The Conservative government of Stephen Harper seems hell bent on eliminating the fleet separation and owner operator policies that protect the traditional Newfoundland and Labrador fishery. Read my stand here . On Monday, the Conservative members of the Housing of Commons Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans voted down two motions – one to support the policies, and the other to carry out a study of the impact of eliminating them. Notice of Motion – New Democratic Fisheries Critic Fin Donnelly Feb. 29th, 2012 That because fleet separation and owner-operator policy is critical to coastal communities and protecting independent fishers in the inshore fishery, the Committee reaffirms its support for fleet separation and owner-operator vessels in the inshore fishery and opposes any move to eliminate this policy. Motion by Liberal MP Lawrence MacAulay That, because fleet separation and owner-operator policies form the backbone of the inshore and midshore fisheries on the E...

The following news release was issued by my office today, March 20, 2012. St. John’s – NDP MP Ryan Cleary (St. John’s South-Mount Pearl) is encouraged by the recent support from leading Canadian fishery scientist Dr. Jeffrey Hutchings (above) for an inquiry into the Newfoundland and Labrador fishery. Hutchings, who recently chaired the Royal Society of Canada Expert Panel on Sustaining Canada`s Marine Biodiversity, said an inquiry is necessary to learn from the mistakes of the groundfish collapse so it never happens again, and to start the rebuilding process. “Despite the collapse of northern cod and several other fish in the early 1990’s, these stocks still have no rebuilding plans, rebuilding timelines, or science-determined recovery targets,” said Dr. Hutchings. “While other cod fisheries, such as Norway’s, have seen tremendous rebound, most of the stocks off Newfoundland and Labrador remain at critically low levels.” Hutchings calls the depletion of Atlantic cod, “the grea...

“My attitude always was patients first and the hell with anybody else. If you're going to treat them, treat them the same as you want to be treated yourself.” — Dr. Nigel Rusted, a prominent NL physician, who died Sunday at 104. Rusted was born in Salvage, Bonavista Bay, and was a member of the inaugural class of Memorial University in 1925. He earned his medical degree from Dalhousie University and served as health officer for two summers aboard the SS Kyle .  Dr. Nigel Rusted, centre, with granddaughter Angela Hyde, left, a MD/PhD student at Memorial, and Dr. Jennifer Connor. The above quote is taken from today's (March 19th)  thetelegram.com . 

The following letter to the editor is published in today's Saturday Telegram (March 17th). The above shot by Paul Daly was taken during the 2008 federal election with fisherman Sam Lee of Petty Harour. The elimination of the owner-operator and fleet-separation policies — “sacred pillars” of the East Coast fishery that the Conservative government is said to be considering removing — would trigger the end of the traditional inshore fishery. There would be fewer fishermen, making less money, translating into less economic return for already hurting outports. It’s thought that the Harper government intends to replace the fleet separation and owner-operator policies with a system of individual transferable quotas (ITQS), which have been in place in British Columbia’s halibut fishery since the early 1990s. A 2009 B.C. study — The Elephant in the Room: The Hidden Costs of Leasing Individual Transferable Fishing Quotas — concluded that ITQs limit efficiency, stifle innov...

The following letter to the editor appears in today's (March 15th) St. John's Telegram . The above picture was taken last fall in Petty Harbour with fishermen Doug Howlett and son Jonathan Howlett after a morning on the water. Dear editor, No wonder fishing people on the Atlantic coast of Canada are up in arms over the federal government’s dangerous new effort to mess with the fishery. They know what happened on the other side of the country, up and down the B.C. coast, where fishing boat graveyards litter the scene. These boats were abandoned as a result of disastrous fishing licence rules that led to the fishery being controlled in too few hands. In fact, licences and fish quota are now often owned not by fishing boat operators but by seafood corporations. Today, a fishery that had been the key engine of the rural coastal economy is instead, believe it or not, largely controlled out of B.C.’s cities. This sad situation decimated many coastal communities that n...

I gave the following speech on Sunday, March 11 th , at the annual general meeting of the St. John’s South-Mount Pearl NDP Riding Association, held at the Battery Hotel. The above picture (Andrew Vaughan, The Canadian Press) with the late Jack Layton was taken during the lead up to the May 2011 federal election.  Good afternoon and welcome to the annual general meeting of the St. John’s South-Mount Pearl New Democratic Party Riding Association.  Or Mount Pearl-St. John’s-South riding association, depending on where I’m speaking. It’s been 10 months since this riding went New Democrat — went orange — in the May 2011 election.  Ideally, we would have held the meeting earlier, but it’s been busy trying to protect Canada from Stephen Harper’s agenda, a Conservative agenda that will change the face of the country, an agenda that will shred Canada’s reputation as a leader of nations, as the gage by which global character is measured.  Unless we take a stand....

On Tuesday, Nov. 29, I, along with NDP Transport critic Olivia Chow , raised questions in the House of Commons regarding Cougar Flight 491. Almost four months later - on the 3rd anniversary of the tragic crash of Cougar 491 - and the federal government and Transport Canada have yet to provide answers. Cleary (St. John’s South-Mount Pearl): Mr. Speaker, 17 people died on March 12, 2009, when Cougar flight 491 went down after loss of oil pressure. Less than a year before, the same thing happened to an Australian helicopter, but Transport Canada failed to take action. After the Newfoundland tragedy, the Transportation Safety Board recommended that all Cougars must be able to run dry for 30 minutes, but the Sikorsky still fails the test. Mr. Speaker, why are we giving the Cougars a free pass at the risk of the lives of offshore workers? Response from Transport Minister Denis Lebel : Mr. Speaker, this was a very tragic accident. My thoughts are with the victims and their families. My depart...