e-4317

Petition to the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard

• DFO’s mandate includes promoting the stability and economic viability of fishing operations;
• Canadian owner-operator fish harvesters are increasingly displaced by foreign acquisition of Canada’s commercial fishing licenses and quotas;
• Canada does not currently have any limitation on foreign ownership of commercial fishing licenses and quotas in the Pacific Region;
• Canada does not record or track citizenship within transactions of fishing licenses and quotas;
• The absence of restrictions on foreign ownership of commercial fishing licenses and quotas damages the economic viability of Canadian-owned fishing operations, harvesters and their families, and coastal communities;
• Foreign investment in Canadian commercial fisheries is in direct competition with DFO and First Nations’ pursuit of acquisition of fishing licenses and quotas thereby compounding challenges related to meeting reconciliation objectives;
• Foreign ownership of commercial fishing access compromises domestic food security and is directly linked to economic losses of domestic fish processing and processing jobs in Canada; and
• The House of Commons Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans’ 2019 Report on Sharing Risks and Benefits recommends “That based on the principle that fish in Canadian waters are a resource for Canadians (i.e. common property), no future sales of fishing quota and/or licenses be to non-Canadian beneficial owners based on the consideration of issues of legal authority, and international agreement/trade impacts.”.