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Judy Foote, MHA for the District of Grand Bank, calls the decision by
Fishery Products International not to continue its groundfish operation in
Fortune devastating news for the area and, in particular, the employees
affected. She further questions where Premier Williams is when a company,
that is bound by a piece of provincial legislation, is not being held
accountable for its actions?
"I know only too well the disappointment and disbelief felt by the
residents of Fortune and surrounding communities with this latest move by
FPI. Even though they were fearful that this might be the final outcome,
they continued to live in hope that FPI would once again find its social
conscience and find a way to continue to operate in Fortune. That
disappointment in FPI is equal only to the disappointment that my
constituents and I have in a provincial government that has not been more
involved in this issue," says Foote. "It is yet another example of how the
premier and this government continues to ignore pressing issues in the
fishery. Such inaction, and apparent lack of interest, in anything to do
with the fishery in this province further adds to the inability of rural
areas to survive the crises they are facing."
Foote has called the premier to task in recent months for his lack of
focus on the fishery claiming that his focus on oil and gas initiatives have
been to the detriment of the one industry that has been the backbone of this
province since this province existed. "It is crucial that Premier Williams
take a personal interest in what is happening with the fishery and
acknowledge the impact the crisis is having on the province, in particular
on rural areas of the province," stated Foote. "It doesn’t take much to
understand the importance of the fishery when you consider that it is a
renewable resource if managed properly, contrary to other resources like oil
and gas." The Liberal MHA says this lack of interest and action by the
premier is causing untold hardship throughout the province because many
areas still rely on the fishery in order to be self_sustaining.
"This latest news out of FPI impacts not only Fortune, but all the other
communities and businesses on the Burin Peninsula which depend on the
employment at the various fish plants to generate economic activity in the
region. While it is the fish plant in Fortune today, those who have
traditionally worked at the fish plants in Marystown and Burin still don’t
know what the future holds for them. It is time for the government to decide
how they are going to address this matter. I suggest that they immediately
start with amending the existing FPI legislation to force FPI to
cross_subsidize its operations as a way to ensure the long_term stability of
all its subsidiaries, which is not an uncommon practice in industry."
Foote notes that she is encouraged by reports that the federal minister
of fisheries has reassured the people of the Burin Peninsula that Ottawa is
working on solutions to counter the disheartening announcement by FPI.
"That is certainly more comfort and encouragement than we have heard from
our provincial government, albeit in the case of the fish plant in Fortune,
Cooke Aquaculture has been identified as an interested party. The problem is
that even the principles of Cooke acknowledge that without a quota, it will
be at least 18 months before anything happens in Fortune. Now would be a
good time for the government to make such quota available if they are not
interested in holding FPI accountable," says Foote.
"It is truly alarming that we have a premier who has let the fishery and
rural files slide in favour of concentrating his efforts on lucrative, yet
short_term oil and gas projects to fuel us economically. It is a
shortsighted and a dangerous approach that is costing this province dearly."
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