Statement made on 28 April 2010 by Senator James Cowan
Hon. James S. Cowan (Leader of the Opposition):
Honourable senators, 2009 was a terrible year for the lobster industry in Atlantic Canada. As the effects of the recession were felt around the world, buyers at the wharf were scarce and prices paid to fishermen were slashed in half. One pound of lobster, worth as much as $6.25 per pound in 2006, reached a low of $2.75 per pound last year. The break-even price was roughly $4.50 per pound. Licence holders had no choice but to lay off their crews while their families and communities went without the income they rely upon.
Honourable senators, the situation is not much better this year. I checked a few moments ago and heard that local fishermen are being paid $4 per pound today, which is well below the break-even point.
In response to the crisis last year, the government announced a $15-million assistance program to save the $1-billion industry. The money was to be divided among 10,000 licence holders across five eastern Canadian provinces. Unfortunately, this financial relief was available to licence holders only and not to all lobster industry workers.
Will the minister tell honourable senators why her government abandoned thousands of lobster crew members and their families?
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