Letters to the Editor -
Dear Editor,
There is a pattern of total inconsistency.
The federal fisheries department is in complete disarray with a minister who is no longer in charge. There is absolutely no rhyme or reason to anything Gail Shea is doing or is having done for her. First she cuts southern gulf crab stocks around PEI by 62 percent in one year and says all is normal. But there is a catch. In this particular case, she also insures that the cuts are evenly distributed across all industry participants and that not only are all new entrants fully protected, they are fully protected until at least 2014! Many of those new entrants are from... PEI!
Then she cuts northern shrimp in area six by 28 percent. In that decision she listens to the dentists, doctors and tycoons who control the offshore factory freezer trawler vessels over the needs of the inshore. She applies a 'last in - first out' policy which will, by design, eventually destroy the inshore. Who feeds the inshore processing plants of our province? The inshore. Who exports the bulk of its product raw to Europe to be processed over there? The offshore!
But wait, it doesn't stop there. She not only makes sure that those who are most adjacent, the most dependent and the ones who extract the greatest value out of the fishery are the first to go, she makes sure the inshore bears the brunt of the cuts above and beyond even the 28 percent prescribed.
Now on to the cod fishery. Gail Shea decided to cut the northern gulf cod quota by 40 percent just days after also deciding to eliminate the special shrimp quota awarded to NOFTA back in 2003 to northern gulf cod fishermen to help see them through difficult times. With friends like her, who needs enemies.
Then on to the halibut and turbot fisheries. Gail Shea has no problem designing the rules so that one set of fishermen on one side of the gulf were made better off then the crowd on this side. She also arbitrarily raised the mesh size and effectively destroyed the economic value of the one fishery that was providing some hope to fishermen while not doing anything to improve conservation.
Her 'last in - first out' policy should really read "last one out turn out the lights and lock the door behind you". That's her policy for rural Newfoundland and Labrador.
Sincerely,
Hon. Gerry Byrne, MP
Humber-St. Barbe-Baie Verte
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