Bill C-308

1st Session, 41st Parliament,

60 Elizabeth II, 2011

house of commons of canada

BILL C-308

An Act respecting a Commission of Inquiry into the development and implementation of a national fishery rebuilding strategy for fish stocks off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador

Whereas there has been virtually no recovery of fish stocks such as cod and flounder since fishing moratoria were first introduced in the early 1990s, leading to a loss of population in rural Newfoundland and Labrador of more than 80,000 people;

Whereas the decline in fish stocks has been attributed to the interplay of a wide range of factors, including inaccurate scientific data and projections, under-reporting of catches, overfishing, environmental changes, and fisheries management at the federal, provincial, and Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization level;

Whereas there has been no organized effort to rebuild the fisheries and restore the economic base of rural Newfoundland and Labrador;

Whereas the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization has failed to rebuild migratory fish stocks;

Whereas the fisheries are a renewable resource which can, with revitalized conservation and management practices, be rebuilt for the benefit of present and future generations and contribute towards the economic growth of rural Newfoundland and Labrador and all of Canada;

Whereas the allocation of financial resources to fisheries science and fisheries management has been reduced over time;

Whereas the fishing industry of Newfoundland and Labrador has lost diversity and is now more precariously dependent upon fewer and waning species such as shellfish and pelagics, following the failure of the fish stock to recover;

And whereas Canadians are aware of the fragility and unpredictability of the fisheries as a resource, and it is in their interest to take all feasible steps to identify the reasons for the decline and the long-term prospects for the fish stock in order to determine whether changes need to be made to fisheries management policies, practices and procedures, and to establish a Commission of Inquiry to investigate this matter;

Now, therefore, Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:

SHORT TITLE

1. This Act may be cited as the Newfoundland and Labrador Fishery Rebuilding Act.

INTERPRETATION

2. The definitions in this section apply in this Act.

“Department” means the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.

“fish stock” means the Canadian Atlantic commercial fish stock off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador.

COMMISSION OF INQUIRY

3. The Governor in Council must, within 90 days after this Act receives royal assent, establish a commission under Part I of the Inquiries Act and under the Great Seal of Canada to conduct an inquiry — following the collapse and failure to recover of the fish stocks — into the development and implementation of a national fishery rebuilding strategy for these fish stocks, the sustainability of all species of fish and the health of the ecosystem which supports fishery.

4. (1) The Governor in Council must appoint a panel of three persons who have expertise in fisheries and management of fisheries as Commissioners to conduct the inquiry.

(2) The Governor in Council must provide the Commissioners with relevant authority to summon witnesses to give evidence and produce documents and to generally carry out the terms of reference of the Commission of Inquiry referred to in section 5.

TERMS OF REFERENCE OF THE COMMISSION OF INQUIRY

5. The Governor in Council must provide terms of reference for the Commission of Inquiry requiring the Commissioners

(a) to conduct the inquiry without seeking to find fault on the part of any individual, community or organization, and with the overall aim of respecting conservation, rebuilding and sustainability of all fish stock and encouraging broad cooperation among stakeholders;

(b) to take into consideration the policies and practices of the Department with respect to the fish stock, including the Department’s scientific advice, fisheries policies and programs, risk management strategies, allocation of departmental resources, and fisheries management practices and procedures, including monitoring and counting of stocks, forecasting and enforcement;

(c) to make independent findings of fact regarding

(i) management policies and practices for domestic fisheries,

(ii) alternative approaches to management of stocks straddling the 200 mile limit with a view to maximizing the management authority of Canada as a coastal state,

(iii) the adequacy of scientific research into fish stock and conservation, including the funding of scientific research programs,

(iv) public engagement, provincial and community participation and transparency to allow for public participation in management decisions and processes, and

(v) the maximization of benefits for present and future generations; and

(d) to develop recommendations for rebuilding and improving the future sustainability of the fish stock, including, as required, any changes to the Department’s policies, practices and procedures in relation to the management of fisheries, and to make specific recommendations on the following matters:

(i) management of domestic and trans-boundary stocks,

(ii) the emphasis on fisheries science, conservation principles in fisheries management, and the independence of fisheries science research,

(iii) transparency to allow for public participation in fisheries management, including participation by the provincial government, industry stakeholders and communities,

(iv) ways and means to maximize the value and distribution of the economic benefits from the resource for the benefit of present and future generations,

(v) custodial management of the Nose and Tail of the Grand Banks and the Flemish Cap — or other management options — to rebuild straddling fish stocks within and outside Canada’s exclusive economic zone,

(vi) required changes in existing fisheries management processes, including the potential for establishing a quasi-judicial management board,

(vii) the roles of the provincial government, fishing industry stakeholders, fisheries scientists, sub-provincial regional authorities and the general public,

(viii) the need for intervenor funding for community groups who wish to participate in and contribute to decisions,

(ix) the need for a public advocate to represent the general public in management decisions,

(x) the adequacy of the financial resources allocated to fisheries management and fisheries science,

(xi) the criteria used in making access and allocation decisions, including the role of the adjacency principle,

(xii) the condition and adequacy of surveillance and enforcement vessels,

(xiii) a regulatory system which allows for public hearings and devolution of authority on a regional basis,

(xiv) the need for changes in corporate structure to improve the branding and marketing of Newfoundland and Labrador fish products, and

(xv) a review of the existing regulatory system with a view to ensuring that it supports the principle of maximizing benefits to Newfoundland and Labrador.

6. In the terms of reference, the Governor in Council must also authorize the Commissioners to

(a) consider findings of previous examinations, investigations or reports that they deem relevant to the inquiry, and to give them any weight, including accepting them as conclusive;

(b) supplement those previous examinations, investigations or reports with their own investigation, and to consider the Government’s response to previous recommendations;

(c) rent any space and facilities that may be required for the purposes of the inquiry, in accordance with Treasury Board policies;

(d) adopt any procedures and methods that they may consider expedient for the proper conduct of the inquiry, to sit at any times and in any places in Canada that they decide and to conduct consultations in relation to the inquiry as they see fit;

(e) engage the services of any staff, experts and other persons referred to in section 11 of the Inquiries Act, at rates of remuneration and reimbursement as approved by the Treasury Board;

(f) grant, to any person who satisfies them that they have a substantial and direct interest in the subject matter of the inquiry, an opportunity for appropriate participation in the inquiry and grant funding to ensure the participation of that person if the Commissioners are of the view that the person would not otherwise be able to participate;

(g) to ensure, in respect of any portion of the inquiry conducted in public, that members of the public can, simultaneously in both official languages, communicate with and obtain services from the Commission of Inquiry, including any transcripts of proceedings that have been made available to the public;

(h) follow established security procedures, including the requirements of the Policy on Government Security, with respect to persons engaged under section 11 of the Inquiries Act and the handling of information at all stages of the inquiry; and

(i) perform their duties without expressing any conclusion or recommendation regarding the civil or criminal liability of any person or organization.

REPORTS TO PARLIAMENT

7. (1) In the terms of reference, the Governor in Council must direct the Commissioners to submit, within eight months after this Act receives royal assent and simultaneously in both official languages, an interim report to the Speakers of both Houses, who must cause the report to be tabled in the Senate and the House of Commons respectively. The report must set out the Commissioners’ preliminary views on, and assessment of, any previous examinations, investigations or reports that they deemed relevant to the inquiry and the Government’s responses to those examinations, investigations and reports.

(2) The gouvernor in Counsil must, in the terms of reference, direct the Commissioners to submit, following the tabling of the interim report and within two years after this Act receives royal assent, one or more reports, simultaneously in both official languages, to the Speakers of both Houses, who must cause the reports to be tabled in the Senate and the House of Commons respectively. These reports must set out the conclusions of the Commission of Inquiry and contain any recommendations the Commissioner deems appropriate.