report also recommends immediate changes such as "allowing fish harvesters to qualify. . .based on 2008 earnings" and "extending EI fishing benefits by five weeks".
Finally, the Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans recommends that the minister responsible enter into formal discussions with Atlantic fish harvesters' organizations and the provincial governments to develop a short-term assistance plan for the lobster fishery.
Honourable senators, the assistance provided to date is but a first step towards solving the problems faced by fishers. The government must provide further assistance to fishers who find themselves overwhelmed by this unprecedented economic crisis.
Therefore, I invite you, honourable senators, to support Senator Rompkey's motion to adopt the report so that the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans may be apprised of the recommendations and provide us and the lobster fishery with her response.
I would remind honourable senators that the Standing Senate Committee on Fisheries and Oceans was unanimous in this report.